Beauty And The Beast

March 2013

Some Images

poster 

Beauty and the Beast

Plot

An enchantress, disguised as an old beggar, offers a spoiled and selfish young prince a rose in exchange for a night′s shelter in his castle. The prince sneers at the offer and turns her away. As punishment for his cold heart, the enchantress transforms him into a monstrous beast, and his servants into household items. She gives him a magic mirror that enables him to view faraway events, along with the rose, which will bloom until his 21st birthday. In order to break the curse, the prince must learn to love and be loved in return before the rose′s petals have fallen off, or else he will remain a beast forever. But as the years go by, the Beast loses all hope, ″for who could ever learn to love... a Beast?″

Some years later, a beautiful young woman named Belle lives in a nearby French village with her father Maurice, an eccentric inventor. A bookworm, Belle longs for a life beyond the dull village. Her beauty and non-conformity attracts attention in the town and she is pursued by several men, especially the arrogant and muscle bound Gaston, who is set on marrying her. Despite Gaston being sought after by single females and admired by the male population of the town, Belle is uninterested in him.

While traveling to a fair to present his wood-chopping machine, accompanied by his horse Phillipe, Maurice gets lost in the woods. Chased by a pack of wolves, Maurice stumbles upon the Beast′s castle, where he meets the transformed servants Lumière, a candelabra, Cogsworth, a clock, Mrs. Potts, a teapot, and her son Chip, a teacup. But soon after that, the ferocious Beast imprisons Maurice. Belle finds her way to the castle and offers to take her father′s place; the Beast accepts her offer over Maurice′s protests. While Gaston is sulking in the tavern after a failed proposal to Belle, Maurice arrives seeking help to rescue her from the Beast. No one takes him seriously, so he sets out alone.

That night, Belle refuses to dine with the Beast, enraging him; Lumière disobeys his order not to let her eat. While Cogsworth and Lumière give Belle a tour of the castle, she wanders into the forbidden West Wing, and finds the enchanted rose. The Beast angrily chases her away. Belle attempts to flee the castle with Phillipe, but they are attacked by a pack of wolves. The Beast comes to her aid and fights off the wolves, but is injured in the process. Belle nurses his wounds, and he begins to develop feelings for her. She thanks him for saving her life and he impresses her by giving her the castle′s vast library. As they spend more time together, they grow closer. Meanwhile, the spurned Gaston pays Monsieur d′Arque, the warden of the town′s insane asylum, to have Maurice committed if Belle does not accept Gaston′s marriage proposal.

Belle and the Beast share a romantic evening together. Belle tells the Beast she misses her father, and he lets her use the magic mirror to see him. When Belle sees him dying in the woods in an attempt to rescue her, the Beast allows her to leave to rescue her father, giving her the mirror to remember him by. Belle finds her father and takes him home. Gaston arrives to put his plan in action, but Belle proves Maurice′s sanity by showing them the Beast with the magic mirror. Realizing Belle has feelings for the Beast, Gaston arouses the mob′s anger against the Beast, telling them that the Beast is a man-eating monster that must be killed, and leads them to the castle. Gaston confines Belle and Maurice to their basement, but Chip, who had hidden himself in Belle′s baggage, releases them with the aid of Maurice′s wood-chopping machine.

The Beast′s servants defeat the mob while Gaston sneaks away to confront the Beast. The Beast is initially too depressed to fight back, but he regains his will when he sees Belle returning to the castle. After winning a heated battle on the castle's rooftops, the Beast spares Gaston′s life and orders him to leave. He is about to reunite with Belle, but Gaston stabs him from behind, only to lose his balance and fall to his death. As the Beast dies, Belle professes her love for him just as the rose′s last petal falls, and the spell is broken. The Beast comes back to life and is restored to human form, as are all his servants. Now married, Belle and the prince dance in the ballroom with her father and the servants happily watching on.

