Into the Woods with The Snow Queen: Writer and Director Nancy Hirst on Friendship, Bravery and the Magic of Christmas

This December, The Albany in Deptford transforms into an enchanted winter forest for The Snow Queen: A Woodland Adventure, a new interactive festive show from Icon Theatre. Running from 2–24 December, this magical reimagining of Hans Christian Andersen’s classic tale invites families to join brave young Gerda on a journey through snow and woodland in search of her best friend, Kai.

We spoke with writer and director Nancy Hirst about what inspired her to adapt The Snow Queen into an immersive, sensory experience for families — and why this year’s Albany Christmas show is set to be their most magical yet.

What drew you to adapt The Snow Queen and reimagine it as an interactive woodland adventure for families?

I’ve always been fascinated by the story of The Snow Queen.  It’s always seemed to me a very modern way of exploring friendships, which children can often find both challenging and a source of huge joy.  I also think it’s really interesting how it explores big emotions such as love and loss, and how children can learn to understand and handle their own  emotions.  Whenever I make work for young audiences I always try to make it as interactive as possible.  Children learn and experience the world in a hugely sensory way, and it’s really important that theatre made specifically for them involves all the senses and makes them feel genuinely part of the story and action.  The woodland aspect of it came through the original story, which is full of nature and wildness, and imaging the main animals as woodland creatures was a natural development of those themes.

Gerda, your young heroine, leads the quest with courage and curiosity. What inspired her character and what do you hope children take from her journey?

The character of Gerda is one of the main reasons I love the story of The Snow Queen.  She is fearless and very practical, and in her quest to rescue her best friend Kai is a great female role model for young audiences.  She’s also a lot of fun.  In our version she asks for help for the audience, she makes mistakes, she doesn’t always know the answer and she gets things wrong.  And there’s something wonderful about following a heroine who we can all relate to like that and the fact she is victorious by the end.  I hope children will feel it’s OK to make mistakes!

The production combines live music, puppetry, dance, and audience participation, how do these elements help immerse audiences in the story?

Each of these elements affects the audience in a different way.  When Eamonn O’Dwyer’s magical music starts playing, you can sense the shift in how the audience the audience feel.  Similarly, I’ve always loved the way young audiences watch dance – they are genuinely spellbound.  And when we create audience participation elements, it’s also a way of allowing children’s (and adults!) physical energy to have an outlet in a positive way whilst still immersed in the world of the show.  The more senses we can engage during the course of the show the more alive, immersive and magic the whole experience feels.

After creating a decade of festive shows for early years audiences, what makes this new production at The Albany a milestone for Icon Theatre?

We’re delighted to be creating this new production in collaboration with The Albany, which is at the heart of a brilliant, diverse community and is the most amazing space architecturally.  The ‘in-the-round’, inclusive feel of the space really allows the interactive and immersive elements of our work to flourish in ways we’ve never done before!

This is a co-production with The Albany, how has that partnership shaped the development of The Snow Queen: A Woodland Adventure and its connection to local audiences?

From the start of the development of this show we’ve been working very closely with The Albany, really thinking about what their local audiences need and want, and how it sits within their wider programming.  Whether they come with schools or family groups, for many children seeing this show, it will be their first experience of theatre, and both ourselves and The Albany are completely dedicated to making that experience as magical and memorable as possible.

The Snow Queen: A Woodland Adventure also celebrates friendship, bravery, and the natural world. How did these themes influence your creative vision?

These themes are key to the creative vision – not only the script and the characters (my bit!) but also the design, music and lighting elements of the show.  So the natural world is visually represented throughout the show in Laura McEwan’s amazing designs which combine both the striking straight lines and shapes of ice and snowflakes, and also incorporate the beautiful organic colours of woodland in winter.  Callum Macdonald's lighting uses colour in a really transformative way to highlight the magic of the different natural worlds.  The themes of friendship and bravery are central to the show.  Creatively, for me, it’s about exploring what friendship genuinely feels like, the tough bits as well as the good, and how bravery is actually a response to fear.  As I sometimes tell my 8 year old daughter, you can’t feel brave without feeling a bit scared first!

What do you hope families will feel and remember when they leave the theatre after joining Gerda on her adventure?

I hope families will remember a wonderful feeling of magic, festivity and love after they leave the theatre.  Sometimes the run-up to Christmas can feel like quite a stressful time of year – there’s a lot to get done, things are expensive and expectations can be high.  The message at the heart of the show is that the people we love - both families and  friends – are the most important thing of all, and the magic of this time of year really comes from them. 

Created by Icon Theatre in collaboration with The Albany, The Snow Queen: A Woodland Adventure is a festive experience like no other — full of laughter, magic and winter sparkle for children and grown-ups alike.

For more information and to book tickets, visit: www.thealbany.org.uk/events/the-snow-queen-a-woodland-adventure