One thing I never get tired of is seeing how the White Witch is portrayed on stage around the world, in LWW productions both amateurish and professional. In fact, the White Witch *is* often the highlight of the show, especially in her interactions with Edmund which make prime moments for photographers to memorialize, like Snow White eating the poisoned apple. Edmund eating the Turkish Delight makes the plot start moving, much as Kai’s semi-kidnapping by the Snow Queen sets things moving for the fairytale of the same name.
Plus, these pics of the same scene, across many different productions, make for interesting compares-and-contrasts. In the pic above, Edmund is wearing the requisite shirt and vest while the witch seems to have a snowy, cascading backpiece like a Vegas showgirl.
Here she wears a long white gown, blonde braid, and gloves, while Edmund is nicely dressed in coordinating striped socks and vest.
Sometimes you can even deduce how the actress played the role: haughty and regal, brutal and threatening, or cold and distant as Tilda Swinton was. This actress leans into the manipulative trait of the witch, feigning a showy infatuation for Edmund that the audience knows is fake but Edmund doesn’t.
Here’s she’s making promises to poor Edmund and outlining the bright future she has in store for him. All the crowns so far are very different; this one resembles a top hat.
This witch’s outfit recalls the fashion of the 1970s with her yellow crimped hair, thin eyebrows, and kimono jacket with a plastic Halloween kris knife stuck in the belt. Edmund, again, wears a sweater vest and short pants. I have the feeling the witch played her role in a slightly stoned manner.
I like the witch’s crown here but both her wand and the candy box are way too small. They had to have been hard for spectators in the back rows to see.
A pale, pale witch offers Edmund a smoking drink, courtesy of a bit of dried ice.
Now THIS is a costume! It looks like something from a Diaghilev ballet.
The actors lean into comedy here, but the witch is wearing… khaki pants?
