Disney Musical Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Beauty and the Beast
BatB Vintage Broadway Poster
Musical information
Music by Alan Menken
Lyrics by Howard Ashman

Tim Rice

Book Linda Woolverton
Basis 1991 Disney film Beauty and the Beast
Productions 1994 Houston Tryout

1994 Broadway
1995 1st US National Tour
International productions
1995 Australia
1997 West End
1998 Argentina
1998 Mexico
1999 2nd US National Tour
1999 Spain
2001 UK National Tour
2001 3rd US National Tour
2002 Brazil
2008 South Africa
2008 Mexico Revival
2008 Gdynia (Poland)
2009 Brazil
2001 3rd US National Tour
2010 Argentina
2010 4th USA tour
2011 First Mexico Tour
2012 2nd Spain Tour

Awards 1998 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical


Beauty and the Beast is a musical with songs by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and a book by Linda Woolverton, based on the 1991 Disney film of the same name. Seven new songs were written for the stage musical. Beauty ran on Broadway for 5,461 performances between 1994 and 2007, becoming Broadway's eighth longest-running production in history.

The musical has grossed more than $1.4 billion worldwide and played in thirteen countries and 115 cities.[1] It has also become a popular choice for high school productions.[2]

Background[]

According to an article in The Houston Chronicle, "The catalyst for Disney's braving the stage was an article by New York Times theater critic Frank Rich that praised Beauty and the Beast as 1991's best musical.... Theatre Under The Stars executive director Frank Young had been trying to get Disney interested in a stage version of Beauty about the same time Eisner and Katzenberg were mulling over Rich's column. But Young couldn't seem to get in touch with the right person in the Disney empire. Nothing happened till the Disney execs started to pursue the project from their end.... When they asked George Ives, the head of Actors Equity on the West Coast, which Los Angeles theater would be the best venue for launching a new musical, Ives said the best theater for that purpose would be TUTS. Not long after that, Disney's Don Frantz and Bettina Buckley contacted Young, and the partnership was under way."[3] A stage condensation of the film, directed by Robert Jess Roth and choreographed by Matt West, both of whom moved on to the Broadway development, had already been presented at Disneyland at what was then called the Videopolis stage.

Productions[]

Beauty and the Beast premiered in a joint production of Theatre Under The Stars and Disney Theatricals at the Music Hall, Houston, Texas, from November 28, 1993, through December 26, 1993.[3]

Original Broadway production[]

The musical opened on Broadway at the Palace Theatre on April 18, 1994 and ran there until September 5, 1999, transferring to the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 11, 1999, with an official opening date of November 16, 1999. The musical closed on July 29, 2007 after 46 previews and 5,464 performances, and is Broadway's eighth-longest running production in history (as of 2011).[4] The production holds the record of being the longest running production at both the Palace Theatre, where it opened, and the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, where it closed its Broadway run.[1]

Directed by Robert Jess Roth with choreography by Matt West and assisted by Dan Mojica, the original Broadway cast included Susan Egan as Belle, Terrence Mann as the Beast, Burke Moses as Gaston, Gary Beach as Lumiere and Beth Fowler as Mrs Potts. Orchestrations were by Danny Troob (after his score of the film), scenic designer was Stan Meyer, costume designer Ann Hould-Ward, lighting designer Natasha Katz, sound was by T. Richard Fitzgerald, hair designer David H. Lawrence, and prosthetics were by John Dods. Illusions were by Jim Steinmeyer and John Gaughan, and pyrotechnic design was by Tyler Wymer.

The Broadway production closed to make way for Disney's next musical venture, The Little Mermaid.[5] With Disney set to open its Broadway version of The Little Mermaid on November 3, 2007 at the time, it was believed that having two Disney film of the same style I.E. Princesses on Broadway at the same time would divide audiences and cause competition between the two shows. At this point, Disney also had three other shows running at the same time: The Lion King, Tarzan, and Mary Poppins. It was reported that Disney Theatrical Productions planned to revive the show on Broadway for the 2008 holiday season, but Disney did not pursue this.[6]

Original London production[]

