This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Bruce Merkle: Do you have siblings? I don't even know. You're an only child. Okay, so this is going to be a really hypothetical question. Oh my gosh. If you had siblings, and they could have superpowers, oh my gosh, wow. Which power would you choose? What would you want them to have? Because Anna was really happy about Elsa being able to make things cold and snowy. I don't think I would have cared. Oh, gosh. Well, I wouldn't want them to read my mind. Oh, no, no. Maybe flying. Oh, maybe teleportation. If they're like, touch you. You know what I mean? That would be because then we could be like, oh, quick. Let's like go to Rome and get that pasta. Yeah. Yeah. Get a gelato. Yeah. That's a great one. I think when I thought about it, mine was much more practical. It was I wish my little sisters would have had the power to retain the choreography I would teach them in the basement. Honestly, there's a lot going on right here.

[1:14] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Welcome, everybody to A Musical Theatre Podcast where we discuss the emotional and cultural impact of some of our favorite musicals in theatre history. My name is Jeffrey Scott Parsons. You can call me Jeff. Today we're talking Frozen, which maybe you're thinking, why? Why? Why are you talking about Frozen, Jeff? You tried to get me to like Cats, which, for the record, I didn't say I loved the Cats film. I just said it wasn't the abomination that everyone said it was. Cats came out and everyone thought the end of film has come. And I'm like, calm down. You're OK. Yeah, I did see it, but I don't want to talk about Cats. We're not here to talk about Cats. We're here to talk about Frozen. Oh, so my point being, if you like Frozen, listen to this episode.

You'll probably really enjoy it. If you don't like Frozen, listen to this episode because that's going to be a great conversation. And I'm really grateful you're here. Everyone. Thank you. Bruce Merkle. Hi. In the booth with me. Yes. Hello, everyone. Bruce, you have a long and sordid history with this show.

[2:08] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my gosh. Yes. How long? OK, we we've both worked at Disney. Yes. You're still working at this. Correct. And you are working in Frozen. Correct. How long have you been with the show?

[2:25] Bruce Merkle: My first audition was five years ago in two months. So March 2015. Oh, wow. So I yeah, it was a really long time ago. It's half a decade of. Was that the was that the opening cast?

[2:38] Bruce Merkle: That was the first reading that we did. Oh, Imagineering. We did just a music stand reading.

[2:43] Bruce Merkle: Oh, wow. With just there were just like 10 of us and they were just seeing how the script worked and how it translated from the movie and what it would be like on stage and stuff like that, which is fascinating because from what I understand, Disney was creating three different versions of the show in terms of theatrical presentations. You had the one that was going on the cruise ship. You had the one that was going to be in the park at Disney California Adventure and then the Broadway incarnation as well.

[3:04] Bruce Merkle: Yes. And they're all different. It doesn't even seem like anybody was really on the same page in terms of creating a cohesive theatrical product. Like the brand of the show, what it looks like.

[3:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I guess so. I mean, they're all had different creative people.

[3:21] Bruce Merkle: Exactly. I guess that's my point. So they could all interpret it how they wanted to. But, you know, you have to tell the story of Frozen. Then how long was it before it went into rehearsals?

[3:35] Bruce Merkle: There was two other mini workshops. There was like a movement workshop where I went in and did some like in summer stuff. They wanted to see what that choreography looks like. And then Olaf the snowman.

[3:42] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, for Olaf the snowman. And then we started rehearsals for the proper version in November. We did. That's the workshop is what people refer to it now. November 2015. It's not a workshop. It was like the workshop. Got it. Like at work. We're like, oh, my God, remember the workshop? And then so that was November 2015. And then we started for real, I think, in March 2016. With everybody like in the same space. Fast forward to you open the show in at California Adventure at the Hyperion.

[4:12] Bruce Merkle: Yes. I was working there at the time, so I came and saw it. Yeah. I remember it was about 70 minutes at that point.

[4:21] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, my God. Yeah. And I thought it was too long.

[4:27] Bruce Merkle: Yes. I mean, beautiful. It was. I'm so sorry. I started like I saw your show and it was too long. It's too long. That's that's not what I wanted to say. It was it was beautiful to look at. You all were sounded glorious, squeaky clean. It was. Yeah, very lit, beautifully. Costumes, blah, blah, blah. For sure. Also too long at 70 minutes. But then also it was kind of a red flag to me in terms of turning this into a full fledged Broadway musical where I'm thinking if I'm sitting here and it feels too long at 70 minutes, how on earth is it going to be a two act Broadway musical?

[5:04] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, because this was before, you know, it opened on Broadway.

[5:07] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. It's interesting because it's a it's a quick story. It is like you only have a couple of beats that you need to get across and then they fill it in with a lot of other things. Right. So, you know, it's a padded kind of show. But the crux of it is the sister's relationship.

[5:18] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So the animated film Frozen came out in 2013 and quickly became one of the highest grossing films of that year, but also the highest grossing animated film of all time, surpassing Toy Story 3, Lion King, everybody. Frozen was number one up until this past year when the remake of Lion King took it over, which is strange that that Lion King is considered an animated film because it wasn't built that way.

[5:47] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And yes, it was. I didn't see it, but it looked.

[5:50] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It's like it's a Nat Geo documentary that just happens to be animated. But then Frozen 2 didn't gross even more than that. I think Frozen 2 is now the really the Frozen 2 takeover. Yes, that's what I heard on these little talk show rounds are doing. Oh, that's cool. I liked Frozen 2. It was fun.

[6:10] Bruce Merkle: OK, I'm sitting in Frozen 2, taking it in and thinking, wait, did I sit through Frozen just to get to Frozen 2?

[6:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, because I was really into the origin story. Yes, we like information, the world building of where on earth Arendelle sits and what its relationship is to magic in general. Yes. The you know, the family, all of it. I was I was in. I loved learning about the parents. I think that was really important. And I was excited that they went back to that because usually they always move forward with those sequels. OK, what else happens next? Next, next, next, not to mention Evan Rachel Wood singing, giving me all the across the universe feels.

[6:46] Bruce Merkle: Yes. Yes. Oh, my gosh. So the movie comes out in 2013. The huge smash. It is directed and written by Jennifer Lee with help from other people. But she becomes the first female director of a film that grosses over a billion dollars. Huge. Is that right?

[7:02] Bruce Merkle: Yes. That's amazing. She also becomes the first female creative director at Walt Disney Animation Studios.

[7:09] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Wow. I may be getting the title wrong. You're not even looking at notes. I'm very impressed right now.

[7:20] Bruce Merkle: Well, thank you. She's a big deal. Yeah. Robert Lopez, who at this point is kind of musical theater royalty, he's written Avenue Q. He's written. Did you have you written the Book of Mormon already? Perhaps. I mean, Josh Gad was in that, too.

[7:32] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. So. Yeah. So that and then his wife joins him as lyricist Kristen Anderson Lopez, who is she is kind of a loose cannon in terms of a lyricist. She's she takes big swings and they I admire her for this reason because who in their right mind would think that one of the biggest songs in all of film history would include the phrase frozen fractals. Right. Show of hands, please. Ladies and gentlemen, anyone. I don't see any hands. I don't see any hands. But she did it. And everyone totally accepted it. Of course, this is a lyric that belongs in a song. Frozen fractals. Yeah. Like, incredible.

[8:09] Bruce Merkle: Did you watch the I was like watching YouTube videos, like making a frozen to be like, fill my brain with things. The video about Let It Go, writing Let It Go.

[8:19] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: No. What did they say at the moment? Let It Go was written that Elsa was the villain. And they wrote this song. And she really wanted to have like an empathic take on what that experience would be like for her. And it kind of changed it around. And they had Jennifer Lee listen to the song. And she said, oh, darn, we have to rewrite this character completely.

[8:42] Bruce Merkle: Wow. Like now she can't be a villain.

[8:47] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. They were going in kind of a wicked direction. Absolutely. Absolutely. And some of the old concept art for the movie is really interesting. She looks very traditional Disney villain, you know, like all the thing, all the like costume things happening.

[9:03] Bruce Merkle: Oh, super snatched the eyebrows. If there was a sharper line in an eyebrow, we've never met it like they're like this. This character was a lot.

[9:09] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. They softened her. And I don't know if they were sisters to begin with. But yeah, they made them, you know, equals and sisters. And it was it was lovely. And what was your first reaction to the film back in 2013?

[9:21] Bruce Merkle: Back in 2013, it was December. I was home for Christmas in Florida with my mom. We went to see Frozen. Yes. This new Disney movie. I enjoyed it. I had a good time. I did. I think I had a couple L.O.L.'s with Olaf. I think Josh Gad made me laugh like maybe twice, maybe three times. I don't remember. But when I went away from it, I was like, oh, my gosh, that's so funny. It was just irreverent. And they had, you know, on a waking up with with Bedhead and talking about being gassy and wanting chocolate and, you know, suppressing her emotions. And they made her super real. And I thought that was that stood out. It was different. My two takeaways were I love this sister relationship. Never seen that. The kind of female empowerment where somebody didn't need to have a prince rescue them. Yeah. Their love was the magic love. Yeah. The guy took the backseat.

