‘Frozen’ characters highlight Disney skating extravaganza
Despite touring for 10 months at a time and performing hundreds of shows a year, Morgan Bell said she never gets tired of portraying the character Anna from the movie “Frozen.”
“Oh my gosh, to hear the audience react, and to be part of something so much bigger than I anticipated, it’s unbelievable. It’s special,” said Bell, a cast member of the Disney on Ice show “Dream Big,” appearing at Nationwide Arena through Sunday. “It never gets old for me.”
It’s hard to imagine a phenomenon much bigger than “Frozen.” Released in November 2013, the movie won two Academy Awards and earned more than $1.2 billion worldwide to become the top-grossing animated film in history and ninthhighest overall.
One of those Oscars was awarded for best original song, “Let It Go.”
“It seems like every parent’s dream is to be able to take their kids to see this show live,” said Tila Twilley, the show’s performance director. “Children show up in costumes (of “Frozen” characters), and parents and grandparents end up all singing to ‘ Let It Go.’”
The entire first act and beginning of the second act is devoted to other Disney stories, from classics such as “Snow White” to more- recent hits such as “Aladdin” and “The Little Mermaid.” The “Frozen” segment comprises about the last 45 minutes of the two-hour show.
The plot revolves around Elsa, who has magical powers of creating ice, and her younger sister, Anna. Elsa has locked their kingdom in ice, and Anna must persuade her, with the help of the peasant Kristoff and a snowman named Olaf, to thaw the kingdom.
Though Bell and Alexe Gilles, the skater who portrays Elsa, are not sisters, they are both 25 and both former competitive skaters. They have formed a bond during two- plus years of performing together.
“It has been fun portraying these characters with Morgan,” Gilles said. “I have a twin sister and a little sister, so I know what it’s like to be an older sister, and it has been easy for me to skate this character.”
Bell said she is cherishing a chance to be part of such a wildly popular show.
“The great thing about my character is in the finale. I get to interact with some kids and do high- fives,” Bell said. “I can remember almost every single highfive because it’s amazing to see them so excited. It makes you excited.”