The West End production opened at London's Dominion Theatre on April 29, 1997 and closed on December 11, 1999. Featured were Julie Alanah Brighton as Belle, Alasdair Harvey as the Beast, Burke Moses reprising his role as Gaston, Derek Griffiths as Lumiere, Mary Millar as Mrs Potts, Norman Rossington as Maurice, Barry James as Cogsworth, Di Botcher as Madame De La Grande Bouche, Richard Gauntlett as Lefou and Rebecca Thornhill as Babette. Notable replacements included Michelle Gayle and Annalene Beechey as Belle and John Barrowman and Earl Carpenter as the Beast, Alex Bourne as Gaston and Terry Doyle as Maurice.[7] The show won the Olivier Award as Best New Musical for 1998.[8]

National tours[]

The show had three US national tours. The first opened on November 15, 1995 and closed in 1999. It featured Kim Huber as Belle and Fred Inkley as the Beast. The second national tour opened in 1999 with Susan Owen as Belle and Grant Norman as The Beast. This production closed in 2003. The third national tour opened in 2001 and closed in 2003. This production starred Jennifer Shraeder as Belle and Roger Befeler as the Beast. Notable replacements on the tours have included Sarah Litzsinger, Erin Dilly and Danyelle Bossardet as Belle. The three touring companies visited 137 venues in 90 North American cities. About 5.5 million people in the United States and Canada saw these tours. A fourth national tour of Beauty and the Beast began February 2010, opening in Providence, Rhode Island starring Liz Shivener as Belle and Justin Glaser as The Beast.[9][10] Under the direction of the original Broadway creative team, the show features all new sets and costumes.

The UK National tour (prior to the closure of the West End Production in 1999) began on November 2, 2001 at the Empire Theatre in Liverpool with stops in Bristol, Birmingham, Dublin, Southampton, Manchester and ended on April 12, 2003 at the Playhouse Theatre in Edinburgh. The tour starred Annalene Beechey (reprising her role from the London Production) as Belle, Alistair Robins as the Beast, Ben Harlow as Gaston, Julia Goss as Mrs Potts, Stephen Matthews as Lumiere, Barry James (reprising his role from the London Production) as Cogsworth, Billy Boyle (reprising his role from the London Production) as Maurice, Karen Davies as Madame De La Grande Bouche, Kate Graham (reprising her role from the London Production) as Babette, Anthony Clegg as Lefou and Oliver Taylor and Sion Eifion sharing the role of Chip. Notable replacements included Dianne Pilkington as Belle, Alex Bourne as the Beast, Earl Carpenter as Gaston, Marilyn Cutts as Mrs Potts, Richard Tate as Maurice and Drew Varley as Lefou.

Other productions[]

Los Angeles

A Los Angeles production opened at the Shubert Theatre on April 12, 1995 and closed on September 29, 1996. Most of the original Broadway cast, including Susan Egan, Terrence Mann, Gary Beach, Beth Fowler, Burke Moses and Tom Bosley reprised their roles. Notable replacements included James Stacy Barbour as the Beast. The sets in this production were widely considered to be the largest out of all the musical's productions in the world. After the show closed in Los Angeles, all of the sets were transferred for the production in Mexico City in 1997.[citation needed]

Canada

The Toronto production opened at the Princess of Wales Theatre on August 8, 1995 and closed in 1998. The production starred Kerry Butler as Belle and Chuck Wagner as the Beast, and Terry Doyle as Maurice. Notable replacements included Melissa Thomson as Belle and Steve Blanchard as the Beast. The lesser known Halifax production at the Neptune Theatre was the longest running production in the theatre's history.

United Kingdom

Beauty and the Beast was staged at the Warwick Arts Centre, February 8-11, 2012.

International productions[]

On July 15, 1995 the musical began its original Australian run in Melbourne at The Princess Theatre, before moving on to Sydney. The original Australian cast included Michael Cormick as The Beast, Rachael Beck as Belle, Hugh Jackman as Gaston, and Ernie Bourne as Maurice.

In South America, Brazil was the second country to host the musical. Disney had plans to bring it to the country in 1999, after the success in Argentina, but nobody really knew if it would work. Three years later, in 2002, Beauty and the Beast finally opened in Brazil at Teatro Abril, one of the biggest theaters in the country. It was a huge hit, for more than one and a half years, it was presented with Kiara Sasso, playing Belle and Saulo Vasconcelos playing the Beast. In 2009, a new Belle and a new Beast were cast, Lissah Martins and Ricardo Vieira, as the musical came back to Brazil, Kiara Sasso was playing Maria in The Sound of Music and Saulo was The Sound of Music. Beauty and the Beast remained for six months at Teatro Abril. Even though the play was brought back as a way to try to recoup some of the money lost in Brazilian's version of Miss Saigon, this second incarnation of Beauty And The Beast failed to create any critical buzz, or to be a box office success.

