Rose Theatre Kingston Announces Full Cast For THE SNOW QUEEN

Rose Theatre Kingston today announces the full cast for its festive new version of the Hans Christian Andersen classic The Snow Queen written by Ciaran McConville, who returns to the theatre following last year's successful adaptation of Hansel & Gretel. McConville directs a cast of local young actors from Rose Youth Theatre led by a team of professional actors including Helena Blackman (The Snow Queen), Roger May (Dad/Father Christmas), Davina Moon (Freya), Parisa Shahmir (Gerda) and Jack Wolfe (Kai). The production opens on 13 December 2019, with previews from 6 December, and runs until 5 January 2020.

Tucked away in a long forgotten corner of the city is an orphanage. Here Gerda discovers that she is no ordinary teenager, but a Child of Magic, hidden from the reaches of the evil Snow Queen. When she shows her powers to her best friend Kai, she unwittingly reveals their whereabouts. Kai is lured away, and Gerda must journey to the Frozen North into the Queen's clutches to save him.

Her perilous adventure includes an unlikely pirate captain and a talking reindeer, secretive elves and vicious trolls. As the Snow Queen rallies her forces, Gerda must learn the true nature of her magic powers to save Christmas and rescue Kai.

This Christmas, be enchanted by Hans Christian Andersen's powerful tale of love, magic and self-realisation. This glittering new adaptation features a wealth of local talent from the Rose Youth Theatre alongside a professional cast.

Ciaran McConville writes and directs. His writing credits for the Rose include Hansel & Gretel, Alice in Winterland, The Wind in the Willows, A Christmas Carol, Our Town: A Kingston Story, In the Way of Peace, Scenes from Childhood and Stay With Me. Other credits include Beast Quest (Hampton Court Palace), The Enchanted Story Trail (RHS Garden Wisley), Stones (Sutton Theatres), Snowbound (Trafalgar Studios), My Father the Angel (National Theatre Studio), These Four Walls, Shostakovich The Last Symphony, Touched by Fire, The Man Who Dreamed (Edinburgh Festival Fringe), MiracleBoy (Bad Physics), Crooked Little House (Battersea Arts Centre), Immortal (Courtyard Theatre) and The Settling Dust (Union Theatre). McConville's adaptations include Heart of Darkness, The Jungle Book, Treasure Island, Nineteen Eighty-Four, The Trial, Arabian Nights, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Oliver Twist, Frankenstein and the hit show Horrible Histories Ruthless Romans, which toured internationally. He is also a founding director of Debut Theatre Company.

Helena Blackman plays The Snow Queen. Her theatre credits include Shout!, Titanic, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, South Pacific (UK tours), Kingmaker (The Other Palace/SFTW), But First This (The Watermill Theatre), My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music (Kilworth House Theatre), Gay's The Word (Finborough Theatre), Impotent (Lion and Unicorn), A Winter's Tale (Landor Theatre), Little Women (Playhouse Theatre), Noel & Gertie (Cockpit Theatre), The Secret Garden (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Saturday Night (Arts Theatre), The Wizard of Oz (Leicester Haymarket) and Gypsy (Wales Millennium Centre). Her television credits include Pennyworth.

Roger May returns to Rose Theatre Kingston to play Dad/Father Christmas; he previously appeared in The Winslow Boy. His theatre credits include Romeo and Juliet (US tour), The Pitman Painters (New Vic Theatre), For All Time (Rye Arts Festival), The Railway Children, Time and Time Again (UK tours), The President's Holiday (Hampstead Theatre), The Last Confession (Chichester Festival Theatre/Theatre Royal Haymarket), Private Lives (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Troilus and Cressida (Edinburgh International Festival/RSC), Twelfth Night (Nuffield Southampton Theatres) and Richard III (RSC). His television credits include recurring character Oliver Clarke in Doctors, Father Brown, An Adventure in Space and Time, The Hour, MI High, Broadside, Britz, Shackleton, The Cazalets and Horatio Hornblower: The Duel. For radio, he is a series regular on The Archers.

Davina Moon plays Freya. Her theatre credits include The Last Temptation of Boris Johnson, Yellow Face (Park Theatre), The Mirror Crack'd (Salisbury Playhouse), Double Act (Polka Theatre), Yellow Face (National Theatre), Privates on Parade (Noël Coward Theatre), Around the World (Sadler's Wells), Celebration (Watford Place Theatre), Wuthering Heights (Lyric Hammersmith), Annie Get Your Gun (Young Vic), Wah! Wah! Girls (Sadler's Wells/Kneehigh), Britain's Got Bhangra (Theatre Royal Stratford East), Bombay Dreams (Apollo Victoria) and Miss Saigon (Theatre Royal Drury Lane). Her film credits include Dirty God, Military Wives and All the Children are Sleeping.

Parisa Shahmir plays Gerda. Her theatre credits include We Live in Cairo (American Repertory Theatre), The Last Ship (Northern Stage), Mamma Mia! (UK tour), UCAS (Edinburgh Festival Fringe) and Just So (Bridewell Theatre); and for film, Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again!.

Jack Wolfe plays Kai. His theatre credits include Sweeney Todd (Lyric Theatre, Belfast), Pinocchio (National Theatre), The Mad Hatter's Tea Party (Chipping Campden) and The Braille Legacy (Charing Cross Theatre). His television credits include Father Brown.

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