[10:13] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. It was amazing. And you know, man, and kind of laid the groundwork for Moana, which I love even more.

[10:18] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And then I also kind of felt that I had never felt like the songs were more important in a Disney film than when I saw Frozen.

[10:23] Bruce Merkle: Mm hmm. And they did move the story along too.

[10:28] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: They did. And they were so delightful to listen to over and over again. I have 14 nieces and nephews.

[10:35] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my gosh. Yeah. Huge family.

[10:41] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: All of them were listening to Frozen in the car. Yes. You know, incessantly, there was something about the music that just kept people humming along and also kind of imagining these the story and characters connecting to them. I don't know what it was that the Lopez's were able to tap into, but man, they hit a really solid Zeitgeist moment.

[10:59] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. With this film. It was amazing. It's something that like Tangled and the Princess and the Frog didn't do, which came out, I think, before. And I was I was confused. I was like, wow, this movie is hard.

[11:09] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, yeah, it really did. I also remember watching Let It Go in the theater and totally tearing up. I thought it was epic and beautiful. And when she first creates that ice bridge and runs over it.

[11:22] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. I thought this is this is Disney animation. This is Belle waltzing with Beast in the in the ballroom.

[11:28] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. You know, we're back. Like this is iconic. Yes. I'm watching an iconic moment.

[11:32] Bruce Merkle: Yes. Yes. No, it was so great. Getting. Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh. Wow. I'm a Disney nerd. I've always heard.

[11:44] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, I've loved Disney since since forever. Same. I mean, I grew up in Florida. I'm mentioning it more times. Yeah. So I went to Disney World a couple of times a year growing up as a kid. My mom would get like free tickets. So I grew up going there. And oh, wait, my cup is the great movie ride.

[12:01] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my gosh. That's a that's a deep cut. And let's never go on the great.

[12:05] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Of course I went on the great movie. I do love it.

[12:11] Bruce Merkle: Oh, well, it's closed and I can't talk about that. It's way too emotional.

[12:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: When did it close?

[12:20] Bruce Merkle: Oh, Jeffrey, this is terrible. It closed a couple of years ago because I was there a couple of years. Well, I don't know how many years it was now. I know. But it was there when I was there. I know it's close now, but they're building something that I'm sure will be great.

[12:28] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I'm sure it'll be awesome. But see, from what I understand, you talk a lot about old films.

[12:34] Bruce Merkle: Yes. You love the old movie musical.

[12:39] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, my God. Wizard of Oz. Great. And it was that kind of you're into the art form, the musical theater art form.

[12:44] Bruce Merkle: Totally. I remember being like two and watching the Mary Martin Peter Pan. Loved that. And then that, of course, segwayed into the Wizard of Oz. When I was two, I got the movie and like just started watching it over and over again and never stopped.

[12:52] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. And then that segwayed into, you know, what else did Judy Garland do and meet me in St. Louis and then Catherine Hepburn films and which is the next.

[13:06] Bruce Merkle: In St. Louis. And then it's summertime. Do not mention summertime. Did you just mention summertime?

[13:12] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Of course. I'm a cinephile. David Lean movie. It's so beautiful.

[13:18] Bruce Merkle: It is actually really and kind of sad. But like I she and how she talked. We're not talking about summertime, but I love it. I would be that we could go on and on. I understand.

[13:30] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Anyway. Yes. Old films. I think the Wizard of Oz saying in the rain, those are a lot of people's first introduction into musical theater. Every time I go visit a school and I ask the students, have you seen a musical before? And a lot of them don't think they have. And I say, well, have you seen Frozen? And inevitably everyone's hand goes up in the air. I'm like, OK, well, surprise. You've seen a musical.

[13:48] Bruce Merkle: Yes. You know, they don't realize that they have experienced the art form through animated films.

[13:52] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. And I'm interested to see what the generations of musical theater lovers look like in 20 years when my nieces and nephews who grew up listening to Frozen in the car nonstop are old enough to start buying tickets to go see the theater.

[14:04] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. You know, because I know that films were so important to you, to me, in terms of us finding musical theater. What's it going to be like for them?

[14:14] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Absolutely. And also segwaying into going into a real theater and sitting down with a waxy playbill in your hand and watching something. I think if it is frozen, people know what it is and they're like, oh, OK, I know that I can I can sit through Frozen. Right. Which brings me to one of the main reasons I wanted to do an episode about Frozen, because.

[14:38] Bruce Merkle: I think it's a great vehicle for a very important conversation about modern musical theater, which is the commercialization of Broadway. And not just Broadway, but media in general. We have huge media conglomerates like Disney with their universes like Marvel and animated franchises. Like we just said, Frozen now has two films. Toy Story has four. The way that media conglomerates think in terms of longevity and profit is now these big intellectual properties. And with Frozen, I think that that's a great example of creating a Broadway show from an animated film that doesn't really scream out to me to become a stage production. Most of the action in the story, like we said, happens very quickly and is very action driven.

You've got avalanches, you've got big snow monsters, the big marshmallow, you got the marshmallow guy didn't make it into any of the stage versions. Shocker, because yeah, he doesn't really help the story along. Exactly. But then you've got incredibly talented individuals like Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson Lopez that obviously know the art form so well that you're like, oh, well, you're talented. So here's your reward. You get to turn this juggernaut into a theatrical piece. And then I think it's kind of up to them to be like, well, crap, how are we going to do it? Yes. With not just having something, an idea and creating something, but yeah, having to create a musical based on an intellectual property that is already guaranteed to make money.

And that already has most of its like storytelling nuts and bolts in place. And you just have to kind of figure out, paste it onto stage, not just copy paste it, but actually figure out how to give it some artistic integrity. For sure. Yeah. And I think that talented people do that with Beetlejuice and Mean Girls and, you know, all of these shows. And I'm certainly not the type of person who believes that we shouldn't be turning movies into musicals. A good story is a good story. Exactly. So I'm certainly not saying that, but I am saying from a place of making money, I think people see intellectual properties that can make money. And so then they hire creative people to save their butts and turn it into something that's worth watching.

Yeah, for sure. I think to a certain extent, that's what's happened with Frozen. Oh, yeah. They just kind of wanted to keep going. Yes. And yes, Frozen 2, Frozen Broadway. Because I went to the grocery store and Elsa's on bananas.

[17:09] Jeff Parsons: Yes, she is. Like, I bought bananas and the little Chiquita banana sticker is on there. And she's like, she's doing her little look over the shoulder.

[17:16] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, she's looking over the shoulder and she's got her fingers feathered. Yeah, fingers feathered. She does. She's everywhere. And Olaf was everywhere, too. I remember when I auditioned for this. I didn't really I never really thought about doing that, but he was everywhere. And I was like, OK, well, I know the snowman. Everybody knows who this man is because it just leaked into every CVS in America. Pencils, backpacks, lunchboxes, bananas, bananas. It's bananas. Bananas. We'll be right back right after this commercial. That being said, I really do love these characters. Yes. Olaf is, like you said, an L.O.L. moment in the film, in the stage production and also just the sweetest, most lovable thing in the world.

Yeah, it's just very sweet. It's a different character. And I like in Frozen 2 how they had him kind of growing up and learning new things. Yes. So sweet. So sweet. That new song is adorable. Yeah, it's adorable. OK, I confession. Oh, gosh. I'm having all of these opinions about the stage version of Frozen, the Broadway version of Frozen. OK. And I haven't seen it. Oh, whoa. So everything that I will be talking about in terms of the Broadway version of Frozen will be based on my knowledge of the original cast album. Yes. The photography still, the B-roll, the B-roll commercials. Exactly. The behind the scenes videos on Broadway world. Everything that I could possibly find in terms of pirating. But that's about it.

[18:50] Jeff Parsons: Yeah, I understand. Well, it's at the Pantages until. Is it still there right now?

[18:55] Bruce Merkle: Yes, it is.

[18:56] Jeff Parsons: Oh, my gosh. But I don't think I have the money to go see it. Enter the lottery online. But then everybody gets the notification that I just entered the lottery. It's embarrassing.

[19:04] Bruce Merkle: What are you talking about? Every time. There is no lottery. Shame. I feel like I always get social media messages from people who enter the lottery. So and so. Like, is it it's part of the thing you have to do, right?

[19:15] Jeff Parsons: No, you just enter your email. It's real discreet. It's on the DL. They don't they don't out you at all. It's totally fine. I went I that's how I saw it. Confession. Yeah. I won the lottery.

[19:25] Bruce Merkle: That's impressive. Maybe there's some gold star. Just enter the lottery.

[19:31] Jeff Parsons: All right. Maybe I'll enter the lottery. You only have a couple more weeks. Get on it. OK. It's right here. So did you see it at the Pantages?

