Marshwood students to present 'Frozen: The Broadway Musical'
SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — Disney’s "Frozen: The Broadway Musical" is set to come to life on the stage at Marshwood High School, one of 51 schools in the United States to present it this year. Marshwood's theater program announced it is thrilled to offer this production after winning the "Love is an Open Door" contest for the state of Maine.
The story is based on the Hans-Christian Anderson tale “The Snow Queen." Its transformation to the movie in 2013 and to the Broadway musical in 2018 departs from the original story, but continues the theme of “regeneration through faith." This theme hits especially close to home for theater and for the arts after COVID-19. The original story shows a hero and a villain as these two sisters, but when writing “Let it Go” Kristen and Bobby Anderson discovered it was more about a woman afraid of her power and being misunderstood. It was then, when director (and University of New Hampshire graduate) Jennifer Lee continued to shape this movie, which has now become a moving musical for the stage.
In June 2022, the partnership of the Educational Theatre Association, Music Theatre International, and Disney Theatrical Group opened applications for high schools to enter a contest that led to only one high school from each state/territory in the United States to debut the production between January 2023 and January 2024. Bianca Pietro, Marshwood's musical director, sent in an application that included her vision for the show, her ideas of how to continue to keep the school and community involvement and her mission of how to overcome obstacles, welcome people who are different and shape lives through theater education.
“I am so excited about the opportunity to bring this production to the high school and community!” Pietro said.
“We hope to have a theatre for young audiences experience where the high school students clearly portray the characters for their peers, but also for the local community of younger children," she wrote in the application. "We hope to incorporate as many students as possible to make all feel welcome in the theater!”
One way Pietro is continuing to put this vision into play is with the inclusion of the Young Hidden Folk Ensemble. Almost 40 students in RSU 35 grades 3-8 will participate in this production in the opening, the classic song “Fixer Upper," and the finale. Norway’s iconic trolls featured in the animated "Frozen" movie have been transformed into the stage adaptation of fantastical human-like creatures known as the Hidden Folk with the unique vocal style called joiking rooted from the Norway, Sweden, and Finland and inspired by the elfin huldúfolk mythology from Iceland and the Faroe Islands.
Featuring the well-known songs such as “In Summer” and “For the First Time in Forever," the show will feature puppets and costumes from Maine State Music Theatre.
How to get tickets for 'Frozen' at Marshwood
Performances in the Wesley E. Kennedy Performing Arts Center at Marshwood High School will be on the following dates:
Friday, March 31, at 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 1, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Friday, April 7, at 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 8, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Tickets are available for $10 for students/seniors and $15 for adults. They can be purchased at onthestage.tickets/show/marshwood-high-school.
Fundraiser event March 17 to help production
The cast and crew of Disney's "Frozen: The Broadway Musical" at Marshwood High School is holding a parents night out Friday, March 17 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The registration cost for any child ages 3 to 18 is $15. This night will include a reading of the book Frozen, theater activities, coloring and more Frozen-themed-fun. The funds raised from our event will go toward costumes, lighting, digital scenery, sets, props, sound, puppet rental and other production costs.
All participants must register using this Google form: FROZEN FRIDAY NIGHT.
Checks should be written to MHS Spring Musical.
Payment of $15 should be in an envelope labeled “Attn: Bianca Pietro.”
Payment should include a note with the participant’s name.
Payment should be mailed or hand-delivered to the main office: Marshwood High School, 260 Dow Hwy, South Berwick, ME 03908.
For information, contact Bianca Pietro at Bianca.Pietro@rsu35.org.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Marshwood students to present 'Frozen: The Broadway Musical'
