Rollicking! A Winter Carnival Musical
Review by Ernest Goes To The Theatre/Ernest Edwards
I went to Rollicking! A Winter Carnival Musical at The History Theatre on a Saturday when there was snowfall that made driving slow and cautious. Which was fitting to have a blast of winter on the day you’re seeing a musical about the St. Paul Winter Carnival.
What I like about The History Theatre. Is their shows are about history, and can also be educational in a fun way. Rollicking! Is a new musical with Book & Co-Lyrics by Rachel Teagle, and Music and Co-Lyrics by Keith Hovis. The inner lobby of the History Theatre is full of information and history about the St. Paul Winter Carnival. How it got started? Became the annual event that it is today. All these years I’ve lived in the Twin Cities, I have enjoyed some of the events associated with the Winter Carnival, but I never knew the origins and evolution of the Winter Carnival.
The story takes place in December 1936, St. Paul, Minnesota. Cap Wigington and his wife Viola Wigington are getting ready to attend a holiday party in the Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul. Cap is also busy trying to complete his design for the Ice Castle at the upcoming Winter Carnival. Cap and Viola get whisked away to a magical land where King Borealis, his wife Aurora, and their arch nemesis Vulcanus Rex, along with Klondike Kate all live in the magical land. It’s Cap’s belief in the Winter Carnival that brings back the magic to King Borealis. Vulcanus Rex is non too happy with this. Which ties into the real life Winter Carnival where’s the fight at the end of the festival between the Borealis and the Vulcans to determine when winter will end.
Fun story. It was interesting to learn when Klondike Kate joined the Winter Carnival. Also that since Cap was not the City Architect, he was not initially credited with designing the ice castle that year. Many years later that omission was corrected.
Seeing a musical about the local Winter Carnival was a fun treat! Line up the sled or snowmobile and take a ride through the snow to the History Theatre. This new musical runs through December 2021. Check out Historytheatre.com for tickets.
