The West End production of Frozen, scheduled to open April 14 following April 2 previews at the newly restored Theatre Royal Drury Lane, has been postponed, with no set reopening, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
"In light of the recent government implementation of a full national lockdown, it has become necessary to postpone the opening of Frozen, which was planned for April, just a little longer," reads a statement from Disney. "The health and wellbeing of our audiences, cast, and crew are paramount, and we cannot wait to share the production with you as soon as we are safely able to without current social distancing regulations. Therefore, we have taken the decision to temporarily take the show off sale, and to reassess our timeline. We will announce our new opening date as soon as possible."
Those who have purchased tickets will be contacted at a later time with revised performance dates. The Disney Theatricals musical was originally set to open November 11, 2020, but was previously postponed due to COVID-19.
Set to star are West End alum Stephanie McKeon as Anna and Pretty Woman's Samantha Barks as Elsa. The cast is also scheduled to feature Obioma Ugoala as Kristoff, Craig Gallivan as Olaf, Oliver Ormson as Hans, Richard Frame as Weselton, and Mikayla Jade and Ashley Birchall alternating in the role of Sven.
Also in the cast: Jeremy Batt, Cameron Burt, Lauren Chia, Laura Emmitt, Emily-Mae, Danielle Fiamanya, Hannah Fairclough, Matt Gillett, Joe Griffiths-Brown, Emily Lane, Justin-Lee Jones, Jason Leigh Winter, Jacob Maynard, Leisha Mollyneaux, Gabriel Mokake, Sarah O’Connor, Jemma Revell, Jacqui Sanchez, Jak Skelly, Jake Small, Isabel Snaas, Joshua St. Clair, Monica Swayne, and Anna Woodside.
Based on the 2013 animated Disney film, the musical features a score by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez and a book by Jennifer Lee. The musical opened on Broadway in March 2018, earning Tony Award nominations for Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Original Score. Caissie Levy and Patti Murin originated the roles of Elsa and Anna, respectively, with Ciara Renée and McKenzie Kurtz stepping into the roles shortly before the coronavirus shutdown in March. The Broadway production announced in May 2020 that it would not reopen post-pandemic.
Frozen is directed by Michael Grandage, with choreography by Rob Ashford, set and costume design by Christopher Oram, lighting design by Neil Austin, sound design by Peter Hylenski, video design by Finn Ross, puppet design by Michael Curry, and musical supervision and arrangements by Stephen Oremus.
Caroline Bowman in Frozen
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