‘Frozen,’ other favorites appear in ‘Broadway Melodies’

Disney’s “Frozen” meets fraternities, cartoon characters show their alter egos and a UNC graduate takes on the Big Apple in Pauper Players’ Broadway Melodies this weekend.

The kick off to Pauper’s 25th season, these musical parodies are full of wit and popular culture references, all set to the tune of classic Broadway beats.

“Brozen” opens the production, bringing “Frozen” characters to UNC’s fraternity court and Franklin Street.

“It’s ‘Frozen’ with frat guys,” said director and Daily Tar Heel copy co-editor Alison Krug. “I was talking to my friends about what would be the most ridiculous thing, and we decided on ‘Brozen.’ Later that night, I wrote it.”

Freshman Zachary Lee and 2014 UNC graduate George Barrett are teaming up as Ed and Andy, the fraternity brother versions of Elsa and Anna.

Barrett said he has enjoyed playing Ed, a senior with the magical ability to chill beer to the perfect temperature.

“It’s as if Disney romanticized frat culture,” Barrett said. “But it has some real heart behind it too with a message of brotherhood.”

Lee plays the Anna equivalent, Andy, and said he enjoys the witty references to “Frozen” and the clever plot twists.

“Andy is just like Anna because he’s got that positive personality that helps him through a lot of the same struggles Anna has in ‘Frozen,’” Lee said. “I also firmly believe in gender equality, so I really like seeing the roles gender swapped.”

Later, Barrett will don a dress as Kim Kardashian in “Broadway Maladies,” written and directed by senior Katelyn Mitchell. Mitchell’s show follows a UNC theater alumna chasing her dreams in New York City and incorporates songs from past Pauper productions.

“It’s about graduating and what happens after you leave college as a theater kid,” she said.

Starring in the parody is junior Mariah Barksdale, publicity executive director for Pauper and an actress in all three shows.

“That girl is a power house — a theater god,” Mitchell said of Barksdale’s talent and energy.

Barksdale said she couldn’t be happier working with Pauper to both publicize the shows as well as bring her friends’ visions to life.

“It’s so much more personal when you have a director who has also written the show,” Barksdale said. “It’s exciting and rewarding to be part of these people’s creative ideas. I just want it to live up to their expectations.”

Juggling three shows inside of a three-week rehearsal process has proved challenging for actors and directors alike.

“It’s like three exams are happening at once,” Barksdale said. “With a lot being thrown at you during this short rehearsal period.”

Barksdale is also cast in senior Jackie O’Shaughnessy’s show, ”Cartunes,” a musical parody featuring cartoon characters from popular TV shows such as ”Hey Arnold!,” the “Peanuts,” and “SpongeBob SquarePants.”

An executive director for Pauper Players, senior Maggie Poole plays the villain in “Cartunes,” and she said she enjoys the challenge of portraying a cartoon.

“This role is especially fun to play because as a cartoon you really have to commit to it,” Poole said. “You have to develop a character voice and really get out there.”

Aside from the finished product, the cast and production team are proud of the community they have created, and according to Lee, it feels like home.

“I got picked on a lot when I was younger, so I thought I probably shouldn’t sing,” Lee said. “But I’ve been told I have a good voice and started musical theater, even here in Pauper productions. It’s made me feel like Carolina is more of a home. It’s a social group I can connect with.”

Poole said that the camaraderie on and off stage is part of what makes this show so special.

“It’s a really cool thing we get to do every year, and we bring in a lot of new people,” Poole said. “I just hope the audience has as good of a time as we did.”

“It’s getting over the perfection aspect of theater and doing what you love with people you love,” Barksdale said. “So prepare your abs because you’re gonna laugh so much.”

arts@dailytarheel.com