If you are looking for a way to banish those post-Christmas blues, then the Cherwell Theatre Company’s production of The Snow Queen, which opens on Monday, might well do the trick.

Hans Christian Andersen’s heart-warming tale of friendship, loyalty and courage has been lovingly recreated for the stage by the company’s artistic director, Nasser Memarzia, and looks set to be an unforgettable treat for the whole family.

The Snow Queen’s abduction of a little boy, Kai, sets in motion an exciting, action-packed adventure, featuring an array of colourful characters, as Kai’s friend, Gerda, sets off on a hazardous journey to rescue him from the Snow Queen’s clutches.

“It’s a wonderful story,” says Nasser, who founded the Cherwell Theatre Company five years ago. “I hadn’t realised how brilliant it is until we had committed to it. It’s not just a simple fairy tale – like most things, once you begin to delve beneath the surface there’s so many layers to be discovered.

“There’s loads of outlandish characters that Gerda meets on her journey. She meets a robber maiden, who’s a really resourceful girl living with a pack of thieves, and she likes Gerda and wants to keep her as a pet. Then when she realises what Gerda’s true intent is, she respects that and frees her to carry on. That’s one of the really touching moments in the story. Then there’s princes and princesses, and a flower woman who lives in an enchanted garden where it’s summer forever. “We’ve tried to be true to Hans Christian Andersen and the spirit of the story. There’s humour in it and there’s pathos in it, and that’s what we’re trying to rekindle and bring to life.”

As with previous productions – the company’s past successes include A Christmas Carol, Arabian Nights and Alice in Wonderland – this will be spectacular and innovative production, using a variety of techniques and special effects.

“We’re using puppets, ultra-violet light, masks, a lot of physical theatre and movement, dance and an original music score,” explains Nasser. “So we’re hoping to dazzle the audience, not with expensive scenery, but with ingenious theatricality.”

The Cherwell Theatre Company is the Mill’s resident company, and is professionally run, with professional actors working alongside drama students and enthusiastic youngsters. Crucially, it has a dual role as both a performing company and a training company. Its seeds were sown when Nasser was teaching at a local performing arts college and, realising that there were few performance opportunities for his students, was keen to give them a local platform.

“Essentially, that is the core reason for the existence for the company,” he says. “I started putting serious students of drama next to professionals, and then we started recruiting younger people as well. Now our membership has ten years and upwards, right up to 70- and nearly 80-year-olds.

“The one defining factor between them, regardless of their age and their training, is that they see engaging with the productions as something over and above an amateur activity. There’s a difference between doing something for a hobby, for the fun of it, and doing something and seeing it as a skill and aiming at a level whereby you’re not expecting the audience to make allowances for you.”

For Nasser, the training and encouragement of the company’s younger members is particularly important.

“Our youth work is a very strong aspect of our programme. We take them through a lot of training work that is normally delivered on a drama school level, because in a relatively short space of time we’ve got to get them to perform alongside the professionals, and again we don’t expect our audiences to make allowances.

‘Their delivery, their concentration and the level of confidence among them must equal the professionals. Thankfully, so far when the audiences come, they comment particularly on the young performers.”

Nasser’s own background has enabled him to pour a variety of skills into the company. He studied initially at Tehran University, in his native Iran, before coming to Britain to do post-graduate studies at Cardiff and Leeds universities. He was a founder member of the Yorkshire Theatre Company, and was its artistic director for many years before becoming a freelance actor, director, teacher and writer. Now the Cherwell Theatre Company occupies much of his time and energy.

“I spend far too much time on this,” he admits with a smile, “but the pleasure’s mine. I really enjoy working with younger people – I think it’s such a privilege. I love their spontaneity, and I think it’s lovely to see them in an environment where they feel valued and enthused, and their confidence grows.”

After two months of training and rehearsal, The Snow Queen looks set to equal, if not surpass, the company’s previous successes.

“It’s a lovely, lovely story,” says Nasser, “and I just hope we bring that essence to the stage for the audience.”

The Snow Queen is at The Mill Arts Centre, Banbury, from January 11-23. Box office: 01295 279002, or tickets can be booked through Tickets Oxford on 01865 305305, or www.oxfordplayhouse.com/ ticketsoxford