Review: Disney’s ‘Frozen’ at Cadillac Palace offers just the kind of warm thaw audiences are expecting

With all due respect to the many cute princesses to be found at the Cadillac Place Theatre on Friday night, some of those Elsa and Anna dresses looked they’d come from the back of the closet.

A mothballed reminder, perhaps, of how much the young fans of “Frozen,” the 2013 film with music by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez and best known for unleashing “Let it Go” onto countless DVD screens in the backs of Honda Pilots, have suffered from the disruptions of the pandemic.

Over the last 20 months, opportunities to break out the princess costumes have been sadly limited. “Let it Go,” not to mention “Love is an Open Door,” and (my personal favorite, born of bitterness), “Reindeers are Better than People,” have been sung alone in the bedroom, rather than in group singalongs. The Chicago debut of the 2018 Broadway musical based on what became one of the most successful animated films in history was supposed to happen last year in this time slot.

What happened there does not need recounting.

So, all in all, the arrival of the first national tour of a Broadway musical that did not survive the pandemic in New York is especially welcome. Disney has stuck with a long engagement here through Jan. 22, 2022, counting on the appeal of the title to transcend the hassles of making sure the kids are vaccinated or tested, in accordance with the rules. This will be a very beneficial decision to the business in the Loop that rely on the return of live theater and, yet more importantly, to the health of “Frozen” fans who’ve been looking for a real encounter with Sven and Olaf.

Show reopening these last few weeks often have been emotional experiences on both sides of the stage and “Frozen” was no exception Friday.

Caroline Bowman, the actress playing Elsa on this tour, did her best to embrace the demands of a character who has repressed all feeling, but her joy at being able to finally drop all that at the curtain call and drink in the presence of these young fans beat out her “Let it Go” for me, although she certainly nailed that epic ballad, sparkly costume change and all. Caroline Innerbichler, who makes a charming Anna, seemed to be compensating from the stage for the COVID-induced ban on stage-door encounters, as well she should. Everybody was just happy to be back together again, it seemed, and giving some kids a really good time.

I’ve reviewed director Michael Grandage’s production of “Frozen” three times now: at the tryout in Denver, on Broadway and in this touring version. Denver was full of problems that mostly were fixed by New York; the new road version comes with a raft of onstage talent and a comparable level of spectacle to the Broadway original, which the exception of the minor “Hygge” number at the top of Act 2. Better yet, there’s a whole new song on the tour, too, titled “I Can’t Lose You,” which amps up the sisterly stakes much as “For Good” does in “Wicked,” and the show bops along with a tad more rapidity. We’re all none the worse for that.

“Frozen” is not some great artistic tour de force like “The Lion King” (my theory there is that it was unlucky enough to arrive when digital technology was especially tempting), and there remain weird sections of the live show that just seem to consist of townsfolk racing around the icy landscape and rushing through the story. But when it comes to the execution of the catchy score and to the relationship between the two estranged but loving sisters, it understands what people have come to see. And feel.

Overall, it’s certainly an enjoyable piece of deftly executed family entertainment, delivering very much what families have come to see, reindeer and snowman and all. Sven has always been my favorite character and even he had a particular post-pandemic spring in his step.

Note that given all the givens, it’s likely you can score more affordable tickets than would otherwise have been the case. The $25 lottery held online on the day of performance is an especially good deal.

Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.

cjones5@chicagotribune.com

Review: “Frozen”

When: Through Jan. 22, 2022

Where: Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St.

Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Tickets: $25-$115.50 at 800-775-2000 and www.broadwayinchicago.com

COVID protocol: Audience members must provide proof of vaccination, or a negative COVID-19 PCR test from the last 72 hours, or a negative antigen test from the last 6 hours. Masks are required in the theater. Children under the age of 2 will not be admitted.