Theater and culture meet Disney. What could be more fun than seeing Beauty & the Beast at TPAC? The show was just fabulous with something for everyone. The singing and dancing were superb and the production was a wonderful mixture of farcical acrobatics and double entendres to keep both the kids and adults laughing throughout.
“Beauty and the Beast” is based on the classic French fairy tale, La Belle et la Bête which tells the story of Belle, the daughter of a quirky, inventor and the Beast, a handsome yet selfish, young prince.
On a dark and stormy winter’s night, an ugly crone approaches the prince and offers him a beautiful rose in exchange for a night’s shelter. Repulsed by her appearance, the prince turns her away. Enraged by his rejection, she reveals herself to be an Enchantress and punishes the prince by transforming him into a hideous beast and all of his servants into household objects. He is given the ill fated rose which will continue to bloom until his 21st birthday. To redeem himself and receive salvation he must find true love before the last petal falls or remain a beast forever.
Belle, an intelligent, young woman who could always be found with her nose in a book, is estranged from the townspeople for her love of the written word. She secretly dreams of escaping her provincial village and the continual advances of the arrogant, Gaston. When her father becomes lost in the woods Belle sets off to rescue him. The Beast, having imprisoned her father, agrees to his release if she agrees to take his place and stay with him forever. Sacrificing herself, Belle agrees to his terms. At first she is exasperated by his rude behavior but soon begins to see a wary tenderness. The house servants, Cogsworth the clock, Mrs. Potts, the teapot and her teacup son, Chip, Featherduster, the French maid, and Lumière, the candlestick all view Belle as their salvation from the curse and encourage their master to try kindness to win Belle’s heart.
In the end, Belle sees behind the pain and anguish of the Beast and discovers true love which in turn, magically restores the handsome Prince.