[19:40] Bruce Merkle: I did. I saw the Pantages.

[19:41] Jeff Parsons: OK, because you've seen this show.

[19:43] Bruce Merkle: I've seen a lot. A few times. A few times. You saw it in Denver.

[19:45] Jeff Parsons: I saw it in Denver. I went out with my friend Tory Britt. We went to see the Denver show. I was like, OK, Frozen. Huge part. Let's see Frozen. Yeah. Let's see what's going on. So you saw it there. And then we'll and we'll talk about that. And then did you see it in New York as well?

[19:59] Bruce Merkle: Yes. And they saw it in New York. And then you also saw it at the Pantages.

[20:02] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. I mean, it was the lottery. Yes, I did. It was. Yes, I did. Wow. I feel very exposed right now and attacked.

[20:07] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my gosh. I. Why? Why so much? I mean, did you like it enough to see it three times?

[20:16] Jeff Parsons: I did like. Well, I had you know, we have friends in all these shows. So we go see friends. We support our friends and shows. Now I feel attacked. Oh, wait. Yes. We support our friends. We support our friends. Ever do that. Ever think about doing that?

[20:34] Bruce Merkle: No. Sacrifice your twenty dollars and possibly a little social media standing. Yeah. I'm just three hours of your time and parking, though, honestly, parking so bad, like I would forgive you if that were the reason that was the reason I didn't want to be exposed. That's a different reason. Yeah. No, I saw it a lot. I, you know, went out for the tour. Actors, you know, we do that. We need we go out for things. And so you wanted to see who got your role.

[21:06] Jeff Parsons: F. Michael Haney is amazing. Everything's great. No, no, it was cool. I was, you know, wanted to see it and see what they did with the character, which is what would be different from what we did, because like Liesl Tommy, who directed our version and Michael Grandage, who did Broadway, had different takes on Olaf. And in the work sessions, I was like learning about that and what they were thinking. Like he's younger in our production than he is in the Broadway production. Interesting. He's like a more of a toddler and he's more like of a precocious little kid. And in this version, at least that's how it was explained to me. Yeah. So that's interesting.

[21:38] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, it's interesting. I want to talk about the creation of the stage version. We talked about the animated film. We talked about the creation of the version that you're in. Robert Lopez and his wife, Kristen Lopez, they write a musical called Up Here. Did you ever hear about this?

[21:56] Jeff Parsons: No, I didn't.

[21:57] Bruce Merkle: It was a musical that played at La Jolla Playhouse near San Diego, and it has a lot of similarities to Inside Out, the Pixar film. Oh, OK. Oh, wait, I think I knew someone in this or something. Yeah, about it when it was happening. Yeah. It's the story about a kind of a schlubby guy who has all of these voices in his head, but not in an unhealthy way. It's just like his different emotions and personalities all actually have voices and characters. Yeah. And so it's the story about him like falling in love with a girl. But then all of his insecurities and voices are constantly commenting on him and his life and him coming to some sort of conclusion with that. It's really weird and incredibly problematic.

But of course, but of course, Timbers had a lot of great music because they're incredibly talented songwriters, composers. Alex Timbers was the director. Alex Timbers, who also directed, you know, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson and Peter and the Starcatcher, is a really talented guy. He was the director. Joshua Burgas, who had just won a Tony Award for On the Town, was the choreographer. And the female lead was Betsy Wolf. Now, all of these people were slated to be attached to Frozen. Alex Timbers was going to be the director. Joshua Burgas was going to be the choreographer. Betsy Wolf was going to be Elsa. And then the Lopez's obviously were writing the new material to supplement with what they had already done for the film and that it was going to premiere at the Denver Center in Colorado.

I don't know what happens, but suddenly before it opens, everything changes. They get a new director, a new choreographer and a new lead. And I think they actually went through a couple of choreographers who they end up opening the show with is Michael Grandage, who is a British director. He was the artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse, very much a classical theater person and had directed Jude Law and a production of Hamlet. His first venture into musical theater was the Broadway revival of Evita that he directed and with Ricky Martin. Oh, wow. Remember that? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And his choreographer for that was Rob Ashford. And so he and Rob Ashford team up again on this production of Frozen. And then they get a new Elsa in Casey Levy and then it opens in Denver. Now, what was it like in Denver?

[24:22] Bruce Merkle: It was hot. Yeah. Denver, Denver Frozen. It was interesting because all I had to go off of was the movie and our version. And it was it felt darker to me. They spent a lot more time with the little girls in the beginning, which I did like because, oh, my gosh, they were amazing. Really? Yes. The young Anna like stole the show. I wish I had her name to give you now. But it was so it was so exciting and captivating. And you really got to know these characters a lot better when they were younger before we got the older versions. So I think it grounded it a lot. And it was really it made it just made the adult scenes like more satisfying because you had more of a history with them. But then at the same time, that means you have to go longer without meeting the actual leads of the show.

[25:05] Jeff Parsons: This is true. I mean, it felt like 20, 25 minutes before we got we got the girls.

[25:11] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, that's a long time. Yes. And Grand Pabbie was had a bigger part in that version, too. He was kind of like a narrator in the beginning. He was the first character you saw. This is the little troll guy. This is little troll guy, but was, you know, all ripped and had a tail and dreads. And we loved it. Don't even get me started.

[25:34] Jeff Parsons: No, I want to get you started.

[25:35] Bruce Merkle: Why? OK, well, it's interesting because Michael Grandage said he he very plainly told the media that he was interested in making Disney the next Shakespeare, using these stories to create classical storytelling. I'm sure in the same way that Julie Tamar approached The Lion King. Sure. Because at this point, The Lion King is the most profitable theatrical property of all time. Yeah, absolutely. Which is which is insane. And the last Disney on Broadway experience before Frozen was The Little Mermaid, which for all intents and purposes, had was considered kind of an artistic bomb. Oh, it was. Yeah. Did you see that one?

[26:20] Jeff Parsons: I did see that one with the Healy's, with the Healy's. Yes. I remember that time in New York. People were saying that, like, everyone was learning how to get on Healy's so that they could get into The Little Mermaid. Yes. I mean, a job's a job. A job's a job. I mean, like crashing in the subway. Can you imagine? That's great. It's like day two of your Healy's and you're going to your callback. Wow. And then you just fall onto the track. What would I do for love?

[26:43] Bruce Merkle: So I think after The Little Mermaid, they're kind of wanting to get back to this Lion King territory. And so by, you know, getting someone serious like Michael Grandage involved, I think that that was their first step in the the approach that he took to the animated film was to make it a little darker, a little more adult, knowing full well that kids would still come and enjoy it. Knowing full well that kids would still come and enjoy it. But the design and the story and just kind of tone of the show is much more adult than most of the Disney theatrical ventures.

[27:21] Jeff Parsons: Yes. Yes, it definitely is. I mean, a common theme in Disney stories is having the children be abandoned or, you know, have their parents die or die or something. Something terrible happens. They leave them alone. I remember Liesl Tommy was always talking about how that was such a powerful device because it takes a kid's worst fear and makes it real. So the stakes are instantly super high. I think the fairy tales in general work as wish fulfillment. And I'm not saying that kids wish that their parents would die, but they often imagine. I mean, that's why it's such a fear is, you know, the possibility of what this could be is all you have. So to see it played out for you in a story is actually kind of cathartic. Yeah, because then you don't really have to go through it yourself. You can kind of vicariously experience these stories through. Yeah, through them. And then and then they're all they're OK at the end. They're OK at the end.

[28:20] Bruce Merkle: Exactly. Exactly. And then you saw in New York and what were the biggest changes?

[28:25] Jeff Parsons: I think the poppy character changing so much. He was not necessarily no longer a narrator. Not really. Yeah. He took kind of a backseat. And it was more of that the chorus was was speaking as one, you know, more contemporary Shakespearean. Yeah. Yeah. Which which is interesting. And it presented it as like the telling of a story. So it a troop, a troop. Yeah. Back to the basics. And, you know, nobody was like stepping out of the chorus and becoming a principal. But it was it was super supported by the ensemble. And there's lots of like beautiful, luscious music that they that they sing that helps move the story forward. It opens on Broadway in 2018 and it's still running. Yeah. You know, it's getting people in the seats like they wanted. Yeah. What's interesting about theater that people might not realize is that films like the film version of Frozen had a budget of one hundred and fifty million dollars because animation is incredibly expensive.

[29:17] Bruce Merkle: But the budget for Frozen on Broadway is $30 million. Nickels compared to $150 million, right? And yet, it's so much harder to earn back your budget on Broadway than it ever would be with an animated film. Because you can only see it in one place, right? Just the logistics of theaters are much more difficult. When you release a film in wide release, you have the opportunity of people going to see it in California, or in Florida, or anywhere else in the country, or world for that matter. Whereas when you open a show on Broadway, you have one theater. And even if you sell out, you can only sell so many tickets every night. And then you also have to do it every night. So even though you've paid everybody to write it and create it, you have to also pay people to show up and perform it.

