Interview: Ben Steinfeld of TWELVE KINDS OF ICE at Children's Theatre Company

Ben Steinfeld has had a storied career both on Broadway and in multiple screen appearances. His newest venture is the adaptation of Ellen Bryan Obed's book, Twelve Kinds of Ice. 

Glide through the ever-shifting magic of winter as Ellen recalls childhood memories of icy adventures with her loving father. In this world premiere musical, cold temperatures and warm hearts unite to tell a tender story that takes us from spotting the first glaze of ice to building an ice rink and hosting skating shows, hockey games, and moonlit solos. Watch in awe as ice freezes before your very eyes, then melts your heart

Broadway World caught up with Steinfeld to discuss the upcoming production and how he brought this piece to the stage. What follows is that conversation:

BW: You have had an illustrious career that has taken you around the world. What inspired you to premiere Twelve Kinds of Ice at Children’s Theatre Company?

BS: Thank you for describing my career as "illustrious"!  That's very nice to hear and to think on.  

My old grad school friend and colleague, Rick Dildine, is the artistic director at CTC.  I sent him the show, thinking perhaps he would have thoughts or advice about it. But he responded to the piece so deeply and immediately, and that put us on the path to this production!  This will be my first time working at a theater that is dedicated specifically to multi-generational audiences, but much of the work I've made over the years has turned out to have that kind of wide appeal.

BW:  While some audiences may know your stage credits, what drew you to want to write a musical?

BS: After many years of acting, directing, and teaching, I felt ready for a new challenge.  Since I love/do/study/teach musicals, my creative instincts often lean towards thinking about how musicalizing something for the stage might work.  And I've written songs since I was young, and have often written music for Shakespeare productions and other shows, so it seemed like it was time to take the leap into really taking responsibility for a fuller musical for real.

BW: The musical is based on Ellen Bryan Obed’s book of the same name. What spoke to you in the text that pushed you to adapt it into a musical?

BS: I read the book to my son when he was young, and I was struck by the poetic language and gentle flow of the imagery and memories.  And it had a built-in structure - a story that goes from the beginning of a season (in this case, winter) to the end of it. But it was my conversation with Ellen when I asked her permission to do the adaptation that gave me the idea for the framing and themes of the musical, which are resonant with the original book, but also quite different emotionally.

BW: What is your creative process when writing a musical? Do you prefer to tackle the full book first or do you instinctively write the songs as you go? 

BS: I love thinking about the overall structure of the story, and having a clear "why" in mind for what the show is hoping to achieve.  Yet the execution of the details along the way certainly ends up impacting and changing things, and you want to leave some space for the show to teach you what it wants to be as you go.  So both are important.  Eisenhower's "Plans are nothing; planning is everything" comes close.  :)

BW:  What do you hope audiences will take away from this piece?

BS: I hope they experience a sense of awe and wonder, and also perhaps the feeling of being reminded of some things that perhaps they forgot they knew.  I hope it makes them want to hug whoever they came with (or anyone, really).

BW: What do you find has been the biggest challenge in creating a new show?

BS: Getting someone to produce it, honestly.  That's why I am very grateful to Rick and CTC for making that commitment.  It's no small thing.

BW: Fun question: What other book have you wanted to adapt into a musical? Have you begun work on it?

BS: I think these have all been fun questions, but...I have a couple of books that I'm interested in adapting for the stage.  Some of them are non-fiction, actually, and I have begun making some notes.  The Playbook by James Shapiro comes to mind, so no one else can use that one!

Broadway World wants to thank Ben and the team at Children's Theatre Company for their time and access. 

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