Frozen

Library Theatre
Friday 4th April - Saturday 26th April

Rarely does a piece of theatre grip an audience so completely. This powerful and moving character lead performance was both thought provoking and emotionally challenging. The Library theatre’s presentation of the award winning 90s hit Frozen was a pleasure to watch, even if it did leave a slightly unnerving aftertaste.

Frozen has an uncontroversial plot revolving around the abduction of a ten-year old girl on the way to her grandma’s house. Through the eyes of the three leading characters, a psychologist, a serial killer and the child’s devastated mother, the audience is forced to question the concept of evil and forgiveness. Is a person choosing to be evil, or are such murderous acts purely a symptom to brain damage, therefore removing all blame from the murderer, who subsequently deserves our forgiveness and help? This is a question presented to Nancy, (Joanna Bacon), mother of the abducted child.

During Nancy’s twenty-year mourning period we witness a painful, angry, emotional journey, while she clings onto the hope that her daughter might be found. In parallel to Nancy’s grief we are also introduced to the pain and struggle of Ralph, (John Killoran), her daughter’s abductor. John Killoran’s performance was mesmerizing and effective in its ability to make the audience question our natural intuition and reaction to a serial killer. Instead of portraying a monster, Killoran depicted Ralph to be an ill, confused and mentally challenged man, clearly in need of help and without the ability to feel ‘normal’ human emotion. This portrayal was enhanced by Mia Soteriou’s performance of Agnetha, the American psychiatric doctor.  Along with her own personal dilemmas and heart-ache, Mia Soteriou’s warm and humorous performance was a pleasure to watch and further helped to unravel the mysteries of a serial killer’s psyche.

This unforgettable and gripping performance had the audience frozen to their seats. With outstanding performances, direction and storyline, this play has all the right ingredient of a truly excellent drama.

9/10