Not only are you making money from those tickets, but then you're also using some of that money to cover running costs. So it just takes a lot longer to make your money back. That's one of the reasons why producing theater is such a risky enterprise. Yeah, it takes a long time. It opens though, and is a big hit. It gets nominated for Best Musical that year at the Tony Awards, which is not a bad thing whatsoever. Here are the other nominees for Best Musical in 2018. The Band's Visit, which wins. Mean Girls and SpongeBob SquarePants. A lot of cartoons in that list. Also in that season were Once on this Island, Carousel and My Fair Lady. It also gets nominated for Best Book of a Musical for Jennifer Lee, which I think is interesting because a screenwriter isn't usually invited to the party when it goes to Broadway, which is cool.

So she also wrote the book. She's nominated. Obviously, the Lopez's are nominated for Music and Lyrics, and that's it. No design nominations, no acting nominations. I don't know if that's the Tony Awards being like, man, we don't like Disney.

[31:22] Jeff Parsons: Yeah, I don't know either. Because I thought at the very least that the lighting of that show is pretty spectacular.

[31:28] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, it was pretty beautiful. And I mean, how they used the frozen stuff, how things were freezing and just a lot of cues at least.

[31:39] Jeff Parsons: Best cues. Best cues. Most cues goes to Frozen. So let's talk about the story, shall we? Can we go through the show?

[31:48] Bruce Merkle: Let's go through the show. The stage version opens without Frozen Heart, which is from the movie. It instead, like you said, begins with this Shakespearean chorus introducing us to Arendelle. Once there was a family. And it's all about like they say family so many times.

[32:06] Jeff Parsons: Yes. I actually kind of like this idea that this royal family is the pride of Arendelle.

[32:12] Bruce Merkle: Yes. Yeah. And then that family's destroyed.

[32:20] Jeff Parsons: Oh, just obliterated.

[32:22] Bruce Merkle: No, no. But then we do spend a little bit of time with little Anna and little Elsa.

[32:25] Jeff Parsons: Yes. We see how much Anna loves Elsa's secret superpower, which is to freeze things. Yeah. To create a winter wonderland. And so they're playing. They're playing. They want to build a snowman. And they do. And they do.

[32:38] Bruce Merkle: Out of toys. So fun. Very cute. Out of toys. Yeah. Like put these like toys together and then he animates on his own. Oh, my gosh. How cool. Yeah. I don't think I've seen that one. I should. I know I should really do this show. And then, boom, the powers get out of a little out of control and accidentally hits little Anna.

[33:04] Jeff Parsons: Oh, right. Yes. So in order to medically help her. The first aid they call the doctor. Oh, wait. They don't call a doctor. They call a shirtless centaur.

[33:08] Bruce Merkle: They do. Well, who would you want to help you if you were suddenly strucketh?

[33:15] Jeff Parsons: I don't know why they made Grandpappy so into this like hot dude.

[33:23] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. Yeah. That does CrossFit.

[33:30] Jeff Parsons: Yeah, he does. Someone explained to me why he I mean, it's it's he's a strong presence. I'm not I don't know the answer. I'm not I don't know. It just seems strange and just superficial. If we have a side by side of the film Grandpappy and the stage Grandpappy, I think many questions will arise.

[33:42] Bruce Merkle: Many questions. Well, they decided that they're not these little rock trolls. They are not trolls. And the word trolls is not used. They are hidden folk.

[33:52] Jeff Parsons: Oh, are they trolls like an offense? Am I using an offensive term? Actual trolls are quite offended by that.

[33:57] Bruce Merkle: No, no, no. In the movie and in our version, they're trolls.

[34:02] Jeff Parsons: Oh, really? OK. Super trolls.

[34:07] Bruce Merkle: Yes. These are like mysterious people of the mountain. They've rebranded them.

[34:11] Jeff Parsons: Yes. For the Broadway version. Right. Yeah. Which is great because then they don't have to be on their knees like you guys. Oh, running around the stage and, you know, tearing their cartilage. Just poor cast members. So you've got hot Grandpappy.

[34:22] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my God. Yeah. And he tells. Are you in a place? I mean, a moment. No, I'm OK. So then he comes out and makes her better.

[34:30] Jeff Parsons: Yes. He's like heals her. They have healing powers, which is awesome. And then he basically gives them a warning.

[34:36] Bruce Merkle: Yes, he warns them. But he removes the memory of the powers from Anna. So she doesn't remember her sister has these powers to begin with. And so then to Elsa, it's hey, conceal, don't feel. Don't do the thing. Just suppress, suppress, suppress, suppress, suppress. Which I think I've heard people criticize the parents, right? Saying why would they do that? The parents are not planning on dying and leaving these girls with this message in their head. So Elsa from her parents, the only cue she has from her parents is to not feel them and don't let it happen and just keep it under wraps. Whereas if she had had an adolescence with them, perhaps that would have evolved and she might have learned to use them and learn what they were and had more information.

[35:25] Jeff Parsons: That's so true. As we get older, we learn things very elementary.

[35:32] Bruce Merkle: Yes. This is hot. Don't touch it. Yes. But then you get older and you're like, oh, I need to boil water. Yes. There's a right way of doing it. Yeah. I'm going to touch this end and not that end. Yeah. And that would have, I think, happened over time.

[35:40] Jeff Parsons: Absolutely. I think the character would have been fine, but the option was not given because they got no parents because the parents go away on a trip. They go to see the girl from Tangled get married.

[35:50] Bruce Merkle: Yes, yes, yes, they do. That's the fan. Are you in on the fan fiction?

[35:55] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. Wait, isn't isn't Rapunzel at in Arendelle? Can't you see her for a moment?

[36:01] Bruce Merkle: Okay. During the coronation, you can technically see she's like outside hanging out. I think it's probably just an Easter egg for everybody. But Disney fans have taken that to mean that the parents were going to see her get married. Oh, and then then that's when the ship sunk and they died. So then when it's time for Elsa's coronation, Rapunzel comes to, like, pay her respects because the parents did die on the way to go to her wedding. There's some guilt there.

[36:19] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. Wow. What a tangled tangent. So the parents, unfortunately, pass away. And actually, the way that they do it in the stage version is really beautiful.

[36:39] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. Ours originally was so beautiful. It's been changed since then. But these had had them go down and trap doors on either side of the stage. There's rain and there's lightning and thunder happening to tombstones rise in place of where they had just gone in the trap doors. And on a war, this like pleather coat, which was iconic and in her mourning moment. And they've cut all those things since. But, yeah, she really. Oh, and there were mourners in the audience with black cloaks and candles.

[37:16] Jeff Parsons: Oh, wow. They sold that moment. So they pass away on. It feels incredibly alone because at this point, Elsa has retreated. Yeah. Trying to understand her powers and how to control them. And the fact remains that the more angst and turmoil she feels, the harder it is to control those. So she's kind of in this cyclical churning of I feel horrible. I can't control my powers. I can't control my powers. So I feel horrible.

[37:43] Bruce Merkle: Yes. Meanwhile, that leaves Anna all by herself. And Anna is a character that thrives on interacting with people.

[37:49] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. She's a people girl.

[37:55] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, she is. She loves interaction. Oh, she's outgoing. She's a really interesting, complex character and also one that I feel is kind of thankless in that so much rides on her. A lot of the comedy, a lot of the action, the romance and the heart all fall on her shoulders.

[38:09] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. And when it works, you kind of don't notice it.

[38:17] Bruce Merkle: Yes, that's so true. Yeah. She is the hardest working person in the show.

[38:23] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. Version of the show. And Elsa, meanwhile, is kind of all by herself. And while singing Let It Go and singing some of these other songs is incredibly difficult. It's probably the less demanding of the two roles, but is ultimately the more showy and interesting because there is so much angst and inner turmoil that the audience is connecting to and like a transformation. And she makes such leaps and bounds, lots of arc with that character as opposed to Anna. But of course, she learned stuff, too.

[39:03] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. But she's the vehicle for everything. Yeah. Without really getting as big of a payoff.

[39:10] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. And Kristen Bell did such a wonderful job of voicing the character in the film. I think a lot of girls have big shoes to fill.

[39:16] Bruce Merkle: Oh, for sure. Yeah. It's she's just so funny and so real. And there's no pretense.

[39:20] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. Yeah. It's super accessible. Like everyone wants to be her friend. Right. And she's kind of a mess. And we're like, oh, I'm a mess, too. I get it.

[39:25] Bruce Merkle: So then the coronation comes. It comes time for Elsa to actually become queen.

[39:33] Jeff Parsons: Yes. Which means that now for the first time in forever, the gates are being opened and Anna gets to, you know, interact with people. She's going to finally see her sister. Why have a ballroom with no balls?

[39:38] Bruce Merkle: Thank you. She wants to stuff chocolate in her face. Yes. She has all these feelings. She wants to meet a gentleman.