In Spain there have been three productions of the show. The first one, based on the original Broadway production, had its Madrid debut on December 2, 1999 at Teatro Lope de Vega. The original cast included Xenia Reguant (later replaced by Julia Möller) as Belle, Carlos Marín (later replaced by Joe Luciano) as Beast, Lisardo Guarinos (later replaced by Manuel Bandera) as Gaston, Víctor Ullate Roche as Lefou, Germán Torres as Lumiere, Kirby Navarro as Mrs Potts, David Venancio Muro as Cogsworth, Dulcinea Juárez as Babette, Laura Inclán as Madame de la Grande Bouche and Miguel de Grandy as Maurice. After a successful run of 27 months and about 900 performances, the production finally closed on March 3, 2002, becoming the longest-running musical ever in Madrid. More recently, its record was surpassed by Mamma Mia!, Hoy no me puedo levantar and Sam Mendes' Cabaret.

In 2007, a second version produced by Stage Entertainment premiered on October 3, at Teatro Coliseum, Madrid, for a limited run of 6 months, but the closing was postponed due to a successful season. The original cast included Julia Möller reprising her role as Belle (later replaced by María Adamuz), David Ordinas as Beast, Pablo Puyol as Gaston, Raúl Peña as Lefou, Armando Pita as Lumiere, Angels Jiménez as Mrs Potts (later replaced by Rita Barber), Esteban Oliver as Cogsworth, Silvia Luchetti as Babette, María José Oquendo as Madame de la Grande Bouche and Lorenzo Valverde as Maurice. The production closed on January 11, 2009 and was transferred to Barcelona, where it ran from February 26, 2009 to January 10, 2010, at BTM, with some changes in the cast, including Mercè Martínez as Mrs Potts, Marta Capel as Babette and Albert Muntanyola as Maurice.

In 2012, the Stage Entertainment version was relaunched as a touring production, beginning performances on September 6, at Teatro Calderón, Valladolid. The original cast of this third Spanish production included Talía del Val as Belle, Ignasi Vidal as Beast, Daniel Diges as Gaston, Raúl Peña as Lefou, Diego Rodríguez as Lumiere, Mone as Mrs Potts, Frank Capdet as Cogsworth, Marta Capel as Babette, Eva Diago as Madame de la Grande Bouche and Enrique R. del Portal as Maurice.

According to Disney[11]Beauty and the Beast has been performed around the world in a total of 14 countries in 116 cities including Argentina (1998 and 2010), Australia (1995), Austria (1995), Brazil (2001 and 2009), Canada (1995), China (1999), Germany (1997), Ireland (2002 as part of the UK National Tour), Japan, (1995), Mexico (1997), Israel (2006), South Korea (2004), Spain (1999 and 2007),Greece (2007), Poland (2008) and the United Kingdom (1997).[12]

In 2005, Disney and Stage Entertainment produced a new version of the show using brand new sets and costumes. After touring the Netherlands and playing in Antwerp, Belgium, Disney and Stage Entertainment brought the show to Berlin, Germany in 2006 after a (approx.) one year-run at the Metronom Theater in Oberhausen. This production opened in 2007 in Madrid, Spain and in 2009 in Milan, Italy, with Arianna as Belle and Michel Altieri as the Beast. The Broadway production played a second time in Mexico City beginning in September 2007 and in Hiroshima, Japan beginning in February 2008. It opened in South Africa in September 2008.[13] In 2004, Disney began to license the show to other companies for touring, and the show has been performed by professional and amateur companies in many countries.[12]

Amateur productions[]

The show's rights became available (in association with Josef Weinberger Ltd.) to amateur performing groups and regional musical societies.[14] The show has been performed in numerous countries, by theatre companies of both an amateur and professional level.

The libretto was revised by the original creative team for the 2021 UK tour. Most of the changes (except for the new reduced orchestration, which isn't available for licensing), were added to the official licensed script in June 2021. Some of the changes include the removal of "Maison des Lunes" and "The Battle", optional cuts to dance breaks and making "No Matter What" an optional song. The "Silly Girls" were renamed "Les Filles de la Ville".

