I saw the Disney movie Frozen after all of the hype and mania, after it was announced there was a theatrical adaptation in the works. I certainly enjoyed it, although I did find it slight. I do remember wondering how it was all going to work on stage. So much of it is visual animation gags. How would any director figure out a way to make ice and snow shoot from his or her protagonist's hands?
Of course, if anyone was going to manage it, it would be Disney. And it was clear by how quickly this musical was green-lit that it didn't matter. They'd figure it out somehow.
So now we have Frozen at the St. James Theater. And well, it's presented at face value. And it is a very enjoyable 2:20. The effects are exciting enough, the set and costumes are elaborate, the songs are still there. It's a crowd-pleaser, and if you are there to see Frozen, you're going to leave happy.
But I couldn't help but think, "something is missing."
As I already mentioned, so much of what makes Frozen the movie work is the great animation. It's exciting when Elsa's ice castle is built from her magic. On stage, there is no ice castle, just a Swarovski crystal-encrusted curtain right out of a Las Vegas revue. Elsa's magic comes in the form of very impressive projections. When characters talk about how dire the situation is in Arendelle, we just see them react; there's tons of telling without showing. Because how could they show? The result is like watching a movie that only has close-up reaction shots.
All of the visual gags with the snowman Olaf are, for the most part, non-existent. In fact, Olaf could be cut completely and the musical would not suffer for it. However, given that he's one of the most popular aspects of the movie, they would never, ever consider that, so he's shoehorned into the proceedings. The design and concept is similar to Timon in The Lion King musical, so the character is even more intrusive. He should be more magical than he is but they just can't possibly do the movie gags on stage. But director Michael Grandage didn't really attempt to make more out of him. There's no development. He barely gets a song! And the one he does, "Summer," received a nice ovation on the night I saw it. He should get a showstopper!
And there in lies the major problem with Frozen as it is on the St. James stage. What is being presented is fine for a theme park or cruise show. It tells the story in a very straight-forward way, as though the creative team decided that they just could not deviate in any way. Just give the people what they want. But it comes off almost lazy. Sure, there are new (and mediocre) songs but they don't do anything but pad the events that already existed in the movie. There isn't a showstopping production number ("Hygge" tries but the naked ensemble members are a bizarre inclusion for a show geared towards children and "Fixer Upper" is fun but not exciting enough), nothing akin to "Be Our Guest" or "Friend Like Me." "Let it Go" is a showstopper but a Disney musical should have more than a park-and-bark ballad to wow the crowd. The show also needs an "I want" song for Anna so we understand her motivation better; develop her desire for love and affection and freedom. Let us understand why she is so quick to accept Hans. The poor thing is saddled with a terrible solo towards the end of the show, "True Love" that adds nothing to the show. Anna is the lead! She deserves a big solo! And speaking of Hans, he needs a big villain number. His turn is so sudden and gasp! underdeveloped. His motivation is explained with one throwaway line. And this is Disney! They've given us terrific villains like Ursula and Scar and Gaston!
Kristoff, is, unsurprisingly, not developed either. We see that he has feelings for Anna but he gets two very short songs in the show. He also deserves a number. Give him a solo in the second act reflecting his feelings for Anna going back to Hans, the one she believes is her true love. And while we're on the topic of songs that should be in the show, why don't Anna and Elsa ever sing together? When they're reconciled at the end, when we discover that Elsa is Anna's true love (which is not exactly too believable in this version of the story--Elsa and Anna barely seem like they like each other), they should sing. And not a reprise of "Let it Go!"
And then there's Elsa.
Even in the movie, Elsa is a deceptively small role. Sure, she gets the big song, so Disney marketed her as the big star of the brand. But she doesn't have much to do in the movie; this is Anna's story. And the musical is the same. Elsa has very little to do on stage, in fact, I'm not really sure she has a book scene. But she does have three, THREE solos. She has the "I want song" and the eleven o'clock number, "Monster." But who is she? We don't spend much time with her. She runs off the stage early in the first act and comes back forty-five minutes later because she has to sing "Let it Go." The song is completely unearned. Her big solo at the end of the second act comes out of nowhere because she may as well not even be in the show. Whenever she'd reappear I'd think, "oh, right, you're in this too."
Maybe the problem lies with book writer Jennifer Lee, who also directed and wrote the screenplay for the film. She put her movie on stage but she needed someone, perhaps a dramaturg, to help shape the story for the stage. Help her understand some more theatrical conventions. What makes a stage musical work.
Ha. Who am I kidding? Disney just sees this as a cash cow.
But it's not all doom and gloom. Yes, it is enjoyable, despite it's flaws. Some of the special effects are fun. And so is most of the cast: Patti Murin, Jelani Alladin, and John Riddle are all perfectly charming as Anna, Kristoff, and Hans, respectively.
