Why is Hans Christian Andersen’s Snow Queen so cold? It’s not a cracker joke, but the question Jude Christian answers with an adaptation, directed by Emma Baggott, that is strongest as an origin story. It introduces us to the queen (Phoebe Naughton) as an ostracised schoolgirl who – like poor Rudolph – is never let in on any reindeer games. Barred from the summer flower festival, she banishes herself from the town.
She meets Kai (Finlay McGuigan) after he’s had a bust-up with his pal Gerda (Rebecca Wilson). “I haven’t got any friends,” he mutters. “Me neither,” she replies, in an affecting encounter. As in Andersen’s story, this queen is not a dastardly force of evil – just judged that way by others. She and Gerda unite to save Kai after he is struck by a shard from the Troll’s broken mirror (deftly done by Laura Howard’s lighting).