Planned film production[]

A live film adaptation of the musical was in the works according to Alan Menken.[15][16] However, in a recent Den of Geek interview, Alan Menken stated the planned film version of the Beauty and the Beast stage musical "was canned."[17]

Plot[]

Act I[]

Belle

Susan Egan as Belle

We open on a stage illuminated with fog and we hear the voice of an offstage Narrator:

"Once upon a time, in a faraway land, A young Prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, The Prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. But then, one winter's night, An old beggar woman came to the castle And offered him a single Rose In return for shelter from the bitter cold. Repulsed by her haggard appearance, The Prince sneered at the gift, And turned the old woman away. But she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, For Beauty is found within. And when he dismissed her again, The old woman's ugliness melted away To reveal a beautiful Enchantress. The Prince tried to apologize, but it was too late, For she had seen that there was no love in his heart. And as punishment, She transformed him into a hideous beast, And placed a powerful spell on the castle, And all who lived there. Ashamed of his monstrous form, The beast concealed himself inside his castle, With a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world. The Rose she had offered, Was truly an enchanted rose, Which would bloom for many years. If he could learn to love another, And earn her love in return By the time the last petal fell, Then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast For all time."

As the question "Who could ever learn to love a beast?" is stated, we are introduced to the heroine of our story, a beautiful young woman named Belle makes her way into town one morning in order to get a book from the local book seller. On the way she expresses her wish to live in a world like her books, full of adventure, while the townspeople note her unparalleled beauty but find her love of books odd (“Belle”). Belle has also attracted the attentions of Gaston (the local hunter and town hero) who admires her only for her beauty and not her intelligence.

Belle, however, is not oblivious to her peers’ views of her. She voices her concerns about it to her father, Maurice, an eccentric inventor. He assures his daughter that she is anything but strange (“No Matter What”). The two then put the finishing touches on his invention and Maurice heads off to an invention fair donning a scarf knitted for him by Belle (“No Matter What (Reprise)”).

In the woods, Maurice becomes lost when a pack of wolves attacks him; he finds his way to a mysterious castle on the edge of the Crossroads and enters. The servants of the castle include Lumière, a maître d' turned into a candelabra, Cogsworth, the head of household turned into a clock, Babette, a maid turned into a feather duster that still seems to retain her flirtatious tendencies, Mrs. Potts, the head of the kitchen turned into a tea pot, and Chip, the son of Mrs. Potts turned into a tea cup. They welcome him, but the horrid Beast arrives and orders Maurice to be locked away in the dungeon for trespassing.

BAB Australia

Hugh Jackman as Gaston and Rachael Beck as Belle

Back in town Gaston proposes to Belle, which she politely rejects (“Me”). Appalled by Gaston’s forwardness, Belle once again voices her need for a life outside this provincial one (“Belle (Reprise)”). Gaston’s sidekick, LeFou, returns from the woods wearing the scarf Belle knitted for Maurice. Belle realizes her father is in danger and heads into the woods to look for him. She ends up at the castle where she finds her father locked away in a dungeon. She makes a deal with the Beast, Maurice goes free but she remains instead. They agree and Maurice is sent back to town without being allowed to say goodbye. Belle is given a guest room and ordered by the Beast to join him for dinner. She mourns her situation (“Home”), but Mrs. Potts and Madame de la Grande Bouche, an operatic wardrobe, attempt to cheer her up (“Home Tag”).

Back in town, Gaston sulks at his loss of a bride. LeFou and the patrons attempt to cheer him up (“Gaston”), when Maurice rushes in claiming a Beast has Belle locked away, they laugh at him but Gaston formulates a plan (“Gaston (Reprise)”). Back at the castle, the Beast grows impatient as Belle has yet to join him for dinner. Cogsworth informs him she refuses to come, after a shouting match between Belle and the Beast (which ends in a victory for Belle) he tells her if she cannot eat with him then she will not eat at all. In his quarters, he sulks and notes his fate should the spell not break (“How Long Must This Go On?”). Eventually Belle does become hungry and ventures into the kitchen where the servants offer her dinner despite their master’s orders. They treat her to an amazing cabaret show (“Be Our Guest”).

