Review: Beauty and the Beast, King's Theatre

Published on Tuesday 2 February 2010 09:02

Beauty and the Beast, *** King's Theatre

BURSTING with energy and enthusiasm, this latest musical production for the King's Theatre by the Southern Light Opera Company perfectly captures the magic of this timeless classic.

There have been countless adaptations of this acclaimed fairytale, originally published in 1740, with perhaps the most recognisable being the feature film released by Walt Disney in 1991. It became the first animated feature film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

Taking a much-loved masterpiece such as this to the stage is always going to be a challenge. How do you remain faithful to the original while offering the audience something new and vibrant?

Here, the production team have a cast brimming with a lot of heart and talent at their disposal, and it makes meeting that challenge task so much easier.

Having refused a rose from an old beggar in exchange for a night's shelter, a young wealthy prince finds himself the victim of a cruel spell which leaves him trapped within his castle as a grotesque beast surrounded by his faithful servants, now half-transformed into all manner of household objects.

Stumbling upon the bitter Beast's home one evening, hapless inventor Maurice finds himself imprisoned in this enchanted castle at the mercy of his captor. Eager to find any escape from her uneventful provincial upbringing, when Maurice's daughter Belle finally tracks her father down she unselfishly offers to take his place as prisoner.

Suffering torment at first before a failed escape sees her rescued from a pack of wolves by the Beast, this act of compassion slowly blossoms into a mutual love which can break the spell and free the prince from his grotesque nightmare.

Lauren Burnett graces the character of Belle with her beautiful, enchanting voice, while the equally impressive Colin Cairncross brings the Beast to life with his enigmatic stage presence and confident delivery. The two work brilliantly together throughout, and to their credit the ensemble cast match their vocal talents, not least during the performance of Be Our Guest,which brings the first act to a close with a glitz and glamour few could have expected from an amateur production.

Lech Boron's performance is also noteworthy for the natural flair and comical arrogance he brings to the character of local hero Gaston, whose limited stage time during the two and a half hour performance unfortunately sees him consigned to an almost superfluous role as he hopelessly pursues Belle's hand in marriage.

For all the moments of verve and brilliance, though, there are admittedly a few flaws. While the musical accompaniment provides fantastic support, creating a palpable sense of both tension and excitement, at times they are just too loud and this is especially noticeable whenever vocals are delivered without amplification.

Occasional lapses in choreography, most notably during the otherwise perfect Human Again can at times create a sense of overcrowded chaos on stage, but these are minor quibbles and by no means undermine the overall performance.

Moving, funny, and technically impressive throughout, the cast will do well to better this; but a few tweaks from the production team might have helped them shine even brighter.

Run ends Saturday.