And oh, then there's Sven. A beautiful piece of puppetry and stagecraft that nothing else in the show rises to.
Of course, if anyone was going to manage it, it would be Disney. And it was clear by how quickly this musical was green-lit that it didn't matter. They'd figure it out somehow.
So now we have Frozen at the St. James Theater. And well, it's presented at face value. And it is a very enjoyable 2:20. The effects are exciting enough, the set and costumes are elaborate, the songs are still there. It's a crowd-pleaser, and if you are there to see Frozen, you're going to leave happy.
But I couldn't help but think, "something is missing."
As I already mentioned, so much of what makes Frozen the movie work is the great animation. It's exciting when Elsa's ice castle is built from her magic. On stage, there is no ice castle, just a Swarovski crystal-encrusted curtain right out of a Las Vegas revue. Elsa's magic comes in the form of very impressive projections. When characters talk about how dire the situation is in Arendelle, we just see them react; there's tons of telling without showing. Because how could they show? The result is like watching a movie that only has close-up reaction shots.
All of the visual gags with the snowman Olaf are, for the most part, non-existent. In fact, Olaf could be cut completely and the musical would not suffer for it. However, given that he's one of the most popular aspects of the movie, they would never, ever consider that, so he's shoehorned into the proceedings. The design and concept is similar to Timon in The Lion King musical, so the character is even more intrusive. He should be more magical than he is but they just can't possibly do the movie gags on stage. But director Michael Grandage didn't really attempt to make more out of him. There's no development. He barely gets a song! And the one he does, "Summer," received a nice ovation on the night I saw it. He should get a showstopper!
And there in lies the major problem with Frozen as it is on the St. James stage. What is being presented is fine for a theme park or cruise show. It tells the story in a very straight-forward way, as though the creative team decided that they just could not deviate in any way. Just give the people what they want. But it comes off almost lazy. Sure, there are new (and mediocre) songs but they don't do anything but pad the events that already existed in the movie. There isn't a showstopping production number ("Hygge" tries but the naked ensemble members are a bizarre inclusion for a show geared towards children and "Fixer Upper" is fun but not exciting enough), nothing akin to "Be Our Guest" or "Friend Like Me." "Let it Go" is a showstopper but a Disney musical should have more than a park-and-bark ballad to wow the crowd. The show also needs an "I want" song for Anna so we understand her motivation better; develop her desire for love and affection and freedom. Let us understand why she is so quick to accept Hans. The poor thing is saddled with a terrible solo towards the end of the show, "True Love" that adds nothing to the show. Anna is the lead! She deserves a big solo! And speaking of Hans, he needs a big villain number. His turn is so sudden and gasp! underdeveloped. His motivation is explained with one throwaway line. And this is Disney! They've given us terrific villains like Ursula and Scar and Gaston!
Kristoff, is, unsurprisingly, not developed either. We see that he has feelings for Anna but he gets two very short songs in the show. He also deserves a number. Give him a solo in the second act reflecting his feelings for Anna going back to Hans, the one she believes is her true love. And while we're on the topic of songs that should be in the show, why don't Anna and Elsa ever sing together? When they're reconciled at the end, when we discover that Elsa is Anna's true love (which is not exactly too believable in this version of the story--Elsa and Anna barely seem like they like each other), they should sing. And not a reprise of "Let it Go!"
And then there's Elsa.
Even in the movie, Elsa is a deceptively small role. Sure, she gets the big song, so Disney marketed her as the big star of the brand. But she doesn't have much to do in the movie; this is Anna's story. And the musical is the same. Elsa has very little to do on stage, in fact, I'm not really sure she has a book scene. But she does have three, THREE solos. She has the "I want song" and the eleven o'clock number, "Monster." But who is she? We don't spend much time with her. She runs off the stage early in the first act and comes back forty-five minutes later because she has to sing "Let it Go." The song is completely unearned. Her big solo at the end of the second act comes out of nowhere because she may as well not even be in the show. Whenever she'd reappear I'd think, "oh, right, you're in this too."
Maybe the problem lies with book writer Jennifer Lee, who also directed and wrote the screenplay for the film. She put her movie on stage but she needed someone, perhaps a dramaturg, to help shape the story for the stage. Help her understand some more theatrical conventions. What makes a stage musical work.
Ha. Who am I kidding? Disney just sees this as a cash cow.
But it's not all doom and gloom. Yes, it is enjoyable, despite it's flaws. Some of the special effects are fun. And so is most of the cast: Patti Murin, Jelani Alladin, and John Riddle are all perfectly charming as Anna, Kristoff, and Hans, respectively.
And oh, then there's Sven. A beautiful piece of puppetry and stagecraft that nothing else in the show rises to.
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