Beauty & the Beast
So. No soundtrack, unfortunately - sorry, Havlock.
The first song after the prologue, Belle, was fantastic. I could not stop grinning.
Gaston was fabulous. (Also incredibly big.) Irony: His father was playing Maurice! He was completely in character the entire time, and his interactions with Belle and LeFou were hilarious and perfect. (Gaston effortlessly pulling LeFou up onto his tiptoes = so much love.)
Belle was very well played, very professional with great expressions and gestures, but she didn't really seem to shine. Perhaps she was having an off-night. Great voice.
I wasn't terribly impressed with the Beast, unfortunately. He improved somewhat in the second half, but he spent most of the first looking directly at the audience and growling, as if to show off his makeup. In the movie I'm not a fan of the Prince, but he was hot.
Others: Mrs. Potts was fantastic in her role, and also the woman in Belle singing about her. ("It's no wonder that her name means beauty") The barmaid was gorgeous, legs worthy of a goddess. Lumiere & Cogsworth had a fantastic rapport and were wonderful in their own right.
The music was wonderful, although a few of the stage-only songs were a bit lackluster compared to the others. Seemed to be a bit too much unnecessary explaining of why people left the stage.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable performance.
The first song after the prologue, Belle, was fantastic. I could not stop grinning.
Gaston was fabulous. (Also incredibly big.) Irony: His father was playing Maurice! He was completely in character the entire time, and his interactions with Belle and LeFou were hilarious and perfect. (Gaston effortlessly pulling LeFou up onto his tiptoes = so much love.)
Belle was very well played, very professional with great expressions and gestures, but she didn't really seem to shine. Perhaps she was having an off-night. Great voice.
I wasn't terribly impressed with the Beast, unfortunately. He improved somewhat in the second half, but he spent most of the first looking directly at the audience and growling, as if to show off his makeup. In the movie I'm not a fan of the Prince, but he was hot.
Others: Mrs. Potts was fantastic in her role, and also the woman in Belle singing about her. ("It's no wonder that her name means beauty") The barmaid was gorgeous, legs worthy of a goddess. Lumiere & Cogsworth had a fantastic rapport and were wonderful in their own right.
The music was wonderful, although a few of the stage-only songs were a bit lackluster compared to the others. Seemed to be a bit too much unnecessary explaining of why people left the stage.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable performance.