Stephanie McKeon to play Anna opposite Samantha Barks in Frozen West End production

Headliners for the Frozen The Musical London cast have been announced. It has now been revealed that Stephanie McKeon is set to take on the role of Anna opposite the previously confirmed Samantha Barks as Elsa in the new West End Frozen musical.

The show's director Michael Grandage commented on the new casting: "Frozen tells the story of two extraordinary women and we're thrilled to have found Samantha and Stephanie who will bring their incredible talent to the roles of Elsa and Anna, allowing us to create a production of Frozen especially for London. Now more than ever, we're looking forward to the day we can all get together in a rehearsal room to bring their story to the stage."

Further casting for West End's Frozen will be announced in due course.

Stephanie McKeon is a highly prolific stage actress. Her most notable theatre credits include the roles of Cynthia Weil in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (Aldwych Theatre), the lead vocalist for both Close To You: Bacharach Reimagined (Criterion Theatre) and What's It All About: Bacharach Reimagined (Menier Chocolate Factory), and Gillian in The Life And Sort Of Death Of Eric Argyle (Edinburgh/Dublin Fringe Festival 2012).

The New York run of Frozen was nominated for three Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical (written by Jennifer Lee), and Best Original Score Written for the Theatre (Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez). The hit Broadway musical also won the 2018 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Puppet Design as well as a nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for Jelani Alladin.

Frozen officially opened on Broadway on 22 March 2018 at the St. James Theatre where it is still playing as of the publish date of this article.

The musical is based on the popular 2013 Disney movie of the same name, which managed to rake in two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and a Golden Globe. The original film once held the record for "highest-grossing animated film of all time" with a worldwide box office gross of $1.29 billion USD. This record was later surpassed by Disney's 2019 remake of The Lion King (~$1.66 billion USD box office gross). The film's sequel Frozen II also beat Frozen's record last autumn, earning a whopping $1.45 billion USD at the box office and effectively placing Frozen in third place.

The Frozen The Musical plot follows the same storyline as the blockbuster flick, which was loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale "The Snow Queen." It centres on a courageous princess named Anna who embarks on a quest with an iceman, his faithful reindeer friend, and a naive talking snowman to find her estranged sister Elsa, who was gifted with magical powers to freeze objects and manipulate ice and snow and went into hiding after inadvertently cursing their kingdom in eternal winter.

Frozen The Musical features a book written by Jennifer Lee and music and lyrics written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez. It is based on the original screenplay penned by screenwriter Jennifer Lee that features story ideas from Chris Buck and Shane Morris.

The stage adaptation of Frozen in London's West End is directed by Michael Grandage and features choreography by Rob Ashford, lighting design by Neil Austin, musical supervision and arrangements by Stephen Oremus, puppet design by Michael Curry, set and costume design by Christopher Oram, sound design by Peter Hylenski, and video design by Finn Ross.

Frozen The Musical opens in London's West End on 30 October 2020 and has recently extended its West End run. It is now booking until 30 May 2021. Tickets will be on general sale soon.

Frozen The Musical has already embarked on a tour across North America with productions in Hamburg, Germany; Japan and Australia currently in the works.

The London transfer of Frozen The Musical is set to open in a newly refurbished Theatre Royal Drury Lane. The West End venue began undergoing a £45 million GBP renovation project (now recently estimated at £60 million) following the closure of 42nd Street on 5 January 2019.

Tickets for Frozen in London were meant to go on sale on 6 April 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, this date has now been postponed. Frozen London musical tickets will be on sale with London Theatre Direct soon. Stay tuned.