The only thing better than one female lead, is two female leads! Eastern’s 2023 Spring Musical is Frozen the Broadway Musical which includes two strong female leads, Anna and Elsa, who will inspire all the young girls in the audience. Anna and Elsa are just as impressive as the two women playing them in Eastern’s production, Zoey Blackman and Ava Connelly. 

Anna (Zoey Blackman) is an outgoing, loveable character who matures throughout the show. She demonstrates that love is worth fighting for, especially love for family. Zoey Blackman’s take on the role is nothing short of extraordinary. Blackman is a junior and has past Eastern Theater credits including Gertrude in Seussical and Vivienne in Legally Blonde. As Anna, she portrays a perfect amount of naivety and awkwardness while still managing to show the audience Anna’s bravery and heart. Zoey sees Anna as an inspiration because “she represents perseverance, determination and resilience because no matter what happens to her she keeps going.” Blackman has loved playing Anna and states, “Anna is a very complex character because she experiences a huge range of emotions and you see a bunch of different sides of her. You see a more goofy side, and she’s not comic relief but compared to Elsa, she’s the funnier one. If you really dig deep into her character she’s in a lot of pain and it’s been really interesting to explore her character.” Zoey can’t wait for opening night and hopes that the audience likes the show and learns that love comes in many forms.

In Elsa (Ava Connelly), we see a character who is powerful but also flawed. Despite the mess she makes, she picks up the pieces and comes out even stronger. She stole the show last year as Paulette in Legally Blonde, and she brings passion and, of course, magic to her role this year as Elsa in Frozen. Connelly will have the audience truly feeling the pain and loneliness that Elsa endures before she learns to control her powers. Connelly is excited and nervous for her debut as Elsa. According to Ava, the hardest part of playing Elsa has been, “the vocals and having the stamina to sing all the songs while also acting at the same time.” She has enjoyed discovering that her character is much more complex than people realize and hopes the audience sees that in her performance. Ava believes Elsa is inspiring because, “she showed me how important it is to care for those you love.” Connelly hopes the audience recognizes all the hard work that was put into the show by the cast, crew, and pit.

Make sure to see Zoey, Ava, and the rest of the frozen cast and crew March 24th, 25th, 29th, 30th, April 1st and 2nd. Tickets are available at https://eccrsd.booktix.com.