"You've all worked so hard. But the show is a lot of fun. It's going to be so much fun!"
It's the final dress rehearsal for the Oakville Centre's newest megahit pantomime show. As the cast and crew are listening closely, those are the last notes director Chantal Forde before the imminent opening night of Freezing.
For what feels like the first time in forever, local theatre producers Burloak Theatre Group (BOTG) are returning to the Oakville Centre with their annual holiday pantomime extravaganza.
For 2024, however, it's no no ordinary musical comedy - there's going to be an avalanche of Freezing fun for everyone.
Freezing: A Holiday Pantomime opens tonight, Dec. 20, and runs until next Saturday, Dec. 28. This year's story is the group's skewered and supplemented take on both The Snow Queen and Disney's global sensation Frozen.
But children who've seen Frozen a few hundred times (or their parents who've been forced to as well) need not be wary. This version of Anna and Elsa's story is wholly original, and unlike any you've seen before.
Jack Frost, for example, shows up with some tricks up his sleeve. There's also the emotional cast of Pixar's Inside Out as recurring characters. There's a giant, dancing Wendy's Frosty dessert. And the rock trolls sing real rock and roll.
But hey, that's just what a pantomime is all about.
Bringing a "frozen" world to life
Freezing opens tonight at the Oakville Centre from the Performing Arts, continuing the Oakville tradition now in its 12th year, blending fairy tales, music theatre and popular culture into a family-friendly show.
Usually staged in the last two weeks of December, the now-annual tradition of retelling classic fairy tales in the style of an English musical comedy is one of the Oakville Centre's best selling theatre shows every year. (Last year's pantomime Rapunzel was one of BOTG's best-selling shows ever.)
Read more here: BOTG's holiday pantomime returns with Rapunzel
The world of "Frozen" has long been in the minds of co-authors (and real life married couple) Chantal Forde and Tim Cadeny. They've written all but one of the BOTG pantomimes, with Forde returning as director and Cadeny again joining the cast, like always, as the bad guy - this year playing Jack Frost.
For Forde, the annual task of creating Oakville's next pantomime is as special for her as a creator as it is for the hundreds of Oakville families who've made coming to a show a new tradition.
"Every year is special," says Forde. "But I think the sheer size of this show does make it stand apart. The set, the costumes - it's all just bigger this year. Even the teams of our good guys and bad guys are bigger!"
That expansion also extends to the on stage company: "We have a lot of new faces in the cast and crew, and we love to welcome new people into the Panto family."
"What surprises me almost every year is how challenging it can be to cast the show. It's rarely about finding the "best" voice or "best" actor, and more about who fits the energy of the character the best."
"And sometimes you don't know it until you see it!," she says, smiling. "We have a lot of talented people on stage and casting is like standing in front of a giant, human sized, puzzle."
It's an often repeated story for this specific kind of show - every year there are a dozen or more new local Oakville and Halton artists who join the show's cast and crew. Forde says the pantomime is "often what brings people into the BOTG family."
But there's also a devoted family or artists who come back to the show year after year. Pantomime regular Brady Morrison is back for his twelfth consecutive year with this show, and there are multiple performers who've also been in more than half of the shows.
Read more here: The pantomime man with the perfect run
Her royal highnesses of hilarity
When casting a Frozen story, of course, the eyes of most young girls will naturally be on the central relationship between Princess Anna and the soon-to-be Queen Elsa.
This year, two stars of BOTG's repertory cast take on these iconic roles: pantomime favourite Raeanne Venne plays the sprightly Anna and now BOTG regular Erin Ross plays the cool as ice Elsa.
Both actresses get to bring their comedy chops and soaring voices centre stage, commanding the stage with arctic force.
Venne has been at the forefront of pantomime before. She's best known to local audiences having starred as Ariel in 2019's near sold-out The Little Mermaid and 2022's tenth anniversary show Cinderella Potter.
Read more here: Cinderella Potter brings wizards and wonder for the holidays
"This year is really special to me because I have a one year old daughter now," says Venne. "I always envisioned her loving Disney princesses, and here I'm really lucky that I get to be one."
She also understand that comes with a responsibility: "It’s like being a role model," Venne continues. "And hopefully she'll [her daughter] will want to be confident and be on stage someday too."
"I think modelling self-confidence means a lot because so many girls struggle with being told look how they look and how to act a certain way. But we can be silly and goofy too. Pantomime lets us do that, and I think that's really special."
Playing Elsa is even more deeply personal for Ross: she saw the 2013 movie Frozen in theatres 11 times, and connected so deeply with the character of Elsa that she even got a tattoo of her, along with her tagline "Let it Go."
"Elsa is a beloved character that’s been around for over a decade," says Ross. "It’s a character that personally means so much to me because she's so original and herself."
"Frozen wasn’t the typical princess movie. In the end, it's not about romance like most of them. It's about sisters, and two very different sisters. Anna was the bubbly Disney princess, but Elsa was sheltered and guarded. She’s experienced trauma and has more real emotions that she has to work through."
Ross says watching the film connected with her instantly: "That story was something Disney hadn’t done before, and the Elsa character had to confront some serious things. That’s what I love bringing to this character especially with the added element of bringing another Pixar favourite into it, with the Inside Out emotions coming out as the emotions of Elsa’s mind."
Both Venne and Ross relish the opportunity to perform with dozens of their friends every night: singing, dancing and telling jokes.
Beyond Anna and Elsa, the company is filled with more than 30 local Halton actors bringing their A-game on stage every night in what's become the Oakville Centre's now longest-running annual production.
"Musical fun for everyone"
Venne teases that the technical production this year is more spectacular than ever - and having done a few, she would know.
"This is probably my favourite set. Our designers Mary and Wade built an awesome set - there’s even LED lights in the stairs. There’s some great lighting effects bringing Elsa’s magic to life, and I guess Jack Frost’s too." She laughs, then adds, "But we don’t want to cheer for Jack's magic, just Elsa's!"
The tradition of the holiday pantomime means an equal amount to the performers as it does to the cast. Tim Cadeny is a local favourite, playing the villian each year in the same vein Ross Petty did for many years in Toronto.
Cadeny tells Oakville News, however, that his connection with Oakville audiences is even more special than the show itself.
"I love seeing families and kids in the audience every year," he says. "Getting to meet them after the show, and hearing how its become a holiday tradition for them means a lot to all of us on stage."
Ross adds, "I think it’s special we’re doing Freezing for the same reasons Frozen was such a big hit: it’s not the classic Disney tropes. It’s about family, and not just about one journey but two sisters going on a journey together."
"Whether you identify as an Anna, Elsa, or even Jack Frost - it’s not just one journey the audience is going on by themselves. It’s a family journey, and that’s special because it’s the holiday season right now. Being able to laugh and spend time with your family - and learning to be with one another! - is a powerful thing to have over the holidays."
With the giddy energy of children, parents, and grandparents alike coming to the Oakville Centre, Burloak truly does find a way to bring wholesome holiday magic year after year.
And yet, maybe returning cast member Cyrus Slater (plays Sal and other parts this year) can sum up Freezing best for eager audiences: "It’s the best show for anyone who wants to hear the timeless story of the war between Wendy’s Frostys and Slurpee Slushies."