Beauty and the Beast

If I were forced to give a one-word review of the Davis Musical Theater Company’s new production, “Beauty and the Beast,” directed by Steve Isaacson, with musical direction by Erik Daniells, it would have to be: wow.

“Beauty and the Beast” is a huge show. It started life as a Disney animated cartoon and was the first of such films to cross over from the silver screen to the stage in 1991. Its phenomenal success spawned the likes of “The Lion King” and “Mary Poppins,” and “Tarzan.”

With the financial backing of the Disney corporation, the stage show could dazzle with opulent costumes, intricate sets and wonderful special effects, something almost impossible for a small community theater on a small budget to reproduce. But DMTC does the best it can and can hold its head high for the end result.

You won’t find intricate sets, but you will find utilitarian sets (designed by Isaacson), and more set changes than I remember in a DCOC show.

Costume design by Denise Miles is outstanding. Belle’s final costume alone would not be out of place in a professional production. It’s gorgeous.

But what gives this show the “wow” factor is the energy, the stunning choreography by Ron Cisneros, who is wonderful at making non-dancers look like dancers, and the quality of the acting and singing.

Rachelle Jones is delicious as Belle, the spunky heroine, who, to save her father’s life, agrees to live in the castle of the Beast forever. Jones does not have a strong voice, but a sweet, clear, genuine voice and she created a real character, not a caricature. It was a captivating performance.

Gil Sebastian is perfect as Belle’s eccentric father, Maurice, the town inventor who gets lost in the woods and ends up in the dungeon of the Beast’s castle.

Tevye Ditter made an impressive Beast, a prince under the spell of an enchantress (Kristen Meyers, who appears later as Babette), doomed to live inside a hideous body unless he can find a woman to love him for who he is, not for how he looks. His growing love for Belle is unmistakable to the audience, less so, at first, to the Beast. Ditter has a powerful voice and his “If I can’t love her,” which ends Act 1, was the high point of the evening.

Gaston is the town hunk, whose self-esteem needs no bolstering. In his mind, he’s gorgeous and he knows it and has set his eye on the most beautiful girl in town, Belle, to be his wife, whether she wants to be or not. JR Humbert does a wonderful job at being the egotist who can’t believe that there could possibly be a woman who would not swoon at his advances.

Fifteen year old Chris Peterson is very funny as Gaston’s foil, LaFou, who gets tossed around so much one wonders if Peterson is going to end the run black and blue.

The bewitched prince’s house staff also comes under the curse of the Beast, and are gradually turning into furniture and other household objects. As the candelabra, Lumiere, Jon Jackson provides lots of fun. Lumiere gets all the best lines (“You’ve cut me to the wick...”) and Jackson makes the most of them.

Adam Sartain is Cogsworth, the major domo who is slowly becoming a clock and who plays off of Lumiere beautifully.

The ever-wonderful Lenore Sebastian is Mrs. Potts, the round little tea kettle, who pushes her son “Chip” (Sara Pinto) around in a tea cart and who sings the beautiful title song as the Beast and Belle’s romance begins to blossom.

Kristen Meyers is adorable as Babette, the feather duster in a feathered dress Ginger Rogers would have loved.

Carolyn Gregory is Madame de la Grande Bouche, the opera star who is now becoming a chest of drawers.

The trio of Silly Girls (Shannon Kendall, Carolyn Self, and Wendy Young), all vying for the love of Gaston, deserve special mention for their valiant attempt at a high-kicking can-can.

The 10 piece orchestra under the direction of Erik Daniells provides better than average accompaniment.

This is a huge cast for DMTC – I count 36 actors involved. While it moves fairly quickly, the pace may be a bit slow for younger children (two youngsters near me were quite squirmy), but children 8 and up (especially little girls) should love it.

Beauty and the Beast

Is Mickey Mouse king of Broadway? If you look at the new musicals to hit the New York stage it may seem that way. After a successful run on Broadway, “The Lion King” has been touring the country for awhile now, “Tarzan” is still playing on Broadway, “Mary Poppins” just opened, a production of “The Little Mermaid” is expected to open soon, and “Beauty and the Beast” released the rights for community theater productions a couple of years ago.

It’s pointless to argue whether there is any “there” there for these productions (I often feel they are much better as cartoons). They are larger than life and if the music isn’t exactly on a par with Rodgers & Hammerstein, who cares? They’re just plain fun.

A Disney production is designed as a big stage extravaganza and yet Director Angela Shellhammer (who is also credited with Scenic Design, along with Jeff Kean) has managed to give her small Opera House production the appearance of a “big stage extravaganza” without making things look crowded.

A narrator (James Shellhammer) opens the show with the story of the beast's origins: An old beggar woman (Taryn Huber) asks a prince for shelter from the cold, though she has only a single rose to give him as payment. Being selfish and heartless, the prince refuses her, simply because she is ugly. The old woman warns him that true beauty is within one's heart, not one's appearance. To teach him a lesson, she transforms the prince into a hideous beast, gives him an enchanted rose, and tells him that "if he can learn to love another, and earn her love in return by the time the last petal falls, then the spell will be broken. If not, he will be doomed to remain a beast for all time."

