Fantasy with a splash of whimsy, The Snow Queen is a spellbinding performance!
I have and always will have a deep love and admiration for fantasy. Dress it up in music and dance and I’m there with bells and whistles and there is no mistake, this company have captured that fantastical element beautifully. In costume design, music, movement, all of it transports you to another world. Which realistically, is exactly why most of us who go to the theatre in the first place. That longing for escape, for a good story, for something that will make you feel alive, The Snow Queen delivers. I honestly don’t think my brain has been lit up in quite that way before when stepping into a theatre.
With regards to the dance element, I was thrilled! There really is something so satisfying about performers who can work in perfect synchronicity with one another, it gives me this warm, content feeling. This company operate at the highest level. Fair warning, I have absolutely nothing bad to say about this production and it’s because these people seriously put in the work. Everyone on that stage or in the pit were giving it 100% and I could sit and talk about it for hours. The phenomenal work of Scottish Ballet, their dancers, their orchestra and of course, the narrative they collectively weave. From the Summer Princess parting ways with the Snow Queen, her desire to find and bring her sister home, the love between Kai and Gerda and the lengths she is willing to go to find him and bring him back to her, it all translates seamlessly. I also love the parallel between the Snow Queen and Gerda. Ultimately, they both want to be with the people they love and will do whatever it takes to make that happen. The only reason the Snow Queen even uses her magic on Kai is because Lexi refuses to return home with her. It’s a desperate move and one made out of anger and loneliness. Kai is really just a pawn, someone to make her feel less alone and also draw her sister back to the ice palace and Gerda? Well, she’s just unfortunate enough to get caught in the middle of a family feud and has enough fortitude to face a power greater than herself to fight for who she loves. All of which is expertly demonstrated through the dance and orchestration.
The orchestra really helped capture the feeling of magic this story exudes. There’s a consistent whimsical feeling to what we hear. True, there are menacing moments such as Kai being struck by the glass or the Snow Wolves stalking their targets (also, quick nod to their costume design which was brilliant) and the orchestra masterfully reflects those emotions but there is this light, almost bouncy quality to what we hear throughout. I noticed it first when the Summer Princess enters the city for the first time under the moniker of Lexi and again at the start of act 2 when we enter the traveller’s camp. This overall may have been my favourite sequence in the show as it seemed to combine classical and folk elements to create an environment that was alive with community. Even the dance embodies this. The two go hand in hand and often in a way that makes you want to laugh or smile. It’s cheeky. It’s playful. It’s having fun and it wants the audience to have fun. This often follows Lexi’s character as whimsy is definitely the word I associate with her most after she leaves the palace.
Let’s be real. Ballet dancers don’t get nearly enough credit for how good an actor they have to be. People focus so much on the music and dancing, the spectacle of it all that I fear their ability to inhabit someone else isn’t appreciated enough. There was more expression in Lexi’s head movements than I’ve seen in some fully scripted West End shows. It may sound like a joke but something that I noticed consistently, not just with Lexi but across the board is that every move is made with intent. Every movement says something and Lexi’s spoke volumes. She’s scrappy, resourceful and there’s something truly whimsical about the way she moves her body (especially her head), in a way that toys with her marks but playfully. Lexi may be a thief but she doesn’t do anything out of malice and that feels clear in the way Melissa Polson approaches this role, in the way she moves. She made me smile more than once.
Jessica Fyfe captured the icy nature of The Snow Queen in her moments with Lexi. Through reserved, thoughtful movements, we see her become colder as her sister refuses her pleas to return home. With Kai however in the ice palace, we see someone who longs for connection in the way she dances with him. This scene was art, absolutely a highlight. Beautiful and precise, perfectly executed!
I loved Kai’s tonal shift from the joyful, carefree person who loves Gerda so warmly to the anxious, frustrated nature we see in him after the Snow Queen’s spell. Except of course when he is with the sorceress, where we can see how that ice in his heart gives him tunnel vision for her alone, rejecting Gerda’s touch at every turn. Even in that though, we can see a conflict, some confusion, which I like to think is Kai trying to break free. All of this is remarkably translated through Bruno Micchiardi’s skills.
I wish I could go again. I really did have the best time and as my first classic in this medium, I can now confidently say I love ballet and that is thanks to The Snow Queen. The Snow Queen lived up to every expectation I had, not just from ballet as a whole but as a story I’ve long been intrigued by. Musically? Sublime. A must see!
This show is on tour across Scotland this festive season. Tickets here.
Festival Theatre, Edinburgh
27 November – 7 December 2025
Theatre Royal, Glasgow
3 – 17 January 2026
His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen
21 – 24 January 2026
Eden Court, Inverness
28 – 31 January 2026