Beauty and the Beast is wonderfully funny theatre magic. Primed by outstanding performances from the lead love-triangle, Shubshri Kandiah (Belle), Brendan Xavier (Beast) and Jackson Head (Gaston), each of whom deliver optimum home-grown talent.
To be fair, there are no weak links in this cast at all; from sparkling ensemble players like Annabelle Rosewarne and David Duketis (I’d name every ensemble player if I had the space) through to supporting characters Jared Bickerton (Chip), Adam DiMartino (Le Fou) and Hayley Martin (Babette), this is a massively talented and energetic cast, every one of them a gem.
The production values are stellar; the set design, lighting and effects, costumes, hair and make-up all faultless. There is even some prologue narration by the legendary Angela Lansbury which immediately draws a line back in time to the original 1991 animated feature by Disney, which is the modern adaption of the original fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740.
The story tells of a Prince who is very unkind and has a spell cast over him by a fairy. It is very uncomplicated; great for kids, with a simple resolution; so, the team of Alan Menken (music) Howard Ashman with Tim Rice (lyrics) and Linda Woolverton (book) add some bells and whistles just to complicate things enough to build a monolith of theatrical entertainment.
There are song and dance numbers that captivate with genuinely exciting choreography, matched with dazzling stage effects. The live orchestra do a magnificent job. If you are fond of musical theatre don’t pass up the opportunity to witness this production, which includes joyously presented showstoppers with particularly outstanding characterisations from the gifted players.
I don’t want to spoil anything, so I am holding back, believe it or not. There are scary bits, but they don’t last long, and there are astonishing moments of magic that bewilder, and there’s an all singing, all dancing chap, transforming into a candelabra, called Lumiere (Rohan Browne) who offers the best invitation to dinner you’ll ever see live on stage.
Beauty and the Beast is excellent theatre brilliantly staged offering spectacular entertainment suitable for the whole family; this production exposes gem after gem, a vast treasure to behold. Driven all the while by the wonderful performances by Shubshri Kandiah, Brendan Xavier and Jackson Head, each of them excellent, supported by the magnificent cast and I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything as fabulously presented on the Adelaide Festival Theatre stage as this immaculate show. It’s that good.
Beauty and the Beast is on at the Festival Theatre until 6 July. Get tickets here.
