Review: DISNEY'S FROZEN Brings the Magic at the Huron Country Playhouse

There is a charming production of Disney’s FROZEN happening at Drayton Entertainment’s Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend, Ontario right now and I cannot think of a better way to cool down after a day at the beach with the family!

The beloved story of Elsa, the newly coronated Queen of Arendelle, who isolates herself as she learns to understand her magical ice powers, and her younger sister Anna who sets out on her own journey of self-discovery while in search of her sister, has moved from screen to stage.

The Disney mega-hit musical is popping up in many regional theatres these days, after licensing rights became available in recent years, and it’s fun to see different performers have a crack at these instantly classic and beloved characters. It’s also lovely to see entire families taking in theatre together. Witnessing a child not only experience live theatre for the first time, but also see their favourite Disney characters come to life, is a kind of magic that not even Elsa can compete with, and watching the performers spot the mini Elsas, Annas, Svens, etc. during bows was equally magical.

With a Book by Jennifer Lee and Music and Lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, this musical production of Disney’s FROZEN has the same story and music as the film, with some additional songs added in.

Warning: This review will contain some plot spoilers. Given the popularity of the movie, I think this is safe.

A large portion of the Creative Team for this production, including Director Jeremy Webb and Choreographer Robin Calvert were also behind the excellent production of this musical mounted by Theatre Aquarius last year (with Webb and several other creatives also having been involved with the Canadian premiere of the show at Neptune Theatre). It’s fresh and fun to see what they do with a (mostly) new company of actors.

Something ironically unique about Disney’s FROZEN is that in some ways, each production won’t be unique. The digital projections and puppets are going to more or less be exactly the same across productions. The costumes are always going to be very similar, and audiences have certain expectations of the story they are about to see. The Disney brand must be maintained and I imagine just about every aspect of a production like this has to be approved. This sort of consistency is the norm in Broadway productions that go on tour, but is not necessarily typical for regional productions – at least not to this degree. This runs the risk of leading to an almost ‘paint by numbers’ feel to a show. Luckily, this does not happen here, and credit for that goes to a company of actors who all bring their own unique takes to these characters, and a Director and Choreographer in Webb and Calvert who clearly foster that.

Returning to their roles from the Theatre Aquarius production of Disney’s FROZEN are Naomi McIntyre and Addison Wagman as Young Elsa and Young Anna. The heart of this story – the relationship between the two sisters – truly hinges on the performances of these young actresses because it is through them that we see a time when Elsa and Anna are close. It is also through them that we see the event that changes everything. Both McIntyre and Wagman deliver. McIntyre is heartbreaking as a young Elsa who is afraid of her own gifts, and Wagman is a riot as the kooky Anna who absolutely adores her older sister.

After their younger counterparts lay out the initial groundwork, Melanie Paiement and AJ Bridel take the baton and run with it. Paiement does well to portray an Elsa who is clinging to a well-intentioned but flawed piece of advice (“conceal, don’t feel”) from her father (Tim Funnell) – who never lived long enough to realize his error and update his advice. Elsa's journey to accepting all aspects of herself is beautiful and empowering and Paiement's vocal performances are fantastic.

AJ Bridel brings all the energy, spunk and kookiness to Princess Anna that one could ever hope for. Her chemistry with Paiement, along with Sayer Roberts’ Hans and Seth Johnson’s Kristoff feels easy and natural. It genuinely feels like she was born to play this role.

Sayer Roberts is a delight as Hans – bringing the perfect combination of charm and physical comedy in the earlier scenes and (spoiler) the perfect Disney villain vibe later in the show. He’s in fact so good that one gets the sense that he has been waiting his whole life to execute this devious and juicy of a heel turn. The moment is utterly delicious.

As Kristoff, Seth Johnson is instantly endearing. I chuckled every time the character found himself reluctantly dancing (and doing it well). Kristoff’s trusted sidekick, Darren Burkett’s Sven, is an audience favourite – leading to one young audience member briefly stealing the show with the most pure and innocent guttural laughter at absolutely everything Sven did.

Powell Nobert brings the beloved Olaf to life – both through puppetry and an excellent vocal performance. The youthful glee with which several grownup audience members reacted to his Olaf will fuel my personal whimsy for the rest of the summer.

Much like other Disney classics that came before it, FROZEN does not shy away from more ‘adult’ moments and themes, such as those of trauma and grief. This is packaged in a way for young people to process and understand , but when you reflect on it, the nuance and messaging in this show goes much deeper than one might think. One could write essays about the complex (and very different) traumas that both Elsa and Anna experience due to the same events in their childhood that affect them in vastly different ways. Although this cannot fully be portrayed in the musical (if it was, it would be a very different show) the culmination of trauma and the sisters' resulting conflicting deep-rooted fears is portrayed beautifully by Paiement and Bridel in the duet I Can’t Lose You.

The entire ensemble comes to play with a dedication to the magic of this world that allows us all to live in it for a few hours, and speaking of the magic of theatre, Drayton Entertainment has very evidently (and I believe, correctly) made the choice to prioritize the comfort and joy of its youngest audience members. If you see this show, you will hear children finishing lines and pointing out their favourite characters, and you may have a light-up snowflake wand waved in front of you from time to time. Although the performances in this production are meant for audiences of all ages, children (and those who are kids at heart) are the most important audience members here, and are the reason this show is as magical as it is.

DISNEY’S FROZEN continues at the Huron Country Playhouse until August 30th.

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