After dinner, Belle gets a tour of the castle courtesy of Cogsworth and Lumiere, her curiosity leads her to enter the West Wing, a place the Beast told her was forbidden. Mesmerized by a mysterious rose floating in a bell jar, she reaches out to touch it but before she can, the Beast stops her and orders her to get out accidentally shoving her in the process. Appalled that he has touched her she flees the castle fearing for her life. Realizing his deadly mistake, the Beast knows he will be a monster forever if he cannot learn to love her and mourns his fate (“If I Can't Love Her”).

Act II[]

In the woods, Belle is attacked by wolves and is only rescued when the Beast comes to her aid, but he is injured during the fight, and collapses and Belle helps him back to the castle instead of taking the chance to run home. She cleans his injuries and after a brief argument about whose fault this is, the Beast thanks her for her kindness and thus their friendship is born. Wanting to give her a thank-you gift, the Beast gives Belle his huge library, which excites her. She notes a change in the Beast’s personality as the servants note a change in Belle and the Beast’s relationship (“Something There”). They express their hope of being human once more (“Human Again”) while Belle asks the Beast to accompany her to dinner that night.

Back in the village, Gaston meets with the asylum owner Monsieur D’Arque. They plan to lock Maurice away to blackmail Belle into marrying Gaston (“Maison Des Lunes”).

Beautyfinal460

Steve Blanchard as The Beast and Anneliese van der Pol as Belle

In the castle, the Beast and Belle attend a lovely dinner and personal ball, where they dance together in the ballroom (“Beauty and the Beast”). After, the Beast (who plans to tell Belle he loves her) asks her if she is happy here, she responds positively but notes that she misses her father. He offers her his Magic Mirror to view him: he is sick and lost in the woods. The Beast allows Belle to leave in order to save him; she departs after a tearful goodbye (“If I Can’t Love Her (Reprise)”).

Belle finds her father and brings him back to their house in the village. After she is able to nurse him back to health, she explains the transformation she seems to have gone through while she was with the Beast (“A Change in Me"). A mob arrives, led by Gaston to take Maurice to the asylum. Belle proves her father’s sanity by showing the townspeople the Beast is real using the Magic Mirror, but doesn’t realize the error in her gesture. The townspeople immediately fear the Beast, but Belle insists he’s gentle and kind. Gaston catches her tone and recognizes the Beast as his rival for Belle’s affections and organizes the mob to "Kill the Beast" (“The Mob Song”). Belle and Maurice race of to the castle to warn the beast. At the castle, the servants are able to keep the lynch mob at bay but Gaston breaks through and finds the Beast in his tower. He engages in a fight with him, mercilessly beating and taunting him. The Beast has lost the will to live at Belle’s departure. As Gaston moves in for the killing blow, Belle arrives. The Beast immediately turns on Gaston and is prepared to kill him, but spares his life after seeing the fear in his eyes. The Beast and Belle are reunited, but this reunion is cut short as Gaston stabs the Beast in the back. This act of violence causes Gaston to lose his footing and he falls to his death.

Belle and Prince

Belle (Susan Egan) and her Prince (Terrence Mann), live happily ever after

On the balcony, Belle assures the Beast he will live but they both know she is helpless to save him. She begs him not to leave her because she has found home in his company, but the beast closes his eyes. Thinking that he was dead, Belle whispers "I love you" just before the last rose petal falls. A transformation takes place and the Beast is alive and human once more. Though Belle does not recognize him at first, she looks into his eyes and sees the Beast within and they kiss. The two sing of how their lives have changed because of love and they dance once more as the company, now changed back to their human form, gathers in the ballroom (“End Duet/Transformation").

Characters[]

Character Description
Beast/Prince Adam A Prince transformed into a terrifying beast for his lack of compassion; hot-tempered and commanding, but with a warm, loving heart buried far beneath his gruff exterior.
Belle A vibrant, intelligent young beauty who wants much more than her provincial life.
Gaston The story's antagonist. The vain, egotistical, ultra-masculine villain determined to marry Belle.
Lumière A suave, French, debonair enchanted candelabra. The valet of the castle.
Mrs. Potts A warm-hearted, maternal enchanted teapot. The cook of the castle.
Babette A saucy, enchanted feather-duster, and the object of Lumiere's affections. The chamber maid of the castle.
Madame de la Grande Bouche A former opera diva turned into an enchanted wardrobe.
Cogsworth A tightly-wound, enchanted stuffy mantle clock and the head of the Beast’s household. The butler of the castle.
Maurice Belle’s loving, eccentric inventor father.
Chip An enchanted teacup, and Mrs. Potts' little boy.
Monsieur d'Arque The creepy, scheming proprietor of the local insane asylum, the Maison des Lunes.
Ensemble Silly Girls, Enchanted Objects, Townspeople, Tavern Patrons, Mob.
LeFou Gaston’s bumbling, toady sidekick.