Troy Thomas is perfectly cast as the beast. His height is a boon to the illusion of a towering hulk of a creature and he has a magnificent voice to match. He learns to tame his anger as his love for and tenderness toward his “Beauty” grows. His struggles with his complex emotions actually make his “beast” more appealing than the handsome prince he ultimately becomes, and it is easy to see why Belle was won over.

Buffee Ann Gillihan is Belle, the feisty heroine of the story, a girl who is “different” from her peers because she loves books and lives a rich fantasy life, dreaming of a better life and a happily ever after. When her father (Rodger McDonald), an eccentric inventor, becomes a captive of the Beast, Belle offers to take his place, and thus the story begins. Like Thomas, Gillihan is perfectly cast as the idealistic Belle whose heart is touched by the Beast she begins to tame.

Not only is the Beast a victim of the witch’s curse, but also his entire castle staff, who will slowly become tea cups, candles, items of furniture, and other household items.

Laurie Everly-Klassen must have found this either a costumer’s dream, or a costumer’s nightmare. Her costumes for the household staff are simply wonderful. The only slight criticism that one might make is that in other productions of this show, as time progresses, the costumes become more elaborate, indicating that the characters are closer to becoming the thing they represent. Lumiere, for example, is a candlestick and should become more candle-like as the show progresses. However, it is but a very slight criticism because one can hardly fault the costume designs.

The actors themselves are all top notch. Kevin Caravalho is Lumiere, a deliciously fussy maitre d’ who is in the process of becoming a French candlestick.

Cogsworth, the castle’s major domo is played by Jim Lane, who may perhaps be giving the best performance I have seen him give to date, in his transformation into a clock.

Jodi Serrano is delightful as Mrs. Potts, the teapot who sings the show’s title song. Her son Chip, a teacup, is the adorable Abby Miles.

Amy Vyvlecka is charming as Babette, the feather duster.

Scott Woodard is Gaston, the town’s nefarious hunk who has set his sights on Belle and is determined to marry her. Gaston’s good looks are exceeded only by his ego. Woodard is the villain you love to hate, and as male chauvenists go, none can hold a candle to this Gaston.

Gaston’s hapless lackey, LeFou, was the delightful Bobby Grainger, a character with little brains, who is routinely slapped around the stage by Gaston.

This is one of those happily-ever-after stories that will make little girls want to go out and kiss frogs to see if maybe there really is a prince trapped inside. It is highly recommended family entertainment.

Beauty and the Beast

(This review was printed in The Davis Enterprise on 11/21/06)

Is Mickey Mouse king of Broadway?

If you look at the new musicals to hit the New York stage it may seem that way. After a successful run on Broadway, “The Lion King” has been touring the country for awhile now, “Tarzan” is still playing on Broadway, “Mary Poppins” just opened, a production of “The Little Mermaid” is expected to open soon, and “Beauty and the Beast” released the rights for community theater productions a couple of years ago.

It’s pointless to argue whether there is any “there” there for these productions (I often feel they are much better as cartoons). They are larger than life and if the music isn’t exactly on a par with Rodgers & Hammerstein, who cares? They’re just plain fun.

A Disney production is designed as a big stage extravaganza and yet Director Angela Shellhammer (who is also credited with Scenic Design, along with Jeff Kean) has managed to give her small Opera House production the appearance of a “big stage extravaganza” without making things look crowded.

A narrator (James Shellhammer) opens the show with the story of the beast's origins: An old beggar woman (Taryn Huber) asks a prince for shelter from the cold, though she has only a single rose to give him as payment. Being selfish and heartless, the prince refuses her, simply because she is ugly. The old woman warns him that true beauty is within one's heart, not one's appearance. To teach him a lesson, she transforms the prince into a hideous beast, gives him an enchanted rose, and tells him that "if he can learn to love another, and earn her love in return by the time the last petal falls, then the spell will be broken. If not, he will be doomed to remain a beast for all time."

Troy Thomas is perfectly cast as the beast. His height is a boon to the illusion of a towering hulk of a creature and he has a magnificent voice to match. He learns to tame his anger as his love for and tenderness toward his “Beauty” grows. His struggles with his complex emotions actually make his “beast” more appealing than the handsome prince he ultimately becomes, and it is easy to see why Belle was won over.

Buffee Ann Gillihan is Belle, the feisty heroine of the story, a girl who is “different” from her peers because she loves books and lives a rich fantasy life, dreaming of a better life and a happily ever after. When her father (Rodger McDonald), an eccentric inventor, becomes a captive of the Beast, Belle offers to take his place, and thus the story begins. Like Thomas, Gillihan is perfectly cast as the idealistic Belle whose heart is touched by the Beast she begins to tame.

Not only is the Beast a victim of the witch’s curse, but also his entire castle staff, who will slowly become tea cups, candles, items of furniture, and other household items.

