West End musical Frozen announces additional casting and new opening date
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Nicholas Ephram Ryan Daniels
The hotly anticipated West End transfer of Frozen on Broadway has now been postponed to 2021, it has been confirmed. However, there is a silver lining as the London production has finally found its lead cast and company set to join the previously announced Samantha Barks and the later confirmed Stephanie McKeon next spring!
Meet the cast of Frozen, coming to London's West End in Spring 2021.
Frozen delays West End premiere to April 2021
The long-awaited UK premiere of Frozen The West End Musical has been pushed back to next year. The show will now open at the newly refurbished Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 2 April 2021 for previews with an official opening night to be held on 14 April 2021. The Disney Theatrical production is booking until 24 October 2021.
It is unclear whether the musical will be an open-ended run at this time. Frozen was originally meant to open in October this year, but like many other big-name productions, including Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cinderella, it was forced to reschedule due to the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on the UK theatre industry.
Lead cast and ensemble announced for Frozen at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane
The bad news of the show's delay comes with some good news, however, as the production team have finally "broken the ice" and revealed further casting. Set to join Samantha Barks as Elsa and Stephanie McKeon as Anna are Craig Gallivan as Olaf, Emily-Mae as Bulda, Gabriel Mokake as King Agnarr, Jacqui Sanchez as Queen Iduna, Jak Skelly as Oaken/Bishop, Joshua St. Clair as Pabbie, Mikayla Jade and Ashley Birchall alternating the role of Sven, Obioma Ugoala as Kristoff, Oliver Ormson as Hans, and Richard Frame as Weselton.
They are joined by Anna Woodside, Cameron Burt, Danielle Fiamanya, Emily Lane, Hannah Fairclough, Isabel Snaas, Jacob Maynard, Jake Small, Jason Leigh Winter, Jemma Revell, Jeremy Batt, Joe Griffiths-Brown, Justin-Lee Jones, Laura Emmitt, Lauren Chia, Leisha Mollyneaux, Matt Gillett, Monica Swayne, and Sarah O'Connor.
On the show's casting, director Michael Grandage said today: "We're thrilled to announce the company for Frozen – an incredibly talented group of people who will be creating the London premiere at the newly refurbished Theatre Royal Drury Lane next spring. As theatres start to open their doors again, we look forward to celebrating the spectacle of this beloved story with audiences everywhere."
Frozen West End creatives
Frozen is directed in London's West End by Michael Grandage and features music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez and a book written by Jennifer Lee. The creative team also features choreographer Rob Ashford, set and costume designer Christopher Oram, lighting designer Neil Austin, video designer Finn Ross, sound designer Peter Hylenski, puppet designer Michael Curry, and musical supervisor Stephen Oremus also providing the show's arrangements.
About Frozen The Musical
Frozen will be shown in London at the newly renovated Theatre Royal Drury Lane and is based on one of the highest-grossing animated films of all time, which was first released in cinemas worldwide back in 2013. The musical centres on Elsa, a princess gifted with superhuman ice-manipulating powers who, together with her estranged sister Anna, try to rule a kingdom.
The hit Broadway stage musical was nominated for three Tony Award in 2018, including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Original Score. It was also nominated for two Drama Desk Awards, taking home the one for Outstanding Puppet Design in 2018. The West End production is also likely destined to rake in major UK theatre awards following its anticipated London premiere and you definitely won't want to miss it!
The film that started it all and its sequel now on Disney Plus!
The original Disney film recently spawned a sequel last autumn (Frozen 2) and is noted for winning two Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song ("Let It Go"), two Golden Globe Awards for the same categories, two Grammy Awards for Best Song Written for Visual Media and Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media, and a BAFTA for Best Animated Film. Both the original Frozen film and its 2019 sequel Frozen 2 are available to stream on Disney+.
