Frozen: The Hit Broadway Musical

Although I have long be a fan of the stage, I have been leery of live action and stage versions of animated films ever since my wife insisted I take our children to the stage version of Lion King, battled 2-hours of traffic each way to get there, and the kids' reaction was they liked the cartoon better. However, I seem to be one of the select few who had not seen the animated version of Frozen before I saw this stage adaptation, so I had no preconceptions or expectations and did not have to spend my time deciding which was "better." I found this stage play perfectly enjoyable. I have been a fan of Samantha Barks for years and she, as usual, was exceptional both in her singing and acting. Laura Dawkes was a revelation; she has a great voice and is a born comedian. Craig Galavan operating the puppet snowman also provided comic relief. In fact, after watching the animated film, I actually preferred the stage play version in many ways. I am not a great fan of CGI animated people, and the humor struck me as funny when presented by live actors rather than "cute," as is generally the case with CGI animated figures. As with most musicals, there were only a few "hits", but the other songs were more than adequate to move the action forward.

Keep in mind while watching that an inherent problem with filmed stage shows is that the actors are projecting to an audience, not a camera, so they might look like they are overacting somewhat in the closeups.

Loved it! I'll undoubtedly be adding some of the new songs to my musicals playlist.

With beautiful costumes, complex moving sets and a captivating ensemble, I was quickly won over. The puppeteering of Sven and Olaf is an awesome way to bring them to life, and the use of lighting for the magic looks super cool.

I didn't mind the little differences in the plot either, like I honestly really liked the Hidden Folk. The way they expanded on some of the characters was quite good, as well.

If you enjoy musical theatre adaptations of stories like this, you're bound to like it. Just don't expect a 1:1 remake, and you won't be disappointed.

Wonderful performances from all the cast, great staging and effects, they did really well at translating the movie to the stage.

I loved all the songs, the new songs fit in really well and were great fun to watch. I was very impressed with the performances of the young actors who played young Elsa and Anna. It was also good to have a mixture of close up and wide shots from different angles, which you wouldn't get if you saw it in the theatre.

As someone who loved the original movie, I thought they captured the essence really well while adding extra characterisation and moments which are fun to watch and build the story and the world.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought they did a brilliant job.

Greetings again from the darkness. The first FROZEN movie was released in 2013 and the sequel, FROZEN II in 2019. FROZEN III is scheduled for release in 2027, but since the story (adapted from an original Hans Christian Anderson story) remains so popular, fans get a film version of the stage musical to tide them over ... and ensure no generation (or even part of one) misses out. Brett Sullivan directs the filming of Michael Grandage's stage presentation, and I'm still trying to figure out if young kids will embrace this version.

The talented cast is from London's West End stage production (a three-year run) and includes Samantha Barks (LES MISERABLES, 2012) as Elsa and Laura Dawkes as Anna. We open with young sisters, Elsa and Anna, singing together on "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?". It's the first mention of Olaf, but of course, results in Elsa's frigid magic accidentally injuring Anna. The parents, Royalty in Arendelle, freak out and react by separating the sisters ... until circumstances are such that the two girls come together again.

While there is no need to re-hash the storyline here, there are a few key points emphasized in the stage production. One of the first things we notice is that both Ms. Barks (Elsa) and Ms. Dawkes (Anna) have wonderful singing voices, although it's Anna who gets the most one-liners and laughs, and periodically steals the spotlight. Anna's 'meet-cute' with Hans (Oliver Ormson) is handled well, and the effects are spectacular when Elsa ices over the kingdom during her coronation while having a confrontation with Anna. Kristoff (Jammy Kasongo) and Sven are a welcome addition, yet it's snowman Olaf (Craig Gallivan) who draws in the audience with his love of warm hugs.

The showstopper, "Let it Go", serves up a stunning moment with both the stage effects and the magical costume change for Elsa. The familiar and catchy tune delivers pure entertainment for all ages. What is not so certain is how the younger fans of the movies will react to a dozen new songs written specifically for the stage presentation. The "Hygge" song is the most elaborate, yet the others seem to mostly blend in ... in a good way for seasoned musical lovers (but maybe not so much for young fans). At a minimum, this could very well be a nice transition to live theater for kids, while being extremely entertaining for us old-timers.

Debuts on Disney+ beginning June 20, 2025.

We absolutely love Disney's original animated film-my daughter and I (her name is Anna too, and she was also born in 2013, just like the first Frozen movie :D ). I had high expectations for this theatrical/musical performance, but it did not disappoint. A few observations:

The visuals are stunning. The sets, the costumes, the effects-everything. Absolutely breathtaking. In this area, it far exceeded my expectations.

The cast is top-notch. Everyone, from the leads to the supporting roles. And not just vocally, but in terms of acting as well. Both Anna and Elsa were perfect choices, they portrayed their characters beautifully (and the young Anna and Elsa were adorable and very talented too). A big shoutout to the actor who brought Olaf to life-brilliant job. :)

The songs we already knew from the film were, in my opinion, beautifully arranged and performed. I can't yet fully appreciate the new songs after hearing them only once-each one was good, but for now I couldn't hum any of them yet. A few more viewings might change that. :)

There were a few changes in the storyline (not major, nothing that altered the main plot), mainly to make things work better on stage, and honestly, every change worked really well.

All in all, it's clear that a large and incredibly professional team worked on this production, and I think it's a truly worthy interpretation of the original story.

I had already bought tickets to the live performance, but since those are for October, I just couldn't resist watching the version available on Disney+ in the meantime-and after seeing it, I'm not less excited, but even more looking forward to October!