It is April 12, 2026. It is snowing inside the Todd Wehr Theater at the Marcus Performing Arts Center. It is not MY fault. My snow shovel is still at my back door and my snow brush is still in the car. No, it’s those pesky kids at First Stage presenting a very accomplished and engaging production of Disney’s Frozen!
And again, First Stage is providing me with a new cultural experience. Being a man of a certain age whose grandchildren grew up very far away, I was never exposed to Frozen before this past weekend. Yes, I knew the major character’s names but only because they are now very popular crossword puzzle clues. LOL!
This is officially Disney’s Frozen but from what saw Sunday, this is every four to seven year old girl’s Frozen. I don’t remember seeing such a young audience at prior First Act events and this is the first time the theater has been completely sold out. So don’t wait to get tickets if you are considering going. And like many character driven plays based on other major sources, the electricity was palpable and exciting as you experience the buzz and hear the chatter of young voices. But once the lights went down things were different this time. In other big stage musicals, after the initial hush, the young audience will often engage with the action directly, answering questions, telling a character not to do something, or just trying to enter the conversation. This time the hush was nearly total and lasted curtain to curtain. They were totally engaged and on the edge of their seats to just as great an extent, and yes, into it, dancing in place or waving their arms to the music. Amazing. And I almost forgot to mention, this group was a fashion parade of every type of Elsa or Anna princess dress in existence. A very delightful encounter beyond just the music and theater.
The full official title is Disney’s Frozen, The Broadway Musical. So this is a full fledged musical with about two dozen amazing songs with the original music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, with the book by Jennifer Lee, and based on the Disney film also written by Lee. So the story is driven by song and to enhance that experience, there is a live five piece orchestra on site, but sequestered away in an orchestra ‘pit’ somewhere.
And here at First Stage, Director Michael Dean Morgan and Associate Director and Choreographer Michelle LoRicco have brought all of First Stage’s magic to bear and have created a seamless event around the complex story that just sweeps you up in a north wind! And I mean that in a good way. In his note from the director, Morgan states: “Rather than hiding the stagecraft, our ensemble of storytellers…brings the magic to life. There are no projectors, no screens, just talented artists shaping the storms, the snow, and even puppeteering beloved characters. ” And this is the magic of First Stage productions. Yes, there are storms to be exhibited, through lights and waving lengths of silky materials, and actors moving set pieces to take us to new environs, and amazing puppets to be the mythical and imaginary characters vital to the story. The stage craft is right there in front of us and we clearly see it and we embrace it as part of the story. And we move from castle bedroom to an ice castle on a mountain top and on and on.
Did Morgan say puppets? Yes, Indeed! Once again Puppet Designer Niki Kulas has created a cast of amazing puppets, again clearly showing the audience how they work, and enchanting us with how well they represent the characters. Let’s start with Sven, a giant reindeer head that a younger actor wears like a vest and sways around the stage making everyone of us want to pat it on the nose. And the animated snowman, Olaf, sings and ‘dances’ and shuffles through the action attached to another young actor at the feet and manipulated manually. And the Hill People, which to this viewer are giant trolls from my youthful fairy tales. Giant troll head and giant hands controlled by two actors, one bobbing the head while another waves the hand. They are a bit of comic relief when they appear as rescuers at two stress points in the narrative. Here the magic of stage craft and the magic of the forest unites.
I think I am going to stick this notice here today: First Stage uses a core cast of adults and young adults in their main stage musicals like Frozen. And then fill out the roles with two alternating casts of younger actors. The two casts for Frozen are the Fire Cast and the Frost Cast. So if you hope to see a particular young actor make sure you order tickets for a performance featuring their cast. I saw the Frost Cast.
Initially we meet our princesses Elsa and Anna as youngsters at bed time. Elsa is a bit quiet and thoughtful and wary and played with just the right about of reserve by Emily Dalecky (Frost). Her younger sister Anna presents a different personality, as played by McKenna Becker (Frost), she is sassy and direct and eager to live. After pushing her parents out of the bedroom she is the one bouncing off the walls wanting to play. She finally convinces Elsa to build a ‘snowman’ from toys and pillows and such and they name it Olaf. The dynamic set here for the sisters personalities and relationship helps mold the action in the rest of the story.
(Spoiler Alert?) This is a Disney princess fairy tale so there is magic and mystery and tragedy and duplicity all wrapped about the moral about the true love of family and sisters. Of course there is a secret, Elsa has the power to freeze things with a wave of her hand. A power no one understands and one that she can’t control herself. Once she harms Anna, they are separated and sequestered until adulthood. The King and Queen go off to find a solution but perish in a storm. The cloistered siblings are fairly naive when the are united as adults at Elsa’s coronation. Anna meets Prince Hans, who has 12 elder brothers, and immediately falls for the handsome young man and immediately agrees to marry him. Hans is played as suave and smooth and maybe a bit rakish by William Kastner (Frost). Delightfully romantic on meeting, he turns into a villain soon enough and Kastner has the chops for that as well.
When Anna announces her engagement to Elsa at the coronation, Elsa gets angry and with a wave of her hand, starts a new Ice Age. Elsa then heads for the mountains to protect her family and friends and kingdom from her powers and creates her own Ice Castle on a mountain. Anna pursues to try to help Elsa and the great adventures begin. Anna needs some help and meets Kristoff who provides cold weather mountain gear and immediately starts to provide his services as a guide. William Swoboda (Frost) gives Kristoff a bit of swagger but definitely a solid sense of self-sufficiency without any sign of doubt or thought for himself. And of course, he brings along his friend Sven, played by Johnathan Doome (Frost). And the emergence of the animated living Olaf is just a delight. A very animated and charming Dominic Lasky (Frost) gets to inhabit this fan favorite.
At this point, Elsa and Anna are adults and are now played by different actresses. Molly Hill Fuller plays a somewhat imperious and ‘icy’ figure here but clearly defines the sense of fear she holds that is part of the under story to her power. Anna is portrayed by Alice Rivera (Frost) as not quite the sassy lass of the first scenes but certainly a determined can do at any cost woman of action. It serves her well and Rivera is true to the character. For me, Anna is the more intriguing character in the play and remained my focus point throughout. The highlight is a duet between Elsa and Ann, “I Can’t Lose You”, sung when they are finally reunited. Both actors have lush clear voices that fill the room and hold the moment. Their pairing is just just right and they both have presence and voice beyond what you would expect here in a youthful cast.
But Anna falls victim to Elsa’s powers once again, so all parties must retreat to their home in Arendelle to expose the villains and effect the magic that provides our happily ever after.
Disney’s Frozen runs one hour and 45 minutes plus an intermission. First Stage Recommends this for families with young people ages 8-18 and determined adventurers of all ages. I saw a lot of young people here that were younger than 8. And it seemed that a lot of these were already familiar with the story and the characters. But if you are wondering, there is some flirtation between Hans and Anna, the King and Queen do perish in a storm that is lightly depicted on stage, and there is magic and some threats of violence. The trolls are more comical than ominous.
P.S. I have rambled on a lot more than usual, but something that I partially missed. Pay attention to Elsa as a quick costume change on stage switches her from Queen Elsa in regal blue to the Ice Queen in shimmery icy white threads.
First Stage presents Disney’s Frozen in the Todd Wehr Theater in the Marcus Performing Arts Center from now through May 17th, 2026. Tickets and further information here
Extra Credit Reading: Enrichment Guide
and it snowed in the Todd Wehr Theater