[39:43] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. She's she actually is a really great character. She's great. I love Anna. The coronation involves Elsa needing to hold a scepter and an orb. And the tool that she's always had with being able to control the powers is putting on gloves, just thin fabric.

[40:05] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. Just the thinnest of fabric. It's just everything's fine. Everything's fine. But she can't do that when she holds the scepter in the orb. So she needs to practice conceal. Don't feel so that when she takes off those gloves all winter doesn't break.

[40:23] Jeff Parsons: Yes. And so everyone's looking at her. That's a lot of pressure, right? In the stage version. This is where my favorite new song comes into play. Dangerous to dream. Dangerous to dream same is a freaking gorgeous song. It's so good. It is. I can't be what you expected me. Oh, and I'm trying every day. The lyric is so great. When when she says you can change the rules, but not the reason they were made.

[40:46] Bruce Merkle: Oh, yes. Oh, it's so beautiful. It is. It brings such an effective texture to the character who Elsa has kind of become a character that just belts nonstop.

[40:58] Jeff Parsons: Yes. And this is a much softer, much more introspective look at who this person is. And you know that she wants that relationship. She is not as cold as she appears on the outside. And you don't maybe get that as clearly, I think, in the animated movie. She's just like, oh, there's Elsa. There's Anna. Like, we don't really know to the extent to which she really wants this to work out.

[41:18] Bruce Merkle: Right. So we get to see inside of her. It's really it's lovely. Yeah. And it's you know, it's she's sensitive and soft and we're like, OK, we're we get you. I love it. It works. She becomes queen.

[41:28] Jeff Parsons: Yes. Meanwhile, Anna is off meeting people, meets Prince Hans of the Southern Isles. And Prince Hans is the youngest of how many?

[41:41] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my gosh. Thirteenth in line.

[41:46] Jeff Parsons: Thirteenth. Oh, maybe perhaps. Should we look this up? Is this important? I don't know if it's important enough, but I'm kind of interested to know.

[41:50] Bruce Merkle: Now I can guess I've only heard it like a thousand times while I was on stage. So don't worry about. So don't worry. I'm incredibly present. I'm I'm only waiting for my queue line.

[42:05] Jeff Parsons: Six, seven, eight. He's the youngest of this long line of brothers who are all princes.

[42:10] Bruce Merkle: So there's no way that he's ever going to inherit the kingdom of his father because all of the brothers would have to die first.

[42:14] Jeff Parsons: Yes, that's not going to happen.

[42:20] Bruce Merkle: Not likely. So he seems in many ways like a good match for Anna because he feels a little left out.

[42:26] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. He feels disconnected from his family, from his purpose. And they connect very quickly. And there they go. They fall into a fun little little romantic moment.

[42:40] Bruce Merkle: Yes. Love is an open door. He at the end of the song, which is, you know, a couple minutes.

[42:45] Jeff Parsons: Yeah. Proposes. That's fine. And like a crazy person, she accepts. She has never known any kind of feeling like this. So she said, I want more of this. Let's do it. Yes, please. A life of this.

[43:02] Bruce Merkle: Oh my God. I'll have a life of a dance break with you, which I actually really love because it seems like such an episode of The Bachelor to me because how I've never seen The Bachelor. Neither have I. But.

[43:21] Jeff Parsons: But it feels like like on reality shows, they the whole premise of do I need to explain what the premise of The Bachelor is? I know that there are roses and there are people and there one person has many options of a suitor.

[43:27] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And so. So there's this dude. Yeah. Right. Who has been chosen by a casting agency to star in a television show. Yes. And then and then there are. She's beautiful. Yeah. And then all of these women are like, I want to be on this show in order to marry this guy.

[43:55] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Of course, and then throughout the season he dates them all, yeah, and picks one. Yeah, and they're like, absolutely, this is the person I meant to be with.

[44:04] Bruce Merkle: Yes, that sounds to me a lot like "Love is an Open Door." You want to hear something crazy? Do you want to marry me?

[44:10] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Do you want to hear something even crazier?

[44:14] Bruce Merkle: Yes, sandwiches. That's what I was going to say. I think it's actually incredibly relevant.

[44:22] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes, to kind of to some of the bizarre ideas that we have about love and romance and marriage.

[44:28] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, they had like a quick little swipe right romance. Yeah, they had one season on The Bachelor, and now they're thinking they're going to all happily ever after.

[44:35] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: All in. Yeah, so she tells Elsa this.

[44:42] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, that she has met the love of her life. Great news. And Elsa's like, you're nuts. Excuse me, how long have you known him?

[44:49] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, and she's like, it doesn't matter. You don't understand this. We're in love.

[44:53] Bruce Merkle: Love, daddy, I love him.

[45:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: We never talk about that, by the way. We never talk about the fact that Ariel has never met Prince Eric.

[45:07] Bruce Merkle: Has she not met him at this point? By the time she says, "Daddy, I love him," she's just spied on him in the boat watching him with the dog once she saved him.

[45:12] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, then she, I mean, creepy. The first time she meets him, he's unconscious.

[45:18] Bruce Merkle: Me too. Same. Him too. Him too. Oh, uh, anyway. So Elsa isn't having this, and she doesn't, and for a good reason, doesn't think that Anna's making a sound decision.

[45:30] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Anna couldn't disagree more, and that sets off Elsa's powers. Yes, one of the gloves comes off, and Elsa is having some feelings, and everyone's watching, and boom, and everybody gets to see the feelings in the incarnation of ice.

[45:45] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, so now all of a sudden, oh my gosh, our new queen is a monster. Yeah, a little foreshadowing.

[45:51] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And she's humiliated. This is the worst possible thing. This is what she, you know, had been fearing since she was a child. She runs out.

[46:08] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, there are other guests there, including the Duke of Wesselton.

[46:21] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Wesselton. Wesselton. Weasel Town is what they say, but it's corrected to Wesselton by the Duke himself.

[46:27] Bruce Merkle: Yes, and he is like, oh, she is a problem, and he's kind of painted to be the villain of this piece. We think that he is the one who's wanting to destroy our heroine.

[46:34] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes, and at this point, he is kind of wondering, you know, with everyone else, if this is such a good idea to have her as a queen.

[46:49] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, Elsa runs away. Then what happens?

[46:56] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Elsa runs away, and Anna says, I have to go after her, and she goes after her up the North Mountain because that's where Elsa was last seen headed towards. So Anna's going on this journey. It's all snowy. There's some things happening, and she meets Kristoff.

[47:13] Bruce Merkle: Now Kristoff is an interesting fella. He is an ice delivery man.

[47:21] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, ice harvester. Ice harvester, yeah, delivers the ice in a little wagon with his trusty reindeer, Sven, named Sven.

[47:29] Bruce Merkle: Now in the stage version, Sven is played by Andrew. I don't know if it's still played by Andrew Perozzi. I think he's still in it.

[47:33] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, yeah, but by a dancer. And can you describe this costume? It is full coverage, so you don't see any human at all. So he is kind of walking on his toes. The back of his, the back legs of the reindeer, his toes are almost like pointing towards the ground, and his arms are controlling the front of the reindeer, and you don't see his face. It's an incredible puppet. It's quite beautiful.

[47:56] Bruce Merkle: Not as expressive or animated as the movie, so you know that side by side would be different. But yeah, he is for practical purposes a reindeer void of facial expression.

[48:02] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, and Kristoff, his only friend in the world is Sven. He's his ride or die. He's a mountain man, and since Sven doesn't talk, Kristoff talks for him.

[48:15] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, this is a source of comedy that I have never laughed at once in all of the versions of Frozen that I've seen.

[48:23] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So how do you feel about it?

[48:35] Bruce Merkle: Honestly, the funniest thing in the movie? No. This is something I've never laughed at. Wouldn't you think about it? I don't think it's meant to be something life-changing, but it's interesting. It's supposed to be funny, though. Here's the thing: Disney movies, like, and stories in general, like talking animals. We're there ready to go. What do you got to say? Let's go. But this didn't happen with Sven. They didn't give him a voice, although a snowman is okay to talk, but not Sven. Good point.

[49:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So I don't know what the choice of the device was for that. I think maybe to show Kristoff's isolation, yeah, to show that he just has to kind of, you know, make it on his own. He's a loner. He has his reindeer, and so he's just going to be okay. He doesn't really need other people. He can fill in the blanks for them. And I think that the Frozen world is full of quirky people.

[49:25] Bruce Merkle: Yes, right? Everybody has a little bit of a quirk.

[49:32] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, everyone's kind of weird. Yeah, and I appreciate that. But they double down hard on it. Even in Frozen 2, I was like, when the first Kristoff talking for Sven joke happened in Frozen 2, I'm like, oh no, we're still doing this. We're going to do this again? Okay, years later, got it, got it, got it. No voice for you.

[49:48] Bruce Merkle: So he sings, "Reindeer are better than people." Reindeer, reindeers are better than people. Sven, don't you think I'm right? And then Sven talks as well. Meanwhile, back in Arendelle.