Laurie Everly-Klassen must have found this either a costumer’s dream, or a costumer’s nightmare. Her costumes for the household staff are simply wonderful. The only slight criticism that one might make is that in other productions of this show, as time progresses, the costumes become more elaborate, indicating that the characters are closer to becoming the thing they represent. Lumiere, for example, is a candlestick and should become more candle-like as the show progresses. However, it is but a very slight criticism because one can hardly fault the costume designs.

The actors themselves are all top notch. Kevin Caravalho is Lumiere, a deliciously fussy maitre d’ who is in the process of becoming a French candlestick.

Cogsworth, the castle’s major domo is played by Jim Lane, who may perhaps be giving the best performance I have seen him give to date, in his transformation into a clock.

Jodi Serrano is delightful as Mrs. Potts, the teapot who sings the show’s title song. Her son Chip, a teacup, is the adorable Abby Miles.

Amy Vyvlecka is charming as Babette, the feather duster.

Scott Woodard is Gaston, the town’s nefarious hunk who has set his sights on Belle and is determined to marry her. Gaston’s good looks are exceeded only by his ego. Woodard is the villain you love to hate, and as male chauvenists go, none can hold a candle to this Gaston.

Gaston’s hapless lackey, LeFou, was the delightful Bobby Grainger, a character with little brains, who is routinely slapped around the stage by Gaston.

This is one of those happily-ever-after stories that will make little girls want to go out and kiss frogs to see if maybe there really is a prince trapped inside. It is highly recommended family entertainment.

Beauty and the Beast

It’s a tale as old as time: She’s the daughter of the crazy old town inventor, ridiculed by the townsfolk for her bookishness and her dreams of finding her prince charming. He’s a prince with a curse on his head, hiding his hideous form away in a creepy old castle, feared by the townsfolk because he’s “different.” The two outcasts find each other, fall in love, and live happily ever after.

The touring company of the Tony award-winning “Beauty and the Beast,” directed by Robert Jess Roth, opened Wednesday night at the Sacramento Community Center. This big, bold, opulent production had the audience, adults and children, totally captivated. Roth has managed to tell the simple love story with just enough glitz to keep it moving crisply and always entertaining, but never detracting from the message of seeing truth beneath physical appearance, or discovering the redemptive power of love.

“Beauty and the Beast” is a technician’s dream, from the lavish sets by Stanley A. Meyer which flew in from above, rolled in from the wings, swiveled on turntables or just hung there looking every bit like the real thing, to the lighting design by Natasha Katz, which included a marvelous moon-and-stars backdrop. And then there were the special effects--candles which ignited at a moment’s notice, sparkles, flashes, strobe lights, a headless kid who didn’t develop legs until the finale, and a transformation from Beast to Prince that would have done David Copperfield proud.

Danielle Bossardet is delicious as Belle, the spunky heroine, who, to save her father’s life, agrees to live in the castle of the Beast forever. Greg Norman as the Beast is fierce and then endearingly tender as his love for Belle grows.

Edward Staudenmayer, as the town hunk, Gaston, the muscle-bound fool who is determined to marry Belle, swaggers onto the stage like a combination of Jethro Clampet and Little Abner. He’s the villain you love to hate, and as male chauvenists go, none can hold a candle to this Gaston.

His hapless foil, Maurice (Ron Lee Savin) was a delight, with a body made of rubber as he is routinely whacked about the stage by Gaston, enhanced by the great sound effects design by Jonathan Deans. Each amplified “whack” is a reminder that this is really a cartoon, effectively brought to life on the stage.

The supporting players are a marvelous collection of cartoonesque characters. Cogsworth the fussbudget clock (Ron Bagden) and Lumiere, the Candlestick holder (Jay Russell) nearly steal the show with their antics and groaners like “You’ve cut me to the wick...” They are balanced nicely by Janet McEwen, a Debbie Reynolds-like Mrs. Potts, the teapot.

There are some gems in the smaller rolls, particularly Louisa Kendrick as Babette, the feather duster, and Monica M. Wemitt as Madame de la Grande Bouche. Ivy Fox, Amber Stone and Tia Marie Zorn as the three silly girls swooning for Gaston are likewise delightful.

The score by Alan Menken and lyrics by the late Howard Ashman, from a book by Linda Woolverton, will be familiar to anyone who has seen the Disney animated feature that was the basis for this show. There are six new songs added for the stage, with lyrics by Tim Rice, plus another song (“Human Again”) with lyrics by Ashman, which was cut from the movie.

Choreography by Matt West is a delight. It’s not easy to design for dancing pieces of furniture, but West does well and the familiar “Be Our Guest” is a show-stopper. Lesser known musically, “Gaston,” a drinking song with intricate moves involving beer steins, is absolutely fabulous.

Costumer Ann Hould-Ward won a Tony for her designs for “Beauty and the Beast” and it was richly deserved. Of particular interest are the increasingly intricate costumes for the servants-turned-household objects, as they come closer to permanently becoming objects.

This is a show which will amuse and delight children and adults alike, and at its end you will believe that miracles do happen, people can live happily ever after, and that inner beauty can tame the beast.