Since 29 March, visitors to World of Frozen have been invited to experience ‘A celebration in Arendelle,’ a daily ceremony where the beloved Frozen characters mark the Snowflower Festival aboard beautifully adorned boats. Françoise Baffioni, Matteo Borghi and Guillaume Coignard reflect on the creation of what is now an unmissable event…
Arendelle: its traditional houses, its clock tower, its castle and… its fjord! Who could fail to be inspired by such a magical place?
Director Françoise Baffioni explains: “For the opening of World of Frozen at Disney Adventure World, we wanted to bring something new and innovative – something never before seen at Disneyland Paris – and this unique venue gave us the opportunity to create a completely different kind of show.”
With its tranquil waters just in front of the castle, the fjord offered a stunning backdrop for the highlight of the Snowflower Festival. “It was when we saw the plans for this magnificent bay a few years ago that we began to dream of this show,” recalls Matteo Borghi, who is also the director. “We knew straight away that it had to be here.”
A celebration in Arendelle is a special occasion that brings guests and villagers together around Arendelle Bay to commemorate the moment when Anna saved her sister Elsa and all the villagers through an act of true love. “We wanted to create a moment when everyone would come together, almost like a reunion,” Françoise explains.
Matteo, meanwhile, can’t resist offering a sneak preview of the event: “It all begins with the arrival of Kristoff and Olaf’s boat, followed by the villagers recreating the snowflower symbol as a surprise for Anna and Elsa. But things don’t quite go as planned. Given Olaf’s insistence on running things himself, it is safe to say there are plenty more surprises in store!”
The first surprise comes in the form of magnificent boats in dazzling colours, their graceful movements reflected in the waters of the Arendelle Fjord. “When deciding on the visual design of the boats, we first worked out which characters would be on board,” explains Françoise. “We then worked closely with our set designer, Thomas Gallou, to bring our vision to life.”
“To coordinate all the movements, we envisaged Arendelle Fjord as a stage on which the boats move, each one designed as a stage in its own right,” adds Matteo. A genuine bond develops between the passengers aboard the various boats, as well as between the villagers on the barge and those on the jetty. The entire fjord comes to life!”
But a boat isn’t like other performers. It doesn’t move or stop when you tell it to. You have to deal with the water element. “You have to plan for everything,” explains Françoise. This requires real teamwork between the drivers and the instructors. After extensive testing, everyone has now got the hang of it. The results are truly beautiful scenes across the fjord.”
Special attention was also paid to the lighting, ensuring that it showcases the boats and characters both day and night, in bright sunshine and on overcast days. They also showcase the original costumes designed for the occasion, including Anna and Elsa’s dresses from Frozen II, as well as the ceremonial outfits worn by Kristoff and the villagers.Another key element that brings everyone together for this celebration is the music. “We’re really lucky to have a brand-new anthem for this very special occasion: a new song called “Snowflower”, written especially for us by the songwriters behind Frozen I & II, Robert Lopez and Kristin Anderson-Lopez,” says Matteo. In actual fact, they’ve practically written a musical!”
Music producer Guillaume Coignard had the opportunity to work closely with the two artists to ensure that this song and all its variations fit seamlessly into the show’s narrative. “As well as being delightful, Kristen and Bobby are ideal and very committed partners. Behind the simplicity of a tune that anyone can sing along to lies a real depth that inspired us greatly when creating the show’s musical arrangements.”
While Guillaume and Samuel Sené focused on the vocal arrangements and the production of all the vocal parts, Tyler Koontz, who also served as orchestrator for Disney Tales of Magic, took charge of all the orchestral parts. Together, they composed a score of cinematic scope, performed by a symphony orchestra of nearly 90 musicians. But that’s not all! They also had the idea of incorporating more intimate elements, using traditional Nordic instruments such as the nyckelharpa – a type of Swedish fiddle – the dulcimer, which belongs to the zither family, and Norwegian flutes. “The entire orchestra was recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London, while, at the same time, we recorded traditional instruments here in our studio at Disneyland Paris with musicians of Nordic origin,” explains Guillaume. For us, maintaining authenticity was essential.”
Beyond the emotions, the music acts like a camera. In its symphonic form, it enhances the most spectacular scenes, much like a wide shot. In more intimate moments featuring soloists, it draws the audience’s focus to the characters. “It’s a way of enhancing the narrative and the range of emotions we’ll be able to share with our guests.”
Guillaume also worked with the technical designers responsible for distributing the sound around the fjord. While the former focused on the equipment designed to bring the music to life across the Fjord, Guillaume and his teams prepared the show’s mix in the studio before conducting full-scale tests with the boats. “From musical composition to sound spatialisation, each partner brings their expertise and personality to the project. It is the sum of these creative contributions that makes the music in this show so rich.”
The combination of all these talents has given rise to a truly unique show, an incomparable experience of the kind that only Disneyland Paris knows how to create. “That’s what we love about our profession: that desire to always go ‘the extra mile’,” says Matteo. Never before has a show of this scale been planned at Disneyland Paris.” And Françoise concludes: “That’s what drives us and keeps us motivated. We never rest on our laurels. We are constantly looking for new ways to surprise our guests and exceed their expectations. And that is precisely what we had in mind when we created this show.”