[49:58] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, okay. So no, actually, we should say, so he meets Anna. Anna happens upon Kristoff, and they have a little exchange, and she's like, hey, I gotta go up this mountain. Can you help me? And he's like, and I'll take people places. She goes, but I'm from the royal family, and he goes, okay, fine, get in. Whatever their little meet cute is destined to bloom more than just a friendship because they can't stand each other, of course. And what's going to happen there?

[50:24] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, but it's still sweet, and they sing the song "What Do You Know About Love," which is super cute. Yeah, when I was talking about how do you change a cartoon with a lot of action into a stage musical, "What Do You Know About Love" is one of the big things that they do. It's now they're crossing like a bridge and singing while they do it. Yeah, she saves his life, then they learn something about each other on the way, and then ultimately see each other's bravery. Yeah, when push comes to shove.

[50:59] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, he was judging her for getting engaged for someone she just met, right? And she was judging him for being weird. I don't know why she does not like him. It's like, what do you know about love? You're up here alone with a reindeer, yeah, speaking for him. So you're telling me about human connection and relationships? Oh, dang. Meanwhile, back in Arendelle, Hans has decided to send out a search party to rescue Anna because there's no way that she'd be okay on her own out there. She's a helpless little girl.

[51:28] Bruce Merkle: She is also to bring back Elsa because she needs to stand trial, or they need to figure out what's going on. Also because Arendelle's now in this like eternal winter.

[51:41] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, it was July. So that's the other reason to bring Elsa back. Then "Let It Go" happens.

[51:46] Bruce Merkle: Then "Let It Go" happens. That's Elsa. Adult Elsa doesn't have a lot of bullet points in Act One, but yeah, Act One ends with "Let It Go." Now can you talk me through a little bit about how it's staged in the New York production?

[51:58] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, it's simple. There's kind of a bare stage thing happening. She comes out, sings the first part of the song, cape flies away, glove flies away, magic.

[52:10] Bruce Merkle: So good. I mean, people have to spontaneously break out into applause to see.

[52:15] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, oh yeah, those things recreated live. Yeah, it's beautiful. It's simple. It's theatrical. It's, you know, it's real. It's right in front of you.

[52:20] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, and then she kind of like creates her ice palace. There's, you know, curtains come down, lights happen, many cues in this number, and then go stage manager. So yay.

[52:32] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, and then this dress reveal is quite impressive because everybody loves a transformation, let's be honest, right? Yeah, and when she goes from her original garb, nation gown, coronation garb to the full, the jewels and the glitter and the fabric, sparkly sparkles, many sparkle things, and it happens in such a cool theatrical way.

[52:59] Bruce Merkle: That's very cool. I think it's everybody's favorite part of the entire show. It's great. Yeah, it's unexpected. You're like, how's it going to happen? She's just standing on a stage by herself, and then boom.

[53:07] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And then it happens.

[53:14] Bruce Merkle: Then it happens. Theater magic, people. Theater magic. Boom, Act One ends. Everyone's screaming and crying, which let's talk about Casey Levy because that voice is incredible.

[53:21] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It's so good. She was a fontine in the revival of Les Mis, right?

[53:28] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, which is interesting. Also a similar type of role where you have one great song. Yeah, you have a song by yourself, and then you kind of disappear for a lot of the rest of the show.

[53:33] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, anyway, but an incredible singer. Yeah, how was she in the show?

[53:40] Bruce Merkle: Oh, flawless. Incredible. Yeah, just lovely and powerful. Great actor. Just really, you know, was present. Yeah, and that's what I think Michael Grandage wanted was scene work, you know, to ground this cartoon that everybody knows.

[54:00] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Absolutely. That's so exciting. We should also mention Patty Murin, who is also wonderful, just like kind of she's plucked out of like an old Hollywood movie, really.

[54:05] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, I love it. I love her sense of humor and her timing. It's really great. You can't really teach that.

[54:12] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: That's exciting. Yeah, she was in Holiday Inn, was she?

[54:18] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, I don't know if it was the Holiday Inn in New York, but her name was in all of the costumes when I just did it.

[54:23] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: You're like, I was like, oh, she was in the show in your costumes?

[54:28] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, my costume. Great. She played, oh my god, amazing. Yeah, first of all, it was exciting. No, mine all said Corbin Bleu, and then my co-stars all said Patty Murin.

[54:34] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, amazing. Corbin doesn't smell, I can tell you that.

[54:39] Bruce Merkle: That's helpful too. Yeah, he has good hygiene. Great. Those costumes didn't stink. I haven't had to share my costumes in Frozen, thank goodness.

[54:44] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, that's nice. Yeah, back to Frozen. So many tangents.

[54:52] Bruce Merkle: So Act Two begins with the song called "Hygge." Yeah, now my people are from Denmark and the UK.

[55:00] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Okay, I'm just white.

[55:08] Bruce Merkle: Yes, as I, as are you, I'm sure. Yes, do you have, what is your ancestry?

[55:13] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: German, Italian.

[55:19] Bruce Merkle: Oh, you're Slovak. I'm a quarter Slovak. Wow. And the other quarter is like English and some other things.

[55:24] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, you're, that's an interesting mutt that you got.

[55:30] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, yeah, I am much blander. Yeah, I'm just the UK and Denmark, maybe a little Switzerland. This is just like a Wonder Bread episode.

[55:36] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Oh, speaking of Wonder Bread or lack of diversity for that matter, your production of Frozen at the Hyperion was known for having diverse casting. That was one of Liesl Tommy's big goals with that show, right?

[55:43] Bruce Merkle: It is so amazing that she did that. Liesl Tommy made sure that the casting for Frozen was super diverse and reflected the audience that was watching it because their race is not a part of the storytelling. So you can kind of do whatever you want with that. It's amazing. And yeah, it was so awesome. That also, I think, influential to the Broadway version because Kristoff is African American, right?

[56:06] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, I would say it influenced a lot of things. It was the first time a show in the park for Disney was made where the characters didn't necessarily look like the ones in the movie because we have imaginations, we have creativity, and ultimately, yeah, it's not about race. Yeah, it's about the relationship and that you don't need that to tell the story.

[56:20] Bruce Merkle: Thank you. But what I was talking about was that my people are from Denmark. Yes, so I have a book about hygge. Yes, and in this book, it teaches about what this term means, which is comfy cozy, anything to do with curling up in front of a fire and fabrics and cottons and lampshades and diffuse lighting and salt lamps and candles. I have a lot of candles, so it's something from my ancestry that I try to keep alive.

[56:52] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, this musical, it's a 25-minute musical number. It needs a number. The purpose of it is so that she can get supplies to go up the North Mountain, say hi to Elsa. But they take their time. Anna and Kristoff find themselves at a trading post run by this guy named Oaken.

[57:10] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, is that right? Wandering Oaken?

[57:15] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Wandering Oaken. These names are very specific. You said quirky people in Arendelle.

[57:19] Bruce Merkle: It's true. It's true. There are a lot of, there's a lot of quirks. They find this trading post that has, you know, lots of great tools for surviving the winter, yeah, and also a hot sauna.

[57:26] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, to, you know, thaw.

[57:34] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, and I haven't seen this production number, but from what I understand, the hot sauna means that people are naked in the dance break.

[57:40] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Of course, yes, it does. Why would they not be? But I mean, not, not, there's no nudity. There's no nudity. No, they're all wearing like bodysuits and stuff, but yeah, they're, they have their, um, what are they called? The leaves?

[57:50] Bruce Merkle: They have these eucalyptus.

[57:57] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Okay, or something when you get a massage, you get like, yeah, you get beaten with the leaves. I think this is like an Eastern European thing.

[58:03] Bruce Merkle: Okay, so because I've never experienced this. Well, but that being said, I live in Los Angeles, so I usually go and get a Korean massage.

[58:07] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Great. They don't beat me with leaves.

[58:13] Bruce Merkle: Okay, we'll go to Eastern Europe, and maybe that will happen for you, and you might also be inspired to write a musical number about it.

[58:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I'm not saying no.

[58:24] Bruce Merkle: Great, I'll say yes, and yes, I will, and I will write a musical about it. Great. They have this musical number, which you said has been kind of, they condensed it a little bit, and I know that the tour stuff would happen there, the edits and things are.

[58:34] Bruce Merkle: New York now, which is cool.

[58:35] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It happens. Yeah.

[58:36] Bruce Merkle: So it's evolved after Hugo.

[58:38] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: They head back up to find Elsa.

[58:42] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, they go up to the castle, the ice palace.

[58:44] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And Anna finds Elsa up there.

[58:46] Bruce Merkle: And they kind of have.

[58:48] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Can we talk about how Elsa is an amazing architect?

[58:50] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, she is really underrated for this incredible skill that she has.

[58:54] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: She's created banisters and balconies and arches and chandeliers.

[58:59] Bruce Merkle: Chandeliers of ice.

[59:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Countertops.