Differences between the musical and film(in order of appearance)[]

  • In the film prologue it is stated that the enchanted rose "would bloom until his(the Beast's) 21st year." In the stage adaptation this is changed to an unspecified "many years."
  • During the opening song “Belle,” instead of sitting at a fountain and singing about the contents of her favorite book to a passing herd of sheep, Belle grabs the arm of a nearby townsperson and shows them instead.
  • The three town Bimbettes plead Gaston to choose one of them over Belle on his way to her cottage- he smugly assures them that his marriage to Belle will have no effect on any future rendezvous he will most likely have with them.
  • Gaston’s marriage proposal to Belle takes place in her front yard as she attempts to hang laundry; there are also no villagers present to witness Gaston’s humiliation until after she runs inside.
  • Philippe the horse is removed from the story. Instead, Belle knits Maurice a scarf for good luck for his trip to the inventors’ fair. After he becomes prisoner of The Beast, the scarf is found in the woods by LeFou- having been sent there by Gaston to fetch a deer for the feast after his presumed marriage to Belle- and worn back to town (not knowing who it belongs to), thereby alerting Belle to her father’s disappearance. She heads into the woods on foot.
  • Maurice’s wood-chopping machine is not located in the basement of the home he and Belle share- instead it is on the back of a bicycle-like contraption, which he rides to the fair in place of Philippe.
  • LeFou sings many of the male villagers’ lines during “Gaston.”
  • The Feather Duster's name is Babette. In the film, it never says her name just like the wardrobe.
  • The Wardrobe in Belle’s room (unnamed in the Disney film) is called Madame de la Grande Bouche and revealed to be a former famous opera diva.
  • The dog-turned-footstool of the castle is not present in this version.
  • Chip the teacup, though present, has his role greatly diminished due to the difficulty of pulling off his character convincingly. The head of his actor is usually stuck through the tops of tables and rolling carts wearing a teacup-shaped helmet. He is not seen individually mobile until after the spell is broken and he is human again.
  • Belle and the Beast’s argument about her joining him for dinner takes place inside of her bedroom- instead of opposite sides of a closed door.
  • Belle joins Lumiere and the other dancing dishes during “Be Our Guest,” instead of remaining seated at a table and merely observing the spectacle.
  • The magic behind the transformations is slightly modified: Instead of being fully transformed (as shown in the movie), the characters are slowly transforming into their respective objects. Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and Babette the Feather Duster lament this fact, revealing that some of the servants have already completely transformed and cannot speak, see, or move; they fear the same will happen to them if the spell is not broken soon.
  • As Lumiere and Cogsworth take Belle on a tour (right before she sneaks off to explore the West Wing), the Beast makes his way to her room with a plate of food in hopes of making amends with her. However, he overhears Belle voicing her distaste of him, and throws the plate away in anger and sulks off.
  • A scene only briefly seen in the background in the film is expanded upon, where Belle teaches the Beast to read. Additionally, the book they read in the film is Romeo & Juliet while in the musical it is King Arthur.
  • During the Mob Song, Belle and Maurice are not imprisoned in their own basement; instead they decide to get a head start on the angry villagers and sneak off to the castle halfway through the musical number.
  • During the fight on the roof, Belle is physically below Gaston and Beast, calling up to them rather than reaching down from a higher balcony.
  • Gaston repeatedly stabs Beast in the back rather than only once before losing his balance.
  • After the spell is broken, Cogsworth and Madame de la Grande Bouche appear to have a romantic connection.

