Last Updated on 2 December 2023 by Colette
This post features gifted experiences
A Christmas play at Waterside in Sale is one of our most treasured Christmas traditions and we are big fans of Wrongsemble theatre company so I was sure this is going to be wonderful! Spoiler alert – I was not wrong!
Positive, powerful and playful – this musical adaptation celebrates the idea that small changes can make a big difference.
“At the top of the world lives the Snow Queen who is supposed to control the weather.
But the seasons aren’t behaving. The world is getting warmer. And it hasn’t snowed for years….
Lumi gazes up at the stars and worries about the world. The adults don’t seem to have noticed that the seasons aren’t behaving, or that it hasn’t snowed for years. This is an emergency! So, it’s time to take the issue straight to the top (of the world) and find the Snow Queen she has heard so much about…
On the long journey ahead she’ll meet a host of fabulous new friends – from an overworked elf, to a pompous polar bear – as she learns that small changes make a big difference! But first she is determined to make it SNOW!”
Packed with all the usual Wrongsemble magic and humour, The Snow Queen is a joy for both children and adults – there were plenty of moments that made me laugh out loud that will have gone right over the heads of younger members of the audience: “Plumber? I don’t even know her!” – if you happen to be a Drag Race fan then I think you’ll notice a couple of nods to the show with Richard Priestly as Madge serving Snow Queen realness and generally being utterly fabulous!
Lumie, played by Amy Tara, is a very inquisitive young lady who takes herself off on a journey to meet the Snow Queen after deciding that she needed to do more to stop the world from getting warmer – especially as nobody else seems to care. Along the way she meets a range of characters expertly played by Molly-Grace Cutler (Flash the Polar Bear with his twenty mobile phones and endless energy guzzling devices was my favourite) and convinces them to change their ways with the message that small changes add up to make a big difference.
Carefully woven through the story are messages about the wastefulness of our choices – about how we don’t recycle enough, about how we were too quick to replace old with new, about how we waste energy and even about our desire to have everything now and how much waste there is in then returning those things that we didn’t really need in the first place. (Hello thinly veiled dig at Amazon!)
This vibrant musical re-telling of The Snow Queen is reimagined in an exciting adventure for the whole family packed with original music, magic and adventure. Expect song, dance, a whole array of instruments, accents and clever props as this talented party of actors weave a lively and magical performance encouraging us all do to do better and offering hope for the future.
The Snow Queen lasts around 60 minutes with no interval and is a theatrical treat not to be missed for ages 4-104.
In keeping with the shows message of sustainability – the set and costumes are made from recycled materials and most of the production elements have been designed to be as sustainable and eco-conscious as possible.
As writer and director of this adaptation, Wrongsemble Artistic Director Elvi Piper comments:
“As a family theatre company we feel it is part of our role to explore the themes and ideas which our young audiences are curious about, and which affect us all. Inspired by young activists like Greta Thunberg we felt adapting The Snow Queen in this way was a perfect opportunity to celebrate the power of children’s voices regarding issues which impact their future.
It feels so important that what we put on our stages reflects the world around us. As well as entertaining families, we have a responsibility to educate, encourage questioning, and inspire conversations. By providing opportunities to explore sustainability in a fun and engaging way we hope audiences will leave inspired to take whatever action they feel they can.
The Snow Queen runs at Waterside in Sale from Saturday 2nd to Saturday 30th December 2023
You can book tickets for The Snow Queen online now.
Read our previous Christmas at Waterside reviews here:
The Man Who Wanted to be a Penguin
Raymond Briggs’ Father Christmas
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