[59:02] Bruce Merkle: Girl needs to open an Etsy store.

[59:04] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: She needs to have a boutique on Melrose.

[59:09] Bruce Merkle: It'd be so great. Everything frozen.

[59:10] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, my God, it'd be beautiful.

[59:11] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, people would go nuts.

[59:13] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Good for her.

[59:13] Bruce Merkle: And the dress, which is it's made of ice.

[59:15] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: What happened to our other dress?

[59:16] Bruce Merkle: We don't know.

[59:17] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It doesn't matter.

[59:17] Bruce Merkle: It doesn't matter. It's now I got sucked into the ground.

[59:23] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes.

[59:24] Bruce Merkle: So they have this conversation.

[59:25] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah.

[59:25] Bruce Merkle: Anna finds Elsa in this palace and they start having this conversation.

[59:29] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Now, this is actually one of my other favorite parts of the new music that has been written.

[59:32] Bruce Merkle: They've taken that little piece from the Demi Lovato pop version, which I love that in the movie, everybody in the world wanted to listen to Let It Go.

[59:43] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: But like Idina Menzel's version.

[59:45] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. Not the pop version that was playing over the credits.

[59:47] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I can't think of another Disney movie where that has happened.

[59:50] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, we all we would always listen to Vanessa Williams.

[59:53] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Absolutely. Singing Colors of the Wind.

[59:55] Bruce Merkle: Oh, oh, Colors of the Wind.

[59:56] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Who was who was the Celine Dion?

[59:58] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my God. People, right?

[1:00:00] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Oh, so good.

[1:00:02] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, I wasn't listening to.

[1:00:03] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: No, I was listening to Angela Lansbury.

[1:00:06] Bruce Merkle: OK, but I don't think FM 100.

[1:00:09] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Maybe they weren't playing that one.

[1:00:12] Bruce Merkle: No, probably not.

[1:00:12] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Anyway, but they've taken that little piece that they put for Demi Lovato, the frozen in this life I've chosen.

[1:00:19] Bruce Merkle: They put it into the musical.

[1:00:21] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And I think it's a great choice.

[1:00:23] Bruce Merkle: No, it's great.

[1:00:23] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: They have this conversation in which Anna is telling Elsa, hey, girl, come back to Arendelle. We love you. Also, you kind of set off a winter and you need to fix that.

[1:00:35] Bruce Merkle: And Elsa's like news to her.

[1:00:37] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, gosh.

[1:00:37] Bruce Merkle: Elsa thought if I, you know, was isolated and all by myself up here that I wasn't going to hurt anyone.

[1:00:43] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And but that's not true because Arendelle's frozen.

[1:00:46] Bruce Merkle: I don't have any control of my powers.

[1:00:48] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And so she's feeling angsty.

[1:00:50] Bruce Merkle: And we all know that when she's feeling angsty, the powers get out of control again.

[1:00:54] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So by the end of this little exchange between Anna and Elsa, her powers have frozen her heart, right?

[1:01:00] Bruce Merkle: She gets struck in the heart and they have to go take care of that.

[1:01:03] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Anna, of course, doesn't realize what has happened, but her hair starts turning white.

[1:01:07] Bruce Merkle: And Kristoff sees this after having left the palace and says, all right, we need the first aid kit known as CrossFit Pabbie.

[1:01:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, yes.

[1:01:16] Bruce Merkle: As it turns out, he doesn't know that Anna was saved by the hidden folk.

[1:01:22] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Is that right?

[1:01:23] Bruce Merkle: Yes. Oh, my gosh. You know, when she was a little girl.

[1:01:27] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: But these are the same people who are his adopted family.

[1:01:31] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. They raised him.

[1:01:33] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So he brings her, this woman, back to the family.

[1:01:36] Bruce Merkle: And they're overjoyed because Kristoff has found a gal.

[1:01:41] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. What's this lady coming back here for?

[1:01:43] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And they're so excited. Oh, you guys are together.

[1:01:47] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And Anna's like, no, no, no, no, no, no. I'm marrying Prince Hans. We're not together.

[1:01:50] Bruce Merkle: And the family is like, oh, no, I know. You're probably not thinking Kristoff is great and he's not.

[1:02:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Just the worst.

[1:02:03] Bruce Merkle: All of the backhanded compliments in the song Fixer Upper.

[1:02:06] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: But I do find Fixer Upper to be a little problematic because we are simultaneously saying that love changes the world, which it does.

[1:02:14] Bruce Merkle: All true change stems from love, not fear.

[1:02:18] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes, I completely believe that.

[1:02:21] Bruce Merkle: But we're also kind of telling specifically little girls.

[1:02:24] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. If you see some red flags, you can change those.

[1:02:28] Bruce Merkle: All you need. All he needs is you to love him.

[1:02:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes. And I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no. That's not how life works.

[1:02:36] Bruce Merkle: But who knows? Maybe that's just me projecting.

[1:02:38] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I hope I maybe that maybe people don't the best of intentions. They just want Kristoff to be happy.

[1:02:43] Bruce Merkle: And they're just like, hey, he's not like all the people. But like, don't forget that part.

[1:02:47] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: We know that he's a little smelly, but he's got a wonderful heart.

[1:02:50] Bruce Merkle: So good guy. So look deeper. Yes.

[1:02:52] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And that is that is great. Then what goes down plot wise?

[1:02:56] Bruce Merkle: Elsa is taken back to Arendelle.

[1:02:58] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, so, yeah, Hans shows up with his search party.

[1:03:02] Bruce Merkle: And they put her in chains and take her back to Arendelle.

[1:03:05] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: She willingly goes back because she's like, OK, I need to face this. I want to deal with this issue and see what's.

[1:03:09] Bruce Merkle: Cue my other favorite new song in the piece.

[1:03:12] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Well, it's great.

[1:03:14] Bruce Merkle: It's exactly what you want from.

[1:03:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, it's what. Yeah, I like I like that they really take you through her thought patterns at that moment.

[1:03:20] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And it means that let it go isn't really the high point of her.

[1:03:24] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: You know, it's the no good deed goes unpunished of the Elsa role.

[1:03:29] Bruce Merkle: It's no good deed. They call it.

[1:03:32] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, do they really?

[1:03:34] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, they do.

[1:03:35] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, I thought you just made that up.

[1:03:35] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Does Anna get captured as well?

[1:03:36] Bruce Merkle: That would have been great.

[1:03:37] Bruce Merkle: Oh, she goes back.

[1:03:39] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, she's back in Arendelle.

[1:03:41] Bruce Merkle: How does she get back to Arendelle?

[1:03:42] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: They just go back to Arendelle.

[1:03:43] Bruce Merkle: They just go back, right?

[1:03:44] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Because they're like, well, that didn't work out. Elsa didn't want to come back. You need true love's kiss.

[1:03:49] Bruce Merkle: So Anna needs to get to Hans.

[1:03:51] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Holy cow. We totally skipped that.

[1:03:52] Bruce Merkle: So they're told that in order for her to fully be healed.

[1:03:57] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes. CrossFit says, OK, you need true love's kiss.

[1:04:00] Bruce Merkle: And that will break the spell.

[1:04:02] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Not true love's kiss. That's not what I mean.

[1:04:04] Bruce Merkle: An act of true love will thaw a frozen heart.

[1:04:06] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So then she's like, oh, well, my true love is Prince Hans. We need to go back to Arendelle.

[1:04:11] Bruce Merkle: So Kristoff wants her to be well. So takes her to Hans, to the doorstep and says, please, like, just keep her safe.

[1:04:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: What a sweet guy.

[1:04:18] Bruce Merkle: What a sweet guy.

[1:04:18] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. And then Elsa's kind of like they take her to like prison, basically.

[1:04:23] Bruce Merkle: And Anna and Hans have their meeting.

[1:04:26] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And she's like, hey, you know, Elsa froze my heart. But an act of true love. And let's get this going. And I'm so glad you're here.

[1:04:33] Bruce Merkle: And he's like, actually, not what's happening here.

[1:04:37] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I was hoping to somehow like usurp this entire situation and take control of Arendelle.

[1:04:41] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. Remember how I could never have a kingdom because of all my brothers? Actually, I can now I can because if I marry you and then both of you disappear, it's mine to die.

[1:04:50] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Actually, he's kind of smart.

[1:04:53] Bruce Merkle: I mean, those other brothers, most villains are.

[1:04:55] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Those other brothers.

[1:04:57] Bruce Merkle: I would be impressed with that.

[1:04:58] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: But that's a quite a strategy.

[1:05:02] Bruce Merkle: Very true.

[1:05:03] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, it's great.

[1:05:03] Bruce Merkle: Maybe not great, but it's not great.

[1:05:05] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So he leaves her to die.

[1:05:07] Bruce Merkle: Yes.

[1:05:09] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And she's all by herself.

[1:05:11] Bruce Merkle: And she sings this lovely song called True Love.

[1:05:13] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes, it is a lovely song.

