Clio Cast and Crew, Inc. present Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs

Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs - Clio Cast and Crew

By: Laura Anne Miller

The Prince (Frederick Rynbrandt) and The Dark Queen (Madeline Speed) are soon expected to arrive at the palace of Snow White (Audrey Chrysler) and her royal family! Princess Snow White has not seen The Prince since they were children, but once he arrives, they will be betrothed. That is, if Princess Snow White can survive the Dark Queen. 

Instead of the Prince, a Jester arrives, much to the chagrin of Gretchen (Dawn Sabourin), the main housekeeper for the palace. The Jester delights Princess Jeanne Marie or “Freckle Face” (Reagan Wray), Snow White’s younger sister. A frightening magic mirror (Wendell Hopper) also arrives at the palace, much to the apprehension of the giggling palace maids (Alicia Hopper, Emma Gagnon, and Sonya McKerchie). 

After the mirror declares “the Queen was fairest yesternight. Now the fairest is Snow White”, the Dark Queen is determined to get rid of Snow White. She orders the Jester to do away with Snow White on the coldest, longest night of the year. 

Unbeknownst to the Queen, the Jester knows people in the woods, 7 Dwarfs to be precise (Olivia Renshaw, Evelyn Castells, Maisy VanDyke, Sydney Boensch, Mason Gilliam, Brooklyn Ranney and Abby Schlosser). 

The Dwarfs take in Snow White and agree to care for her. Before they leave to dig up gold, they warn her not to open the door for anyone under any circumstances. An old beggar woman appears at the window and kind hearted Snow White lets her in. The old woman gives her a comb that renders Snow White unconscious. The Dwarfs take her back to the castle so that they can break the spell and she can awake from her dream. The rest, including a cartwheeling footman (Sage WIlson), can be seen by coming to this delightful show.

The set design (Kiel Fauske) is fairly simple with doors and some chairs and pretty furnishings to indicate the palace area and a garden with gates toward the back of the stage. One thing that was really interesting was the Dwarfs’ cottage. Some lighter weight backdrops were elaborately painted to look like the inside of a cottage, including a fireplace. This backdrop folded out and then back in on itself so it looked like part of the palace set, but was out of the way until needed. This was an interesting feature, definitely an ingenious idea with such a small space. 

Costumes (Dennis Swedorski, Lori Fournier, Lynsey Ridley, Val Willard, Ramona Russell, and Jennifer Kittle) were lovely. Snow White’s dress is very fitting for a princess. It sparkles in the light and flows as she moves. Perhaps no costume was as visually stunning as those worn by the Dark Queen. 

Several actors stood out during this performance. First, the Dark Queen, Madeline Speed,  was incredible in that role. Her Dark Queen evil laugh may just make the hair on your neck stand up. All the Dwarfs did very well, but there were a few that stood out. Maisy VanDyke as “Skippy the Dwarf” and  Mason Gilliam as “Slappy the Dwarf”. His “I TOLD you!” was very endearing and both will make you laugh. Wendell Hopper as “the Mirror” was amazing. The maids, Alicia Hopper, Emma Gagnon, and Sonya McKerchie, had the audience laughing. Dawn Sabourin, “Gretchen”, was another stand out actor. Snow White, Audrey Chrysler, was deligh- I mean wonderful in her role. She was the perfect princess: sweet, kind, gentle, but willing to do what needs to be done to overcome evil.

The special effects (Adam Iaquinto) were also great! The magic mirror was truly magical how they had it working. Definitely worth the price of admission to see that mirror. It will take time to figure out the secrets of how the mirror worked. 

This being opening night, it is hard to judge the actors who have put their hearts and souls into a show. Especially this charming show. However, some minor things caught my attention. First, some of the actors were very quiet saying their lines. Second, a few of the actors were talking fairly quickly, which made it hard to understand what they were saying, especially paired with low volume levels. Some line fumbling that happened. There were also some minor wardrobe flubs and the beggar woman’s hood fell off at one point. Beyond that, the show was very pleasing and it was a difficult jolt back to reality when it came time for intermission.

Please note that this is NOT the Disney version. The story is based more on the original Brothers Grimm fairytale and appropriate for all ages. The run time is a little shorter, around 105 minutes, including a 15 minute intermission. This makes it great for little ones who want to see it, but have a hard time sitting still for long periods. 

Overall, this show is absolutely worth seeing. The actors will captivate you and draw you into their world during this delightful performance. The show runs February 13-15 and 20-22. Friday and Saturday performances are at 7:30 and Sunday performances are at 2:30.

Buy tickets online at https://cliocastandcrew.ludus.com/ or call the box office at 810-687-2588.