Musical numbers[]

Act I
  • Overture* — Orchestra
  • Prologue — Orchestra with Narrator
  • Belle — Belle and Townsfolk
  • No Matter What*#+ - Maurice and Belle
  • No Matter What*#[Reprise]/Wolf Chase* — Maurice
  • Me*# — Gaston
  • Belle (Reprise) — Belle
  • Home* — Belle
  • Home Tag* Mrs. Potts
  • Gaston† — Gaston, Lefou and townsfolk
  • Gaston (Reprise)† — Gaston and Lefou
  • How Long Must This Go On?*# — Beast
  • Be Our Guest† — Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, Ensemble
  • If I Can't Love Her*# — Beast
Act II
  • Entr'acte/Wolf Chase* — Orchestra
  • Something ThereBelle, Beast, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, Cogsworth, and Chip
  • Human Again‡ — Lumiere, Mrs. Potts, Chip, Madame de la Grande Bouche, Babette, Cogsworth, Ensemble
  • Maison Des Lunes# |- Monsieur D'Arque, Gaston and Lefou
  • Beauty and the BeastMrs. Potts
  • If I Can't Love Her (Reprise)*# — Beast
  • A Change in Me# — Belle
  • The Mob Song — Gaston and the Mob
  • The Battle | - The Mob and Enchanted Objects
  • Home* (Reprise) — Belle
  • Transformation* — Beast, Belle, Ensemble
  • Finale - Beast, Belle, Ensemble

*New song or instrumental cue

† Expanded vocal or instrumental content, using either cut lyrics by Ashman or dance arrangements by Glen Kelly, or both.

‡ "Human Again" was written by Menken and Ashman for the movie, but was cut, due to the complications it made on the film's timeline. it was repurposed for the Broadway play, and on account of the musical's great success, an entirely new animated sequence based on the Broadway version was set to this song and inserted into 2002's Special Edition DVD release.

§ "A Change In Me" was written into the show in 1998 and was retained thereafter.

# not in the Junior Broadway show

| Cut in the 2021 revision

+ "No Matter What" is now optional in the 2021 revision, All though, the authors recommend not including the song in the show and encourage using "Maurice and Belle", a new underscoring scene to replace it.

Instrumentation[]

Beauty and the Beast requires a medium-sized orchestra of about eleven or so. The original Broadway production contained about twenty-four players. The instrumentation requires two keyboards, percussion, bass, three woodwind players, a trumpet, and strings. The first woodwind player doubles on flute and piccolo. The second on English horn and oboe. The third on clarinet, bass clarinet, and flute. The original Broadway had five woodwind players. The first doubled on flute and piccolo. The second on English horn and oboe. The third on piccolo, flute, and clarinet. The fourth on piccolo, flute, clarinet, and bass clarinet. The fifth on bassoon and contrabassoon. Alternate instrumentation is also given out by Music Theatre International, the company that holds the Beauty and the Beast license.

Cast information[]

Original Broadway Cast

Notable Broadway cast replacements (approximate dates given where available)[5][18]

Recordings[]

The Original Broadway Cast Recording was released on April 26, 1994. The CD included Susan Egan as Belle, Terrence Mann as Beast, Burke Moses as Gaston, Gary Beach as Lumiere and Beth Fowler as Mrs Potts. The song "A Change in Me" is not on the cast recording because the song was added to the production for Toni Braxton during her stint as Belle. After Braxton departed the production, the song was kept in. The song was also performed on Disney's national touring jukebox musical, Disney's On the Record (2004). Broadway's original Belle, Susan Egan, recorded a cover of the song on her CD So Far.

The Original Australian Cast Recording was released in 1995. The principal cast included Rachael Beck as Belle, Michael Cormick as Beast, Hugh Jackman as Gaston, Ernie Bourne as Maurice, Toni Lamond as Madame De La Grande Bouche, Grant Smith as Lumiere, Robyn Arthur as Mrs Potts and Bert Newton as Cogsworth.

The Original Vienna Cast Recording was released in 1996. The principal cast included Ethan Freeman as Beast, Caroline Vasicek as Belle, Kevin Tarte as Gaston, Viktor Gernot as Lumiere, Ann Mandrella as Babette, and Rosita Mewis as Mrs. Potts.

The Original London Cast Recording was released in 1997. The principal cast included Julie-Alanah Brighten as Belle, Alasdair Harvey as Beast, Burke Moses as Gaston, Derek Griffiths as Lumiere and Mary Millar as Mrs Potts.

The Original Stuttgart Cast Recording was released in 1998. The principal cast included Uwe Kroger as Beast and Leah Delos Santos as Belle and Ann Mandrella as Babette.

