Beauty and the Beast

During his address to the company, NODA President, Graham Liverton said that young people are the future of amateur theatre and NODA, and judging by the performance we saw both are in safe hands.

The production opens with a prologue in which a selfish prince is transformed into a beast.  The spell can only be broken if, the beast can love someone else and she loves him back.  Along the way we meet Belle, a lover of books and Gaston, the hunter.  Together with the Beast’s servants who have also been transformed including Mrs. Potts and her son Chip.  Will the Beast transform back to the Prince before a rose withers and die.  Will Gaston kill the Beast and will the servants transform back to their human forms.  Only time will tell.

Leading the company was Erin Phillips as Belle and Samuel McCormack as The Beast.  Both worked so well together with some great vocals and action.  They were ably supported by Finlay Laidlaw as Gaston, Evie Rice as Lefou, Kian Haden as Lumiere (How he kept in that hands up position I do not know) and Aimee Whillis as Cogsworth.  Together with Zachariah Scrivens as Maurice and Jess Lewis as Madame De La Grand Bouche, they all acted and sang extremely well.  Special mention must go to Chloe Mason as Mrs. Potts (Wonderful rendition of ‘Beauty and The Beast’) and Oliver Malkin as Chip.    Well done to you both.  One thing about the principals and ensemble, they all kept in character throughout the production.

Speaking about the ensemble, well done to every one of them, wish I had the room to comment on them individually.  Great singing. 

Kelly McCormack must be pleased with the choreography she created.  Every one worked together well.

The set Script Youth selected was really striking and fitted the theatre stage well.  Sound and lighting were good and the costumes a joy to look at.  The stage crew worked really well together with the scene changes.  Ok, so there were one or two mishaps but for an opening night it went really well.

Louise Farmer should be proud of this production. 

Many congratulations to you all, many thanks for the invite and I look forward to seeing you all gain very soon.

Paul Douglass – Regional Representative

As Regional Councillor for the West Midlands, I was delighted to join Paul Douglass, Regional Representative for District 9, and our National President for the opening night of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, presented by Script Youth Musical Theatre.

Paul has already highlighted the strength of the characterisations and the excellent teamwork shown on stage. It was clear that every cast member, no matter their role, was fully committed to the production and played an integral part in bringing this beloved story to life.

I would like to take a moment to especially commend the costumes — in particular, Belle’s villager and ball gown dresses, as well as one of the Beast’s costumes. These pieces looked as though they had been sourced from a professional costume house and could easily have graced any stage. In fact, they were designed and made by Evie Rice, who also performed in the role of Lefou. Congratulations, Evia, and the best of luck as you begin your university journey studying costume design.

As is sometimes the case on opening nights, there were a few minor technical issues — but this is the nature of live theatre. What stood out most was how well the cast handled these moments, showing real initiative and professionalism to keep the performance flowing seamlessly. Well done to all of you.

I also couldn’t help but notice in the audience a few proud supporters waiting with flowers for the cast, one sitting right next to me! Among them were red roses, a perfect and fitting tribute for this production.

Congratulations to everyone involved, whether on stage, backstage, or behind the scenes as part of the production team. I see three exciting musicals coming up on your programme: Into the Woods Jr., Six: Teen Edition, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I’m sure each will be a great success, and I very much look forward to seeing you all again in the future.

 

Andy Brown

Regional Councillor – NODA West Midlands.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.