[1:05:15] Bruce Merkle: And cut for the tour, though.

[1:05:15] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, really?

[1:05:18] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, I think it's not going to be in New York anymore, but on the recording.

[1:05:18] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Well, that's too bad.

[1:05:19] Bruce Merkle: It's a it's a lovely song because you really understand that her vulnerability got her to where she is and prevented her from kind of finding good things along the way.

[1:05:27] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And she was always so open and so willing to trust and love anyone and somehow not extinguishing her flame either.

[1:05:35] Bruce Merkle: Yes. You know, she's she's still Anna.

[1:05:37] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. And it's it's a great moment for her character.

[1:05:41] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, I think it's lovely.

[1:05:42] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And then the first moment that we're even talking about Olaf is right now because it's the first time he does something that's important.

[1:05:47] Bruce Merkle: He comes in, saves Anna.

[1:05:51] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, my gosh. Yeah, we totally skipped in summer.

[1:05:53] Bruce Merkle: Don't let's not talk about my character.

[1:05:55] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Well, it's true that he's not important, I guess.

[1:05:57] Bruce Merkle: And he's like comic relief.

[1:05:58] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And what does he do now?

[1:06:00] Bruce Merkle: And his whole well, actually, the animators, we were we were talking to them when we were doing the creating the show.

[1:06:05] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, really?

[1:06:06] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And they were saying how he John Lasseter name dropping.

[1:06:10] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: John Lasseter talked to me about how Olaf is a little piece of Anna and Elsa together. So he represents their unity and their bond together.

[1:06:17] Bruce Merkle: Well, that's really great, because there's a song at the beginning called A Piece of You, Piece of Me.

[1:06:20] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yes, that's where that came from.

[1:06:22] Bruce Merkle: He was very excited to talk about how sweet.

[1:06:24] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, it is sweet.

[1:06:25] Bruce Merkle: And he represents that in his heart.

[1:06:28] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Well, they created him when they were younger. So it's kind of like that moment in time is frozen within him. He represents that.

[1:06:36] Bruce Merkle: But in this scene, he comes in and saves Anna.

[1:06:41] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And she's like, oh, gosh, I don't even know what true love is.

[1:06:44] Bruce Merkle: And Olaf being kind of this open, youthful energy is absorbing everything around him tells her, you know what true love is. True love is putting somebody else's needs before your own and then helps her to realize, oh, my gosh, I love Kristoff.

[1:07:00] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So they're like, let's go get Kristoff.

[1:07:02] Bruce Merkle: So, boom, beeline to Kristoff.

[1:07:04] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Hans is trying to go kill Elsa. They're all meeting up on the fjord, the frozen fjord.

[1:07:10] Bruce Merkle: And this is where the climax happens.

[1:07:13] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Hans goes to to kill Elsa.

[1:07:16] Bruce Merkle: And Anna steps in to prevent this from happening.

[1:07:20] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: An act of true love.

[1:07:22] Bruce Merkle: She is frozen and Elsa is in pieces.

[1:07:25] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: She thinks she killed her sister.

[1:07:27] Bruce Merkle: She's responsible for the death. Yes.

[1:07:29] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And then because she just risked her life for her.

[1:07:31] Bruce Merkle: That act of true love, not the kiss with Hans or Kristoff unthaws her and has the spell is broken.

[1:07:39] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, that's really sweet.

[1:07:41] Bruce Merkle: It is really sweet, isn't it?

[1:07:43] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Now I want to go see it.

[1:07:46] Bruce Merkle: Go sign up for the lottery.

[1:07:48] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah, don't. That's really sweet.

[1:07:50] Bruce Merkle: And I forgot how much I love Olaf.

[1:07:52] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: He's he's good. Like, what a what a sweet what a sweet character.

[1:07:58] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, no, he's great.

[1:08:00] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: We love Olaf.

[1:08:00] Bruce Merkle: We all need a little bit of Olaf.

[1:08:03] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: We do.

[1:08:03] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And I think that that it's a beautiful ending to the show.

[1:08:08] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: It is because it's about the girls.

[1:08:09] Bruce Merkle: It is about their relationship.

[1:08:10] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And we've been dealing with them by themselves.

[1:08:14] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. For so long.

[1:08:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. That it is a great payoff to see the culmination be about them acting together.

[1:08:22] Bruce Merkle: It is sweet.

[1:08:23] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And not only does it unthaw Anna, but it unthaws Arendelle.

[1:08:30] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. Right.

[1:08:31] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And the whole kingdom.

[1:08:32] Bruce Merkle: And she takes her powers and knows how to how to use them better now.

[1:08:37] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. She gets a harness on them.

[1:08:39] Bruce Merkle: Because I do think that sometimes our strengths in life can ultimately become our weaknesses, you know, and vice versa.

[1:08:44] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And vice versa.

[1:08:50] Bruce Merkle: What a great metaphor for that.

[1:08:52] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Now, because I almost don't even see it as controlling so much as using with a better intention.

[1:08:57] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. As soon as you know how you can use your powers.

[1:09:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Then all of a sudden that changes everything.

[1:09:06] Bruce Merkle: Exactly. No, it's sweet.

[1:09:08] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: I love I love that.

[1:09:09] Bruce Merkle: I love that they take something that she has a lot of shame around and makes it her superpower, which I think so many people can identify with that.

[1:09:17] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: We all have something that we're just like, oh, this thing, this thing, this thing.

[1:09:21] Bruce Merkle: But I think having it be out in the open, talking about it, experiencing it with other people and having understanding around you really helps to take away the shame.

[1:09:32] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: An incredible story to have for kids because it immediately alleviates the possibility of bullying.

[1:09:40] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. When you see that we all have quirks, but that they are actually our superpowers.

[1:09:46] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Honestly, that is the vehicle for diversity.

[1:09:49] Bruce Merkle: Yeah. And making our lives abundant and full.

[1:09:53] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. Which so.

[1:09:56] Bruce Merkle: OK, I like frozen.

[1:09:57] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Yeah. You like frozen.

[1:09:58] Bruce Merkle: I do.

[1:10:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: What does frozen mean to you? Really fast before we leave.

[1:10:05] Bruce Merkle: What I mean, because it has been a huge portion of your life.

[1:10:08] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, my gosh. Well, personally, it's really changed a lot of things. Just being able to work with all these amazing people.

[1:10:15] Bruce Merkle: Yeah.

[1:10:15] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And to play the super famous character and work with Liesl Tommy and Christopher Wyndham and Jason Michael Webb creating something from the ground up, it was.

[1:10:25] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, it means a lot.

[1:10:26] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: The doing of the show. And it's it's it's lovely.

[1:10:29] Bruce Merkle: I never tracked Olaf in any way. I had like three auditions that week and just went and you know what? I didn't think about it a lot and was pleased to get to play him because it's it's just a lovely reminder of like the power of innocence and love and and all of that.

[1:10:49] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: That's great.

[1:10:51] Bruce Merkle: Yeah, it's good.

[1:10:51] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Thank you, Lopez's.

[1:10:53] Bruce Merkle: Thank you, Jennifer Lee.

[1:10:54] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Oh, my gosh. For changing the landscape of this kinds of stories that we expect from Disney and the kinds of things we get to experience in theater.

[1:11:03] Bruce Merkle: My hope is that it is for the better.

[1:11:06] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: And I think that when you surround yourself with artists who have integrity, it will be.

[1:11:10] Bruce Merkle: Yeah.

[1:11:12] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Love is an open door.

[1:11:13] Bruce Merkle: Love is an open door.

[1:11:16] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Thanks, everybody, for listening. We're on Instagram now.

[1:11:19] Bruce Merkle: Oh, my gosh.

[1:11:20] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: So follow us on Instagram and Twitter at a musical podcast. If you have any ideas for shows you would like covered here on a musical theater podcast, you can always email a musical podcast at Gmail dot com. I haven't done this for a while. So let's give some thanks to Michael J. Willett for creating our artwork and our theme song and to all of the quirky people out there.

[1:11:34] Bruce Merkle: Hugo, Hugo, Hugo, Hugo.

[1:12:01] Jeffrey Scott Parsons: Hey, it's me, Jeff. Hi. I just got back from Frozen. After all that, I entered the lottery. I won tickets. I went to the Pantages, to the gorgeous Pantages Theater in Los Angeles, in Hollywood, and I saw Frozen. Go to our Instagram at a musical podcast to see the photos. I wanted to check in after the episode and say that even after I saw it, I feel like this is a really great episode about Frozen. I'm really happy with everything we talked about except for this one thing. While watching it, I had this burning question, which is after Anna and Elsa's parents die, who is running Arendelle until the moment that Elsa becomes queen? I mean, we flushed out that story to two acts in over two hours, and we never touched on that. I'm just saying the show is gorgeous. Everybody's super talented. And the audience was going crazy, so they had to be doing something right. Anyway, I saw Frozen and I'm very proud of myself. Bye, everybody.