Elena Glass, Roland Hawkins II, Benjamin Dutcher, Jon Michael Stiff, Tara Bowman, Adrienne Zimiga-January, Randy Schmeling, and Annika Isbell Photo by Rick Spaulding

Scenic designer Eli Sherlock places the fantastical world of King Boreas within a snowglobe, and costume designs by Bryce Turgeon and elaborate properties and puppets designed by Rebecca Jo Malmstrom contribute additional King Boreas "winter" pastel and Vulcan "fire" red-colored playfulness. The lighting design by Marcus F. Dillard leaves some characters in the dark at times, particularly during the more populous scenes.

It makes sense that a Winter Carnival musical would feel frivolous and silly. The carnival was founded in 1886 in reaction to an East Coast reporter calling Minnesota "the New Siberia," and describing the winter climate as uninhabitable. Newspaper columnist Frank Madden formally wrote the myth of King Boreas and the Vulcans in 1937, which has continued to be revised ever since ("Hail the Vulc!"). Your level of interest and enjoyment in Rollicking! may vary based on your personal experience and level of participation with the Saint Paul Winter Carnival.

What story there is in Rollicking! centers on the characters of St. Paul's first Black municipal architect, Clarence "Cap" Wigington (Roland Hawkins II), and his wife Viola (Erin Nicole Farste) as Cap begins his Winter Carnival ice palace design for the 1937 festival. Hawkins and Farste are strong singers and, with Adrienne Zimiga-January when she plays the Native American character of Winuna, sing the more serious ballads in the production. The rest of the cast, particularly Benjamin Dutcher as the Lord High Chamberlain, Randy Schmeling as Vulcanus, and Elena Glass, Annika Isbell, and Jon Michael Stiff as multiple roles are all in fine voice as well while singing a variety of toe-tapping numbers and engaging in a dance battle between fire and winter at the height of goofiness.

Rachel Teagle notes that she "connected deeply to Cap relishing the chance to build these beautiful, impossible ice palaces in the midst of the Great Depression" in finding her inspiration for this piece. Because this is the first theatrical production to tackle the topic of the nearly 140 year old Winter Carnival, once Cap and his wife journey into the snow globe, a lot of additional facts are delivered to the audience by three omniscient gnomes and various historical figures that appear. While the story arc is likened to the Wizard of Oz, it is complicated by an argument with Cap's wife, Cap's desire to stay in the fantasy world, and some dragging and line flubs during the second half. The stakes for the couple are never really clear, and while I definitely gained some knowledge about the Winter Carnival and enjoyed the talented cast, this production runs a little long at two and a half hours.

Rollicking! A Winter Carnival Musical runs through December 21, 2025, at History Theatre, 30 E 10th St., Saint Paul MN. For tickets and information, please visit historytheatre.com or call 651-292-4323.