The Original Madrid Cast Recording was released in 1999. The principal cast included Xenia Reguant as Belle, Carlos Marín as Beast, Lisardo Guarinos as Gaston, Víctor Ullate Roche as Lefou, Germán Torres as Lumiere, David Venancio Muro as Cogsworth and Kirby Navarro as Mrs Potts. A second cast recording for the new production was released in May 2008, starring Julia Möller as Belle, David Ordinas as Beast, Pablo Puyol as Gaston, Raúl Peña as Lefou, Armando Pita as Lumiere, Esteban Oliver as Cogsworth and Angels Jiménez as Mrs Potts.

Junior version[]

A "junior" version of the musical for middle and high school students was published by MTI. This version only included a selected number of the songs, including "Belle", "Belle (Reprise)", "Home", "Home (Tag)", "Gaston", "Gaston (Reprise)", "Be Our Guest", "Something There", "Human Again", "Beauty and the Beast", "The Mob Song", "Home (Reprise)", and "Beauty and the Beast (Reprise)". Also In Belle (Reprise), The Silly Girls take Belle's part in the beginning of the song instead of Belle having to sing the whole song. Also in "Something There", Madame de la Grande Bouche and Babette sing as well.

Awards and nominations[]

Original Broadway production[]

Year Award Category Nominee Result
1994 Tony Award
Best Musical Nominated
Best Book of a Musical Linda Woolverton Nominated
Best Original Score Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice Nominated
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical Terrence Mann Nominated
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical Susan Egan Nominated
Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical Gary Beach Nominated
Best Direction of a Musical Robert Jess Roth Nominated
Best Costume Design Ann Hould-Ward Won
Best Lighting Design Natasha Katz Nominated
Drama Desk Award
Outstanding Musical Nominated
Outstanding Actor in a Musical Terrence Mann Nominated
Outstanding Actress in a Musical Susan Egan Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical Burke Moses Nominated
Outstanding Choreography Matt West Nominated
Outstanding Orchestrations Danny Troob Nominated
Outstanding Lyrics Howard Ashman and Tim Rice Nominated
Outstanding Music Alan Menken Nominated
Outstanding Sound Design T. Richard Fitzgerald Nominated
Outstanding Special Effects Jim Steinmeyer and John Gaughan Nominated

Original London production[]

Year Award Category Nominee Result
1998 Laurence Olivier Award Best New Musical Won
Best Theatre Choreographer Matt West Nominated
Best Costume Design Ann Hould-Ward Nominated

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Information about 'Beauty and the Beast' grosses and productions as of July 2007", Boneau/Bryan-Brown (blog), July 11, 2007.
  2. Zoglin, Richard.Bye Bye, Birdie. Hello, Rent"TIME magazine, May 15, 2008. Reported in its May 15, 2008 issue that this musical ranked as the fourth most frequently produced musical by U.S. high schools in 2007.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Template:Cite news Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "chronicle" defined multiple times with different content
  4. Template:Citation/core
  5. 5.0 5.1 Template:Citation/core
  6. Template:Citation/core
  7. Template:Cite press release
  8. Template:Citation/core
  9. [1] networksontour.com Template:Dead link
  10. Gans, Andrew."New Beauty and Beast Tour Now Playing Providence; Peoria Is Next" Playbill.com, February 12, 2010
  11. Disney disneyonbroadway.com, accessed September 5, 2011Template:Dead link
  12. 12.0 12.1 Jones, Kenneth. "MTI Will License Disney's Aida and Beauty and the Beast for Regional and Amateur Markets" Playbill.com, September 22, 2003
  13. South Africa production beautyandthebeast.co.za, accessed September 5, 2011 Template:Dead link
  14. "'Beauty and the Beast' josef-weinberger.com, accessed September 5, 2011
  15. Marmiroli, Adriana."Alan Menken Adesso musical anche in Italia"La Stampa, 5/6/2009 (in Italian)
  16. Hill, Jim."Hollywood bets big on 'Beast,' considers remake of 'My Fair Lady'" jimhillmedia.com (blog), July 1, 2009
  17. Template:Citation/core
  18. Template:Citation/core
  19. Template:Citation/core
  20. Schoeffler to Light Up Bway's Beauty and the Beast, March 21-May 13

Gallery[]

External links[]

Information about Regional US and International productions
Others
Wikipedia
This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original article was at Beauty and the Beast (musical). The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Disney Musical Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Advertisement