Caroline Bowman Stars in The National Tour of The Tony-Nominated Best Musical
by tony reverditto
Frozen is a 2013 computer-animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Frozen: The Musical was produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, starting with a tryout run at the Buell Theatre in Denver, Colorado in August 2017, then premiering on Broadway in March 2018 at the St. James Theatre.
In the 1840s, young sisters Elsa and Anna flourish amid the warmth and love in the fictional kingdom of Arendelle. One night while frolicking, Elsa, who possesses the magical power to manipulate ice and snow, accidentally strikes Anna. Her parents are furious and summon the Hidden Folk Shaman Pabbie to remove Anna’s memory of Elsa’s magical power. Elsa is told there is great danger in her powers and that she must keep them from everyone as they would grow stronger as she grew up. Frightened she would harm Anna again or others, Elsa isolates herself, and the sisters grow up apart.
Years later, Elsa is crowned as queen. As she still struggles to figure out why her sister is giving her the “cold” shoulder, she has a welcome distraction, the handsome Prince Hans. At the coronation, Anna reveals that her one-day relationship has resulted in an engagement. Elsa loses a glove while reacting to the news and all hell breaks loose; she unleashes a blast of ice setting off an eternal winter. The Duke of Weselton accuses her of sorcery, and Elsa flees.
Now feeling safe on the North Mountain, Elsa has a breakthrough moment. She finally “lets it go” and her powerful magic creates a spectacular palace of ice. Anna is determined to take the treacherous journey to reach her. After a mishap, her horse abandons her and she summons the help of the adorable Kristoff and his sidekick reindeer, Sven. They are joined by the Snowman, who guides them up the mountain with lots of obstacles along the way. Upon arrival, no surprise, Elsa refuses to return and accidentally strikes Anna in the heart, which unleashes a spell that will slowly turn her sister into ice. Anna is in the process of freezing to death and only an act of true love can thaw a frozen heart and bring back summer. Will it happen in time?
Caroline Bowman plays Elsa on the tour. Her Broadway credits include Elphaba in Wicked and Nicola in Kinky Boots, opening and closing casts. She has been seen on tour around the world in Evita as Eva Perón and received Helen Hayes Award nomination for her portrayal.
The RAGE Monthly caught up with Bowman during the tour to get some insight on her and the role.
When did you discover that you had an extraordinary voice? Is it God-given or did you have to take vocal training?
Thank you for the compliment within the question. I think the way I can answer this is that I have been singing for as long as I can remember. My mom is a singer, so I grew up singing with her and watching her in musicals. I sang every chance I had and had very encouraging, supportive parents telling me to keep going. Broadway music has been my favorite type of music to sing all my life. I believe that all singers are born singers and you can train your instrument. So, I think my gift is a bit of both. I was born with singer chords AND I’ve had tons of training. I grew up doing choir and taking voices lessons, and I still take voice lessons every two weeks for maintenance.
You have had such an impressive career and starred in one of my all-time favorite musicals, Evita. What was it like to portray such an iconic and controversial character?
Evita transformed me into the leading lady I wanted to be. It was the greatest challenge of my career at the time, and I was grateful every single day I played her. I learned a lot about myself through playing her. I am stronger because of her. It was also so incredible as an actor to have so much information available to me for character research. I learned so much about her, which helped inform the way I portrayed Eva.
Elsa is quite a monumental character. What do you think casting saw in you that was a good fit for the role?
Taking on Elsa is a huge responsibility. This character means the world to all age ranges. She means the world to me! Playing her is not something I take lightly. I think the creative team/casting saw a leader who was ready and prepared to take on the challenge and responsibility of Elsa. They saw someone who knows what they are doing and will execute the role with depth, class, grace, strength and love. All aspects I try to bring to Elsa every day.
What has been the most enjoyable aspect of transforming an animated character into an actual human person on stage?
It’s a dream come true. I used to dream of being these Disney characters I would watch on screen and now I get to do it every day. Continuing to discover new things about Elsa. Diving deeper into her story. So often we watch an animated film and don’t think about the characters we are watching as real people. I get to breathe real life into Elsa every night.
Can you share with readers how spectacular the special effects designed by the production team and the costume team creations are in this production?
People walk away from this show in awe over our special effects. The way they have created magic onstage with lighting and our incredible sets is remarkable. The fact that we have this high caliber of a production on the road is its own magic. You don’t get this much production value on the road all the time. The way Christopher Oram, our costume designer, reimagined Elsa’s costumes is absolutely stunning. The costumes I wear make the character come to life. Every single costume in our show was so intricately designed and so well thought out. My ice dress is hand beaded and has thousands of beads that are constantly being sewed back on. It’s a mammoth of a show and we’ve got a company that executes in a way that looks effortless, but I promise you it’s not.
Company of the Frozen North American Tour. Photo by Deen van Meer.
What do you consider the ultimate walk away message of this story?
Let it go and let love in. Love is the greatest power there is.
Do you have any dream roles you would like to play in the future, and what direction do you hope your career goes in?
I’ve been privileged to play multiple dream roles already. I, of course, have others, but I feel like I’d really love to originate a role on Broadway. So maybe my new dream role hasn’t been written yet or is in the process of being written. I don’t think I’ll ever stop doing theatre, it’s my love, but I would love to dip my toes into the film and TV world one day when there’s a good fit for a role.
Disney’s Frozen the Musical runs Wednesday, January 18 through Sunday, January 29 at San Diego Civic Theatre, and Wednesday, February 1 through Sunday, February 19 at Segerstrom Center in Costa Mesa. frozenthemusical.com/tickets