List of Scenes List of Musical Numbers

Act I

Prologue

Scene 1 – The Town Belle – Belle and villagers

No Matter What – Belle and Maurice

Scene 2 – The Forest

Scene 3 – The Castle Interior

Scene 4 – Exterior of Belle’s cottage Me - Gaston

Scene 5 – The castle Interior Home - Belle

Scene 6 – The Tavern Gaston – Gaston, LeFou and Villagers

Scene 7 – Fireplace How long must this go on? – Beast

Be our guest – Lumiere and Enchanted Objects

If I can’t love her - Beast

Act II

Scene 1 – The Forest

Scene 2 – Fireplace / Castle Interior Something there – Belle, Beast, Luminere, Mrs Potts, Cogsworth and Chip

Scene 3 – The Tavern Maison des Lunes – Monsieur D’Arque, Gaston and LeFou

Scene 4 – The Beast’s Lair Beauty and the Beast – Mrs Potts

Scene 5 – Exterior of Belle’s cottage A Change in Me – Belle

The Mob Song – Gaston and the Mob

Scene 6 – The Castle Interior The Battle – The Mob and Enchanted Objects

Home (reprise) – Belle

Transformation – The Company

Finale – The Company
 

Characters and Cast

Belle - Jo Davidson

Beast - Matt Gregory

Maurice - Nick Bane

Gaston - Steve Pleasance

Lefou - Roger King

Cogsworth - Joe Ward

Lumiere - Des O’Brien

Babette - Suzanne Wernham

Mrs Potts - Alison Wareham

Chip - Theo Atherton

Madame de la Grande Bouche - Rae Bane

Monsieur D’Arque - Ben Strutt

Narrator - Nick Wareham

Enchantress - Aisling Halligan

Silly Girls - Chloe Hardwick, Beth Elwood, Charlotte Jeffery and Vicky Unsworth

Book Seller - Steve Creighton

Baker - Tim Evans

Sausage curl girl - Abbie Palmer

Ladies with canes - Emma Ward and Vicki Gregory

Ladies with babies - Rachel Speake and Debbie Bush

Adult Villagers - Ben Spiro, Helen Fogerty, Stacie Krintas, Glen van Ginkel, Giles Nelson and Raych Clay

Junior Villagers - Grace Brown Evans, Lillie Watson, Eliza Chambers, Sannah Clay, Ellanee Kruck, Olivia Shorter, Lottie Chase, Zoe Jupe, Cammie Woolley, Emma Robinson, Natasha Pinkney, Alice Nelson, Melissa Green, Evy Payne, Gabriella Adams, Kim Ferguson and Ellen Petre

Dance Troupe - Helena Wareham, Aisling Halligan, Mercy Osborne and Ellie Gunn

Wolves - Erica Neil, Georgia Barker, Stephanie Krintas, Gabriella Adams, Kim Ferguson and Evy Payne

Caryatids - Grace Brown Evans and Ellanee Kruck

Candlesticks - Evy Payne, Gabriella Adams, Kim Ferguson and Ellen Petre

Sweets - Grace Brown Evans, Lillie Watson, Eliza Chambers, Sannah Clay, Ellanee Kruck and Olivia Shorter

Cutlery - Lottie Chase, Zoe Jupe, Cammie Woolley, Emma Robinson, Natasha Pinkney, Alice Nelson and Melissa Green

Condiments - Erica Neil, Georgia Barker and Stephanie Krintas


Production Team

Director -  Nick Wareham

Musical Director - Ben Davidson

Choreography - Di Downing

Co-Producers - Des O’Brien and Alison Wareham

Set Design - Janet Manifold

Set Build - John Atherton and Basil Jacques

Costumes - Gretta Tamlyn

Lighting and Sound - Chris Glenton and Scott Andrews

Props - Mick and Mavis Giles

Stage Manager - Sarah Pleasance

Stage Crew - Joe Manifold, Roger McClure, Liam Clark, Russell Challis and Graham Carver

Make up - Holly Griffiths

Beast mask - Helena Wareham and Holly Griffiths

Set Painting - Janet and Joe Manifold, Laura Attwood, Helen Goode, Holly O’Brien and the cast

Marketing and Advertising - Claire Atherton

Poster Design - Alison Chappell

Front of House - Mike and Chris Wareham, Lynne McClure, Jess Bane

Treasurer - Joe Ward

Website - Nick Bane

The Band

Musical Director - Ben Davidson

Reed 1 - Cathy Elks

Reed 2 - Bev Skyring

Reed 3 - Angela Bennett

Trumpets - James Garlick and Robin Livermore

Horns - Josephine Paterson and Jeremy Rodgers

Trombone - Chris Worral

Percussion - Carmen Robinson and Maria McElroy

Violins - Donna Allum, Martin Harvey, Lucy Purkiss, Stephen Wiley and Tim Regan

Cellos Hannah Brooke and James Mayoh

Bass - Will Reeves

Keyboards - Colin Hazel and Andrew Taylor