American actor Brad Madison tells Diane Parkes just how demanding the stage role of the mute Snowman can be.

Playing a fully costumed and masked snowman does pose challenges for an actor. But Brad Madison says they are challenges he relishes.

Taking the part of the The Snowman when the family extravaganza opens at Birmingham Repertory Theatre this week, Brad says the beginning of the show is a challenge in itself.

“The Snowman just has to stand on stage without moving in a costume which is pretty much a big fluffy baby grower,” he says. “You are just standing there for about ten minutes.

“And it feels like an eternity, especially for the first couple of performances. It seems to take for ever but then after a while you tend to zone out for that bit and think about things like what you will have for dinner. You can’t fall asleep though as there is so much going on around you and you might topple over.”

Then there are the difficulties of lack of expression.

“The Snowman mask is like a balaclava,” says Brad, who this week completes a run with the show at London’s Peacock Theatre where it has been a Christmas favourite for 12 years. “It has these holes for the eyes and is covered with ruffles to look like snow. There is a mouth but the only expression you can realistically make is an ‘Oh’.

“It is like mime in that you have to make these really exaggerated facial expressions. When we were in rehearsals I caught myself doing it in the mirror a few times and I looked really stupid.”

And not to mention the heat of dancing around while costumed from head to toe.

“It is so hot,” say Brad. “Even when it starts and you are just standing there you start to feel the sweat roll down your back.

“By the time I have finished the first half the T-shirt and shorts under my costume are wet – I have to change them in the interval.

“And the second act is even worse as it is much more physically demanding as it is so aerobic. In fact that is the hardest part of all.

“When the show finishes they throw the costume into this giant drier but sometimes there is only an hour between performances and you have to go back on with it wet. They only have the one costume.” But despite all the hard work, it is well worth it when Brad sees the response from the audience.

“Sometimes there are very young children in the audience who don’t know yet that they aren’t supposed to shout out and at the end you hear them saying ‘why is the Snowman melting?’ and ‘I don’t want the Snowman to melt’.

“I feel like jumping out and saying ‘It is OK kids, he comes back again – in fact I will be back this afternoon doing it all again.”

Created by Birmingham Repertory Theatre Company in 1993 and based on Raymond Briggs’ best-selling children’s book, the stage version of The Snowman is a seasonal favourite in both Birmingham and London.

It tells the story of a young boy’s adventure when a snowman he builds in the garden comes to life during the night.

While the boy shows the snowman around his house, the snowman then takes the youngster to his domain, to a land of reindeer, Jack Frost and dancing penguins.

But a friendship so special cannot last for ever when one half of the relationship is made of snow.

With music and lyrics by Howard Blake, its signature song Walking in the Air reached number five in the UK charts when it was recorded by a young Aled Jones.

Last year the Birmingham Rep Snowman made its international debut when it was performed in the South Korean capital of Seoul.

“There is a tradition of animation over there so I guess a lot of children would know the story from that,” says Brad.

But he admits that he did not know the story before going for audition. Growing up in Minneapolis in the United States of America, he says The Snowman was not a part of his childhood.

“There is a poster on the Tube which says something like ‘The Snowman is as traditional as mince pies and Santa Claus’ and it is true. It is a staple of the British Christmas,” he adds.

“But in America we don’t have The Snowman. We have a slightly less sophisticated version known as Frosty. He is very cheesy with a Long Island accent.

“I knew the song, Walking in the Air, but only knew it as a song. But before I went for the audition my wife bought me the DVD so I knew it.

“But although I didn’t know it beforehand I can understand why it is so popular here. I first played the Snowman in 2006 and was happy to come back to it because it is such a beautiful show.”

Brad moved to Britain six years ago with his wife Louise, also an actress and singer.

“We came over here with a show from the US – and we have been here ever since,” he says. “I wouldn’t say London is better, it is different. But there is something special about it.”

The couple now have a 15-month-old baby Brady – who has already seen his first performance of The Snowman.

* Aimed at children aged four and above, The Snowman, Birmingham Rep, runs from January 15-31, 0121 236 4455, www.birmingham-rep.co.uk