Around 20 years ago, theatre company Frozen Charlotte was created by Heather Fulton and Brenda Murphy.
The duo met while Heather was a trainee with Edinburgh International Children’s Festival travelling the world for two years to learn the trade.
The company was established to create ambitious and inventive theatre for – and with – children and young people.
Today the Moray-based company thriving at home and abroad dreams of finding an Elgin town centre home.
The theatre company travelling the globe
Since the company started, 145,000 people have watched their shows.
They have created popular shows like Paperbelle and Too Many Penguins, which have toured worldwide, including China, France, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Norway.
Heather said: “We performed Paperbelle and Valentina’s Galaxy shows at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh through the funding scheme Made in Scotland, which attracts a lot of international bookers.
“It led to our show Paperbelle being toured across China to Beijing, Suzhou and Shanghai.
“The audiences in China are so massive and it has been a great help in bringing income into the company.
“It’s a great hallmark of your work that it’s enjoyed by audiences that don’t even speak the same language.
“Lots of our work has a very limited amount of language in it.”
Dream of town centre home
The company says having an Elgin town centre home would help support the company’s work.
She said: “It would be amazing to have an actual building, as we could design it in a way that truly works for families.
“We’re always facing various challenges, especially as we’ve started creating work for children with additional support needs.
“Issues like accessibility in old buildings can be difficult, and there’s often limited space for things like nappy changing and other family necessities.
“Having a dedicated home would make such a difference—somewhere children could feel is their space too.
“That would be an incredible place and a meaningful ambition for the future.”
How Frozen Charlotte was started?
During her days of studying drama and theatre arts at Queen Margaret University, Heather Fulton’s passion for children’s theatre was born.
She has learned a lot from visiting different children’s theatre festivals in countries like Denmark, Norway and Belgium and saw a gap in the market.
The company focuses on ensuring children from all walks of life get the opportunities to experience theatre.
Heather said: “From my traineeship, I learned a lot about hands-on experience, especially that I wanted to direct and create for really young children.
“At that time, there wasn’t much work being made for preschoolers, mostly for primary age.
“That gap made me wonder why no one was addressing it.
“The traineeship helped me connect with experienced companies, which supported me in securing funding for my first show.”
First show
She added: “My first show, Moussa’s Castle, was created in 2006.
“It was inspired by a story I heard in Lebanon when visiting a friend about a man who defied expectations and built a Disney-like castle.
“I loved the theme of children dreaming big despite adults doubting them.
“We made the show for two- to five-year-olds, using cardboard boxes as a low-budget set, and it premiered at the Edinburgh International Children’s Festival.
“It toured across the UK, Ireland, and beyond, proving that even a simple concept can resonate deeply.
“We’re now hoping to bring it back for a schools tour if we secure three years of core funding. It’s a timeless piece that continues to feel relevant.”
Meanwhile, she believes it is important to ensure the quality is high.
She said: “Just because it’s for children doesn’t mean it should be any less thoughtful, with anything less than the best performers or the highest production values.
“It should be the best it can be.
“The rewarding part is being in the rehearsal room or seeing children’s reactions to the work.
“We develop many shows by working directly in nurseries, incorporating the children’s input so they can see their world reflected on stage.”
Frozen Charlotte’s challenges
It is far from easy running a theatre company.
As a charity, it has board of five people.
One of the biggest challenges is funding as it becomes more difficult to get.
Heather said: “Setting up a theatre company has been challenging because we work on a project-to-project basis and have a small team.
“Sustainability is hard when most of your time is spent applying for funding.
“I’m a freelancer, so it can make it difficult to build momentum.”
She added: “To manage the demands of funding applications, we’ve started working with producers like Riff Raff, who have helped a lot.”
The group recently was awarded multi-year funding from Creative Scotland.
It will allow the group to work in schools long-term, create new shows based on children’s voices, and provide consistent support to families through creative play workshops.
Growth ambitions
She wants to grow the theatre company even more and continue to reach more children in schools and beyond.
Heather said: “Our ambitions include becoming the leading children’s theatre company in Moray and the north of Scotland.
“We’d love to tour regularly, provide continuing professional development for teachers, and ensure that all children, regardless of background, have access to live performances.
“Touring Moray schools is particularly impactful because it reaches children who might not otherwise have these opportunities.”
Click here to find out more and support Frozen Charlotte.
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