One of the titles new on streaming this weekend is the stage version of Frozen, and as a huge fan of musical theatre, I’ve been really excited to check it out since it was announced to be hitting Disney+, especially after it ended back in 2020 and the West End version is closing this fall. However, I have to be honest here, it didn’t blow me away like I thought it might. Actually, I’m sort of disappointed with it.
I Was Excited To Catch The Stage Version Of Frozen On Disney+
Before I get into my big disappointment, I want to give you a bit of background on what my expectations were, because perhaps that has something to do with it. I grew up on musical theatre, and I absolutely love seeing shows on stage, and I thought in this case it would be spectacular to see a Disney movie I loved when it came out, translated into this medium. Plus, I loved it when Hamilton arrived on Disney+, and I’ve been hoping that more of their hit musicals might become available on the streamer.
However, I must also admit Frozen isn’t exactly my first choice (we all got a little bit of Frozen fatigue after its massive success, I think). There are a lot of Disney classics I’d be more likely to jump to see on the stage before getting to Frozen, but I do think it’s an iconic one from the House of Mouse. Upon watching the musical on Disney, it had a strong start, and as you might expect, the visuals and performances are solid, but about an hour in, I honestly turned it off before coming back to it later. And, I think there’s a major reason why.
But, As A Fan I’m Disappointed With The Original Songs
Now, ahead of the Frozen Broadway musical debuting in 2018, a bunch of new songs were written for it by the original songwriters of the movie, Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez. With that in mind, I was particularly excited to uncover these numbers for the first time while watching the stage musical. Unfortunately, the big disappointment from my end was experiencing the original songs. I’m sorry, but I found them very forgettable.
I totally see the need for them. Having a song for Hans to sing, more for Elsa (such as when she becomes queen), and such seems like a really good idea from the outside. It helps stretch out the story and make it feel more ~Broadway~ , especially if you’re shelling out a ticket to see a two-hour performance. But man, they felt like simply that. I couldn’t recite a single lyric from them after watching it, and I ended up waiting for appreciating seeing the songs I already knew more, which is not what I wanted from the experience at all!
Oh, and regarding the songs I knew already, my favorite scene in the whole movie, “For The First Time In Forever (Reprise)” was simply cut? I would have loved to see the live actresses duet and harmony with most of all, so I bummed to see them belting out a lesser song together instead.
Anyways, these are just my thoughts. I, of course, hope you enjoy it if you check it out. Sure, I could see myself liking it when I was younger, but more than anything, it made me get why maybe it’s not one of those Broadway shows that are still running after a crazy amount of time. Here’s hoping the next Broadway show that is added to Disney+ isn’t as much of a letdown.