The Snow Queen

It is tempting to believe that the Lyceum has pulled off some great coup over the weather service in conjunction with its Christmas show.

After all, the Snow Queen wants the world to be in a perpetual winter, and all the recent storms and closures points to her winning, which adds a bit of nonsensical realism to experiencing this production.

The Snow Queen is one of Hans Christian Andersen’s most famous stories and is ripe material for a theatrical adaptation. It centres on Gerda, a young girl whose best friend has been kidnapped by the horrid queen. She travels north to save him, and along the way meets many people and gets into different adventures.

Stuart Paterson’s script is a happy compromise between pantomime and fairy tale - close enough to Andersen’s original to keep purists happy while containing enough audience participation and banter to satisfy those searching for a panto experience. Most of the characters are drawn in broad strokes, not deep enough to be called three-dimensional but with more substance than mere stereotypes, and the dialogue is mostly believable.

The production itself is serviceable. Mark Thomson has created a production that ticks all of the appropriate boxes but is lacking in standout flourishes. He is assisted by some fun theatrical tricks (the snow effect that ends act one is particularly noteworthy) and an adequate design.

However, the production’s greatest asset is its cast. Helen Mackay’s Gerda is a hero who is easy to side with and root for while Robin Laing’s Cobweb Spider makes for a convincing villain. Most of the supporting company do well in multiple roles, but Ashley Smith and Grant O’Rourke are standouts who bring the production its greatest moments.

The Snow Queen is safe theatre. It has its moments but it doesn’t take many chances, resulting in a production that occasionally sputters to great theatrical life. It’s good, even admirable at times, but with a few more risks it could have been much better.