For the First Time in Forever: Stage Academy brings Frozen Jr. to the stage

By Riley Murphy

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Last Saturday, Caledon residents packed Cyril Clark Theatre for the third sold-out show of Stage Academy's production of Frozen Jr, some even adorning their very own Frozen attire.

The production, which ran March 6 through March 8, truly had something for everyone.

The heartwarming magic of the original beloved scenes was brought to life, and both laughter and tears emerged from the audience as they watched the cast in this adaptation.

It's hard to believe the production almost never made it to the grand stage.

In 2020, Frozen Jr was three weeks away from opening night, costumes ready, lines in place, when the pandemic hit, halting it for numerous years.

Now, Stage Academy brought it back to life and thawed the hearts of all watching.

Cast members who were originally junior members on the team in the original show have now returned as senior members.

“To be able to bring this production to life after seven years with a different perspective and a new creative team, it was really exciting to finally bring Stage Academy the chance to bring Frozen to the stage,” said director Michael Rosa.

This was Rosa's second time directing for Stage Academy, and he said he was grateful to be able to direct this production specifically and bring it to the audience.

The cast of 32 ranged in age from seven to seventeen.

But, no matter the age, each actor truly brought each character to the stage, even adding their own quirks and qualities to each role.

“The casting process was a long one because we had up to 50 people audition, which was a big disparity from last year where we had nearly 30,” explained Rosa. “But I think we ended up with the right 32.”

“We got people in roles that they didn't initially audition for, but they were convinced that it was the right role for them, and I bet you, if you ask them now, they'll say that that was the case,” he said, laughing.

He added the audience has also expressed their love for the casting of each role.

“It was a long process, but I think we nailed the casting,” he adds. “The reason Frozen is such a great show to produce is because there's so many different roles for different age ranges as well.”

Producer – and Councillor for Ward 5 – Tony Rosa, added auditions began in October, and, since then, the cast and crew have met every Sunday for three hours until the big weekend finally arrived.

“What's remarkable is that it sounds like a long time but really it only works out to be 20 rehearsals until it hits the stage. So, three-hour rehearsals, 20 weeks, 60 hours of rehearsal before a patron comes in and watches the results,” said Tony Rosa. “I believe these kids were ready for a stage.”

A problem with the rehearsal time came due to the fact that the production had to be held in Brampton due to Caledon's lack of a theatre.

“It's unfortunately very much of a challenge because as much as we appreciate being able to come and use the facilities here and rent facilities in Brampton, we unfortunately have to wait till all the Brampton groups have been given dates because we're not a Brampton based group,” Tony Rosa explained. “We have to wait and then whatever's left over we get. So, we were only able to get five days which basically means the students have one chance to have one rehearsal on the stage before it goes public.”

Many Caledon groups face a similar situation, he added, turning to neighbouring municipalities to secure performance space.

“This is why we need our own theatre space,” he continued. “We'll have to take what we can get until Caledon has its own performing arts centre.”

But bringing the Caledon community to the performances, he said, is the easy part.

Tony Rosa explained that each performance was completely sold out, totalling in more than 800 people coming to see the production.

Next year, he said they're hoping to look for a larger venue to accommodate the growing audience.

“We're at full capacity which is a beautiful thing because the kids work so hard and they deserve a good audience,” said Tony Rosa.

For him, he said it's about watching the spectacle come to life.

“This all starts with a script and a bunch of words and we lift them off the page and bring them to life and these students have really proven to be great storytellers. They're bringing credibility to the author, they're bringing credibility to Disney, they're really trying to recreate this story on stage and I'm really proud of the work that's been done here,” said Tony Rosa.

For more than 20 weeks, director Michael Rosa and the Stage Academy crew have looked over the cast, perfecting and memorizing each line.

“We've been living at this theater for basically the past couple days, but these kids have grown to know the theater, know my expectations, and it's been such a cooperative cast to work with. It made the process really easy,” he said, reflecting on the process.

Overall, he said it was a smooth process, with a cast who made it even easier.

“There's a lot of great youth in Caledon who really want to pursue the performing arts, but they can't really do that because of the theater situation. We don't really have a theater anywhere near Caledon and we have to outsource to cities like Brampton and Vaughan, and we are really happy with the hospitality and the way that they treat us, but these kids they're putting on such a great show it would have been so nice to do that at home,” said Michael Rosa. “I'm really hoping that this can be a small part in potentially getting that process moving forward.”

It appeared to be the perfect weekend to hold the production, with temperatures hitting up to 16 degrees.

It may have been Frozen inside the theatre, but definitely not outside.

“Look at the weather out there,” said Tony Rosa. “The beautiful thing is that they're all in search of summer and so are we. I feel like this is the right year to have reintroduced this production.”