Think of a classic love story and the tale of Beauty and the Beast is sure to be high on the list. The original story was written by the French novelist Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont way back in 1756, and since then multiple variations have been written and performed. But in modern times it was indisputably Disney’s 1991 Academy-Award winning animated feature film that truly brought the love story to life for a whole new generation of audiences.
Following on from the success of the film, in 1994 Disney’s Beauty and the Beast premiered on Broadway, where was nominated for nine prestigious Tony Awards and ran for 13 years. It still ranks as one of the longest-running and highest-grossing Broadway shows of all time, and since licensing of the title began in 2004, there have been productions in 22 countries, seen by more than 35 million people, translated into 8 different languages with over 28 thousand performances.
And now, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of this spectacularly successful stage show, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast will visit Macao for the very first time as part of the forthcoming International tour. The English-language production will play at The Venetian Theatre of The Venetian Macao from June 19 to July 26, 2015 as part of a tour which also visits Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia.
The international tour of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast will see the show’s original Broadway creative team reuniting to bring this Broadway classic to life. The musical is directed by Rob Roth and choreographed by Matt West, with Costume Design by Ann Hould-Ward (Tony Award winner for her work on Disney’s Beauty and the Beast).
The musical boasts music by Alan Menken (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Tangled) and lyrics by the late Howard Ashman (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin), with additional songs with music by Menken and lyrics by Tim Rice (The Lion King, Jesus Christ Superstar). The book is written by Linda Woolverton (screenwriter of The Lion King, Alice in Wonderland and the upcoming Maleficent).
In May, Hilary Maiberger and Darick Pead, who play the role of Belle and Beast respectively, visited Macau to promote the show and gave a sneak peak, with Hilary performing “Change in Me” and then together singing the duet “Tale as Old as Time.”
Currently, there are 5 productions of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast playing around the world including Paris and tours in North America, Spain, Japan and Germany.
Tickets are available at Cotaiticketing.com.
