Disney’s Theatrical Production and Alex Timbers have gone their separate ways on the developing production of “Frozen”. “Making the tough calls when creating a new Broadway musical is never easy, but this was especially painful,” said Thomas Schumacher, the president and producer of Disney Theatrical Productions, in a statement. “Alex Timbers is one of the most exciting and innovative theater directors I know, and we’ve proudly worked with him from my support of the early development of ‘Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson’ through our work together on ‘Peter and the Starcatcher.’ Though we have chosen to go in another direction with this role, we are committed to seeing ‘Frozen’s’ tremendous theatrical potential brought to life onstage.”
Disney is still looking for a replacement for Timbers, and it’s not clear whether the change will affect the announced production timeline. “Frozen” has been scheduled for a pre-Broadway run at Denver Center for the Performing Arts in the summer 2017, ahead of a spring 2018 opening on Broadway.
Timbers co-directed “Peter and the Starcatcher,” the stage show developed by Disney on the way to a Tony-winning Broadway run. “Frozen” is a much larger production with far higher stakes for Disney; both DTP and Timbers are not talking on the exact reason for the exit.
Earlier this year, Timbers directed a developmental lab of “Frozen” with a crew of actors that included Betsy Wolfe (“Bullets Over Broadway,” the upcoming “Falsettos”) as Elsa, Patti Murin (“Lysistrata Jones”) as Anna and Okieriete Onaodowan (“Hamilton”) as Kristoff. (Actors who appear in a show during development work don’t always appear in the future premiere.)
The “Frozen” creative team also lost choreographer Peter Darling in recent months, replaced by Christopher Gattelli (“Newsies). Presently, “Frozen,” adapted by movie co-creators Jennifer Lee, Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, is scheduled for Denver next summer, with exact run dates still to be set. The precise details for the spring 2018 engagement on Broadway have yet to be determined. Rumors have it that the show will end up at the St. James Theater, but that hasn’t been officially confirmed.
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