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"You can’t go wrong with another blingy princess" - our review of Scottish Ballet's Snow Queen
“Mummy, they’ve started and the Snow Queen hasn’t arrived yet,” said the little girl peering over the balcony at the orchestra pit and the musicians warming up. “No, they’re just practising, you’ll know when the Snow Queen arrives,” said her mum.
One of the things I love best about going to the ballet with small people is that it’s not just about the ballet. Before the performance and during the interval of the Snow Queen at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre, there was a constant stream of children peeping over the edge of the circles and the stalls at the musicians down below in the orchestra pit, sometimes with grandparents or parents pointing out instruments, sometimes just figuring it out themselves. My daughter and I spotted the difference between the violins and violas; perhaps unfortunately now she’d like a viola and viola lessons!
But it is all part of the sense of occasion of going to the theatre to see the ballet with children; so many are dressed up with sparkly dresses, sparkly trainers, sparkly Christmas jumpers everywhere – the younger members of the audience were almost as blingy as the cast. But only almost.
This production was like opening an exquisite storybook and watching the pictures come to life; as if the designers had taken all the magic from old fairytales and made the sets and costumes out of it. The scene, in the second half, in the forest with shadowy bare-leafed trees, flickering flames of camp fires, a moon in the sky and gypsy caravans, was captivating. And we loved the pagan masks of the Jack Frosts and the slightly eerie Child-Catcher-style circus ringmaster. It wasn’t only the children who wanted to get out the paint and the glitter out back at home to recreate them.
The story doesn’t faithfully follow the Hans Christian Andersen version (nor the Frozen movie which was inspired by it). My daughter, who knows the Snow Queen story from a well-loved Usborne book, was a little confused at times – I would definitely recommend reading the synopsis. Personally I thought the storyline was a little nonsensical but then I think that about the original as well – my daughter disagreed completely. She said: “I really liked the way they changed the story and brought in other bits, like the Summer Princess.” You can’t go wrong with another blingy princess really. And I have always liked this story for the fact that it’s the girl rescuing the boy.
The programmes are £5; there is lots in them including the all-important synopsis but no children’s activities. And while there are plenty of pics, most are of rehearsals rather than in full costume. The running time is just under two hours, including a 20-min interval.
This production marks the end of Scottish Ballet’s 50th birthday celebrations which has also seen a tour of its Wee Hansel and Gretel, specifically designed for eights and under, and its anti-bullying Safe To Be Me project for P6s, which will visit Edinburgh and the Lothians in the spring; the Snow Queen is an entirely new original production and a great reminder of how lucky we are that Scotland is home to such talent.
*The Snow Queen runs at the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, until December 29. Visit capitaltheatres.com. The Snow Queen will be screened on BBC Scotland on Christmas Eve at 7.30pm.