Colder by the Minute: A Week Until Frozen Jr

by Geneva Chang (Grade 11)

Editors Note: Geneva is one of two Stage Managers for this production.

When you walk into school in that nice and breezy 27°C air, don’t you sometimes wish that everything could get colder by the minute until it is all… frozen? 

Ignoring that bad pun, our theater department has been hard at work for the past few months on the production of the long-awaited Frozen Jr, which is to finally premiere this weekend with four shows from March 20 to March 22nd.

From graduations to assemblies to mock exams, our auditorium has seen it all, but for now it is Elsa’s ice castle, Olaf’s summer dream, and Arendelle’s ballroom. It is a film we have all undoubtedly watched and loved (don’t lie to yourself), but never before starring your very own classmates! 

The cast ranges from elementary school, where our young Annas, Elsas, and snowmen are from, all the way to middle and high school. Come see your classmates flurry around as Elsa’s magic, as castle staff, as over-energetic trolls, and make sure that they maintain their smiles and postures every second that they stand on that stage (I’m kidding, but also they have worked really hard for every dance of every number, so show them the appreciation they deserve).

These students have been at rehearsals since November, and though they have been singing and dancing the same songs and are probably quite tired of them, they impress me when they are still able to display the same passion and energy every time we run through the show. 

Frozen Jr has truly been the embodiment of a whole school effort, with moms from the PTA at every rehearsal to help with costumes, mics, snacks, cues, and every problem that you’d imagine a group of over 60 teenagers could run into. A special thank you to all of the moms who have been at rehearsals; this wouldn’t have been possible without them. 

One of our two Annas, Audrey Tsai from Grade 9, shares that she joined the Frozen production this year because of her memorable experience as Ariel in The Little Mermaid last year. She’d been fascinated by the scale of the show, with outside professionals coming in to set up the lighting, beautiful and intricate costume designs, and the very realistic props. But most of all, her love for theater comes from the fact that she can tell “everyone cares a lot about the musical, and always shows lots of enthusiasm.” 

Ashley Tan from Grade 10, who plays Middle Anna, enjoys singing and dancing and acting, as every cast member undoubtedly does, and joined Frozen to gain a new experience as part of a musical. She mentioned that with such a large cast, it takes a lot of time to make sure everyone’s blocking and singing is perfect, which is why they have had to commit so much time to rehearsals. 

In our Snow Chorus, which helps bring Elsa’s magic to life, Melody Tan from Grade 11 shares that she joined the production because she really loves to dance. In the past, she’s mostly danced hip hop and K-pop, so Frozen was an opportunity to try a new style of dance, offering an alternate experience.

Another member of the Snow Chorus, Nina Shih, also in Grade 11, is more used to the ballet-style dance of many of their moves, but is also quite new to the world of musicals. I’ve watched them float across the stage on their tiptoes, moving their arms and legs in an elegant choreography that I can’t quite comprehend but somehow still looks magical. Everybody’s first question about a Frozen musical is how Elsa’s powers are portrayed, so I guess this partly answers that question without giving away spoilers (I hope). 

Moving backstage, the students on the crew include Nathan and me. Nathan Mitchell, from Grade 10, is in charge of sound, which is primarily controlling the mics. He previously did the sound for the 13 Ways to Screw Up a College Interview production, which he shares was “more relatable and had more spirit” to him personally than Frozen does, since he enjoyed the scenes of just witty dialogue, but he’s still had a pretty good experience these past few months. 

Lastly, to all the cast and crew, while I only joined the production to stage manage a month ago, it has been heartwarming to see so many people pour this much time, energy, and passion into a production. There have been days when maybe we wanted nothing more than to go home, but we all know that we wouldn’t have, because it is a community that we have built.

There are so many of you in this production that half of you probably don’t even know who I am, but thank you for such an amazing experience, and I wish all of us the best of luck for our shows next week. 

For everyone else, remember to come see the show and express your support! Though we are all sold out so I guess if you don’t have tickets then it’s too late to come…  but we'd better see all of you on the livestream:).