Beauty and the Beast at HCT

Last night I had the chance to see Hale Centre Theatre's magical production of the Disney musical Beauty and the Beast. I absolutely loved this show from start to finish! Karina Gillette, as Belle, and Austin John Smith, as the Beast, are very well suited to their roles and have very powerful voices which almost blow the roof off the theatre. I especially enjoyed Gillette's rendition of "Is This Home?" and Smith's rendition of "If I Can't Love Her" (which elicited quite the reaction from the crowd). Cogsworth (Zac Zumbrunnen), Lumiere (Addison Welch), and all of the other enchanted objects are lots of fun to watch and "Be Our Guest" is quite the production number. Quinn Dietlein is hilarious as Gaston and I laughed out loud just about every time he hit poor Lefou (Thomas Brandley). Cory Reed Stephens, who is new to HCT, does a brilliant job with some innovative choreography (in a small space!), especially in the "Mob Song" which incorporates mannequins. Once again, I was impressed with Kacey Udy's set design. The castle comes down from the ceiling and it is very dramatic and, of course, I loved the library. Finally, I thought the costumes were simply amazing! Jenn Taylor's creations feature yards and yards of the most sumptuous, bejeweled, and bedazzled fabric you can imagine. The sheer number of costumes, especially for the ensemble, is especially impressive!  I also really loved all of the puppets, created by Taylor, used in the show, particularly the horse! This is a really big show full of enchantment and I would definitely recommend it for children! All of the children in the audience last night were spellbound! Beauty and the Beast runs at HCT until Oct. 1 but many shows have already sold out.  Go here for tickets.

Note:  The last time I saw Beauty and the Beast at HCT was with a five-year-old Tashena who wore her Belle dress to the show.  When the rose was down to its last petal, she screamed out loud to warn the Beast!