When she steps onto the Spriet Stage as Queen Elsa in Disney’s Frozen at the Grand Theatre, Kelly Holiff is carrying more than ice magic and a soaring score. She’s holding tight to a personal sense of gratitude, responsibility, and connection – which allows Elsa to “let it go”.
Frozen, of course, tells the story of two sisters — the reserved Queen Elsa and the free-spirited Princess Anna (Chariz Faulmino). Torn apart as children by a secret, they are racing against time – and themselves – to find courage, love, and a way back to each other. While Elsa shrinks away, Anna moves toward her, encountering the seemingly charming Prince Hans (Aran Wilson-McAnally), the rugged ice harvester Kristoff (Mark Sinongco), the loyal snowman Olaf (Izad Etemadi skilfully handling and voicing an Olaf puppet), and wise elder trolls Pabbie and his wife Bulda (Vance Avery and Tahirih Vejdani). Each plays a role in what turns into a race to save the kingdom of Arendelle from eternal winter.
The cast is rounded out by an expansive ensemble and a double-cast Young Company alternating as Young Anna and Young Elsa: Oakan Oyafuso and Alba Evora Weiler (“Reindeer” cast) and Harmony Holder and Kylie Prouty (“Snowmen” cast). In the show, audiences hear songs from the original animated film, alongside new Broadway favourites – all directed by Grand Theatre Artistic Director Rachel Peake, following her acclaimed 2024 holiday staging of The Sound of Music. Read the Sesaya Arts feature profile here.)
“All magic”
“The cool thing about Elsa is that she’s all magic,” enthuses Holiff. “Any time that she’s on stage, there’s an element of magic happening. There is a power in her, coming from every angle”, she notes. “It takes lighting, sound, and wardrobe. And it takes me, too. While all of the technical pieces are moving, I have to be out there on the stage singing this big, big song. It takes all of us coming together.”
The production achieves much of that synergistic magic through design: Cory Sincennes’ moving set pieces evoke the shifting world of Arendelle; Amelia Scott’s projections paint icy landscapes and atmospheric depth; and Jareth Li’s clever lighting sculpts space and emotion onstage. Rather than overload the eye with spectacle, the team prioritizes narrative clarity and enchantment, keeping the story — and Elsa’s inner journey — in clear focus. Together with movement choreography and sound design, these technical elements help the stage version translate the wonder of the animated movie that inspired it.
For Holiff, the sense of wonder she creates as Elsa reflects how she feels about her career, because her path into the arts was not obvious at first. It was “a happy accident, in high school in Grade 11, when we discovered that I could sing,” she recalls. But once that door opened, “everyone was on board” – particularly the “incredible teachers who fostered my artistic side, and put together an entire curriculum for me”, and who continue to attend her performances to this day. Before that discovery, “arts were not a focus at my school. Nobody knew I could sing. I come from a family of academics, doctors, and lawyers, and likely would have ended up on that path – because I didn’t even know that you could do this as a job until I was in my late teens.” Bottom line: “It changed everything, and was so incredibly important” in shaping not only her artistry, but her understanding of the power of early access to the arts.
“I put myself in those seats”
That awareness carries directly into her approach to Elsa, a character who is navigating fear, self-discovery, and self-acceptance – under immense pressure. “I take this job with great responsibility, truthfully,” Holiff admits. “I feel honoured that our director Rachel Peake saw this in me: the ability to carry the weight of what Elsa is for so many kids, and also adults that grew up on Frozen.” And that responsibility is also personal because of her own family, especially her nieces and nephews. “They are my life,” she enthuses. Having missed the earlier run in Edmonton because they were too young, they were thrilled by the opportunity to see her in London – with each family counting down the days to the show they would attend. “For them, it’s their first show”, she adds, and “every single little person sitting in that audience reminds me of my nieces and nephews.”
Holiff’s own first encounter with theatre still resonates. “I believe the first show for me was Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with Donny Osmond,” she recalls, adding a theatrical coincidence that is uncanny. “It was actually Vance Avery, from our production of Frozen, who was on as understudy for Donny when I saw it!” She recalls being utterly “blown away. I didn’t know how these people were doing it… I was just floored, like the rest of the world!”
That sense of awe is something she consciously holds onto now, especially backstage before a performance, as she prepares to let it go: “When I see the young audiences at Frozen, I put myself in those seats as a kid. I think about how magical it is for them, and how it could be a turning point for them. It’s very special.”
“So Elsa”
Elsa’s inner life feels in some ways “too familiar” to Holiff: “She’s so me—I would totally run away to the mountains!” And “her journey of discovery, finding yourself, trying to protect people, being reserved… and then finally letting someone in” – that emotional arc mirrors her own. “The struggle of being vulnerable in this industry has been very real for me. Only now, after a decade, am I at a place where I can try to let my guard down.” And as a sister herself, the story’s emotional core resonates on one more personal level: “it really hits home what sisters would do for each other, the love that we have for each other.”
And it’s telling that, despite the scale and power of the Elsa role, Holiff’s favourite moments in the show are communal and quiet. “I actually have severe stage fright,” she admits. “I’ll often stand in the wings before I go on, and talk to myself, pep myself up. And while I’m there, I see the entire ensemble at work.” Watching them inspires her to “step into the magic”. And she most enjoys moments when she is not alone on stage, such as her duets: “When I sing ‘I Can’t Lose You’ with Chariz Faulmino, I feel like I can let my guard down. We can lean on each other.”
Holiff’s artistic versatility means that she moves among musical theatre, concert work, and genre-blending performances, but when asked about dream roles, she is happy to note that “Elsa was a very big one for me”. Looking ahead, her aspirations are simple: “My dream is to do good work with good people… I am so open to whatever form, whatever shape that takes. I would love to continue to be inspired by wonderful people, and do great work.”
Then, with a smile, “I also think that I could definitely rock as Elphaba.”
Disney’s Frozen runs at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario through January 4, 2026. Tickets and performance details are available at grandtheatre.com.
© Arpita Ghosal, Sesaya Arts Magazine 2025
