Belle, Gaston and the Beast have landed in Singapore. The cast of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast have recently toured Manila and Bangkok before heading down to the MasterCard Theatres at Marina Bay Sands premiering tonight.
The musical ran for more than 13 years on Broadway making it the eighth longest running musical in Broadway history. 59 people in the travelling company comprising 30 cast, two parents, 12 crew, 11 musicians, two merchandise and two management personnel are now in Singapore.
A Show for Adults and Kids
First thoughts when I first caught the musical in Manila featuring the same cast here in Singapore, I thought it was going to be a show more suited for kids. I was just happy it was not on ice, and it was so entertaining with ‘adult’ scenes that I laughed so hard while almost tearing at some scenes.
There are some ‘raunchy’ conversations between Lumiere and Babette and scenes that perhaps the adults would get it.
The younger boys and girls get to enjoy the costumes, music and stage. There are so much going on on stage, there’s something for everyone. The kids probably wished they could play the roll of Chip, the chipped tea cup who’s always with Mrs Potts played by Emily Mattheson. Emily, I love your rendition of “Beauty and The Beast”.
So if you are looking to impress your date or it’s going to be a family affair with your kids, this will be the performance to be at. Sing along quietly, if you find any of the tunes familiar.
The Costumes and Staging
The costumes. Where do I start. Tony Award Ann Hould-Ward’s costume designs are filled with lots of detail and embellishments. Some of these costumes would blow you away. In fact, there are 580 costume pieces including some from the original Broadway costumes.
We went behind the scenes and checked out Belle’s famous yellow gown and the Beast’s Blue jacket. Let’s just say, we wouldn’t be wearing the the blue coat out because it is too heavy. Too elaborate for you?
Also back stage, we saw the 81 wigs kept carefully in two portable cupboards. No! We were not allowed to try them oh.. chuckles….
Non Stop Laughter and Some Tears
Now every one is familiar with the beautiful love story. You would have watched the 1991 animation film with the voices of Paige O’Hara as Belle, Richard White as Gaston, Robby Benson as the Beast and Angela Lansbury as Mrs Potts.
Put Lumiere (the candelabra guy played by Hassan Nazari-Robati) and Cogsworth (the clock guy played by James May) together, and it is as if you were at a standup comedy. The two of them are simply hilarious.
Not forgetting Gaston, played by Adam Dietlein. He is so into himself, he is hilarious, but at times you feel like just punching him. We spoke to him in person, and he’s actually a really nice guy. And by the way, take a closer look at his costume.
Be Our Guest
Now this has to be the scene to look out for in the musical. The costume change is so quick it gets you wondering “How the heck did they do that”? In fact, this is the scene that most of the crew, acting and backstage, love too. The challenge of quick costume changes, the coordination of the clanking of the metal mugs adding to the song and dance and the juxtaposed with the bright colours and merry music.
Yes, take our hint and look out for the part where the cast coordinate the clinking of the metal mugs.
This is one of the favourite song and scene from the musical for many including Hilary Maiberger (Belle) and Darick Pead (Beast).
An additional song that was cut from the original music has been restored for the musical on top of the six extra songs written just for the musical.
Spot The Hidden Disney Characters
Well as in all Disney shows, there are hidden elements of Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse within the show. They are not going to be obvious, but do try to spot them. How many would you be able to spot after the performance?
Tickets start from S$65 and performances are held at 8pm from Tuesday to Friday, 2pm and 8pm on Saturday and 1pm and 5pm on Sunday.
Canon Singapore has partnered Disney’s Beauty and the Beast as its presenting sponsor to raise funds for the Singapore Cancer Society. You can join the charity drive by donating a token sum in exchange for a photo of yourself at a Disney-themed Beauty and the Beast photo booth. The booth will be at the MasterCard Theatre for the duration of the musical from 21 March till 19 April 2015. All proceeds from the booth will go towards funding SCS community outreach programmes, SCS Multi-Service Centre at Bishan and SCS Hospice Care services.
