‘Frozen’ Review ’s Broadway of new smash
FOR its new stage musical “Frozen,” Disney should have heeded the sage advice of Queen Elsa: Let it go. Broadway should be the place to see what you can do, to test the limits and break through. No right, no wrong, no rules for thee — you’re free! But that’s wishful thinking. With “Frozen,” the House of Mou se doesn’t let us in, doesn’t let us see. Stays the good Mouse it alwalways has to be. Conceals, dodoesn’t feel. Doesn’t let us knknow. Well,W here’s what I know: “FFrozen” is not a very good shshow. TThat’s a shocker, because the ororiginal film, clocking in at a didigestible 1 hour and 49 minututes, is so charming. The characters are lovable, the concept is clever and the icy CGI landscapes have a magical Nordic beauty about them. Its Oscarwinning big song, “Let It Go,” by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, originally sung by Idina Menzel, was Disney’s best in years. But on Broadway, where it’s snsnowballed to 2 hours and 20 mminutes, the production’s attetempt to replicate the movie ononstage has backfired. And not spspectacularly. The once lovely stostory has become visually drab, mechanical and often boring. Cold, if you like.
The plot follows the film as closely as a stalker. Little Princess Elsa has the magic power to create ice and snow from her fingertips. The trick is all fun and games till she accidentally turns her sister Anna into a popsicle. So, Elsa slaps on some protective gloves — like spackling a nail hole — and hides away in her room, never coming out for years.
Adult Elsa (Caissie Levy) finally emerges on her coronation day, and inadvertently magicks the Kingdom of Arendelle into the apocalyptic tundra of “The Day After Tomorrow.” The townsfolk hunt down the sorceress, while Grownup Anna (Patti Murin), who was defrosted by the mystical Hidden Folk, sings upbeat love songs with Prince Hans (John Riddle). The act ends powerfully with “Let it Go,” the show’s only thrilling moment.
Also along for the sleigh ride are Kristoff (Jelani Alladin) and Sven the Reindeer, as well as Olaf the Snowman, a puppet-human hybrid played by Greg Hildreth, who can be a bit twee.
The show checks off every box on the “Frozen” checklist, so why is it so much worse? In a live theater experience, audiences have different expectations than with animated films — namely human connection and relatability. It’s mighty difficult for Elsa to connect with anybody when, for much of the show, she is alone in a faraway ice palace.
Separated, the sisters’ relationship becomes murky. How can you really root for them when the only real glimpse we get of the pair is during one early song — “Do You Wanna Build A Snowman?” — which takes place during their child- hood? You can’t and you don’t.
Even so, the two stars of the show manage to frequently rise above the production’s avalanche of limitations. Murin is a gifted comedic actress who can mine jokes out of anything. And Levy finds the emotional storm raging inside Elsa quite beautifully. She sings the part better than Menzel, too. During “Let It Go,” little girls will absolutely lose their minds.
The last time director Michael Grandage tackled a Broadway musical was 2012’s “Evita,” which he inexplicably sapped of all energy and life, as he has done here. His staging is packed with nifty giant icicles (sets by Christopher Oram) and enough snowy projections for a screening of “White Christmas.”
But what “Frozen” desperately needs is a bomb cyclone of heart.