View HITS Theatre’s production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast as a fun stroll down memory lane with your favorite niece or nephew.
The troupe of theater students at HITS Theatre have taken on a stage interpretation of Disney’s Academy Award-nominated animated feature Beauty and the Beast. Most of the cast is in middle school or high school, but these talented youngsters can carry a tune and a few can look forward to a career in theater.
This musical adaptation won’t disappoint nostalgic fans of the movie, but it adds its own panache in reworking the film for a stage performance.
The HITS Theatre performance lingers a bit more on each character’s internal motivations. This sets the stage for the introduction of some lovely songs inspired by brief moments in the film. ‘No Matter What’ is a touching duet between Belle and her eccentric father about their shared status as the village outcasts, while ‘Is This Home?’ showcases Belle’s desolation with her fate of being locked in the castle with an abusive beast. The Beast’s melancholic ‘If I Can’t Love Her’ shows his desperation to form a human connection with Belle before his curse irreversibly turns him into a savage.
The two-hour play also has room for the original animated feature’s classic songs, from the an enchanting interpretation of ‘Beauty and the Beast‘ to a hilarious reenactment of ‘Gaston.’
The costumes and painted sets were simple and pale in comparison to the lavish animated film. Any performance troupe attempting to recreate the dancing forks and spoons of the animated film faces a dire challenge, but the families in the audience seemed pleased.
The play also took a fun approach to the wolves that chase Belle’s father through the forest, as 10 child actors ran through the aisles while letting out ear-splitting howls. Older members of the audience will recognize tricks employed by stage technicians to smoothly transition costume and set changes, but children and the young at heart will be fascinated.
The main problem with this particular production, however, is the audience. Anything associated with Disney will attract families and small children, but this audience transformed hearing the music and enjoying the play into an arduous task.
Miller Outdoor Theatre offers free seats on the hill, which apparently some families took as permission to talk loudly and let their children run around screaming.
Enjoying the play from the hill was almost a futile effort, since the audience members had no respect for each other and the Miller ushers had no interest in maintaining a quiet atmosphere for people who didn’t pay.’
HITS Theatre’s version of’ Disney’sBeauty and the Beast is a great opportunity for theatergoers who want to introduce a young relative to the magic of live performance, but older guests who want an enchanting night should wait for Theatre Under the Stars to pick up this production.
Disney’s Beauty and the Beast
When: 8 p.m. April 16 – 18
Where: Miller Outdoor Theatre
100 Concert Drive
Verdict: A magical evening for the young at heart.
