Beauty & the Beast - UK Tour & Palladium

Act 1: 1hr 25
Act 2: 45 min
Approximately

When’s press night for Beauty and the Beast?

I think I quite enjoyed this tonight. Everything that everyone has already said is fair enough. It certainly isn’t ready for the Palladium if that is it’s intended destination. Too much of the stage is empty for too long. The giant curlicue things that descend from the ceiling to indicate the castle do a good job of filling the void at times but the right hand side of the stage needed an equivalent. Performances were all very good, although the beast seemed under rehearsed at times and stumbled over a whole scene. Vocals were excellent from Courtney Stapleton who made a feisty but feminine Belle and Gavin Lee shone despite his fugly costume. The two screens and surrounds worked really well to create depth and some great effects. It’s a bizarre combo of some amateurish scene design being elevated by technology. There are cringeworthy panto elements like all the coupling up at the end but the audience were lapping it up. For me it was a 3 star production with the potential to easily be a 4. Are we to believe it’s just disappearing on the 15th September or have further dates been announced?

I worry for the Wales Millennium leg.. that theatre is huge!

I could be wrong, but wasn't it about the set size filling the stage? That's what I thought it meant. The stage is huge.

Oh maybe. But to that I say we’re also getting the Heathers tour so I guess they’ll try to make any set work on that stage!

I took a trip down to Bristol as I’ve waited 16 years to see BATB again, after seeing it by accident on my first visit to New York and ended up loving it.

One problem with a tour is that the production has to design the show for the smallest stage, so venues with a bigger stage uses that dreaded masking to compensate. However with this set and it is complimented by brilliant use of projections, it is good enough to go into the West End, nothing looks cheap and you can see the money. However though I would say spend more money for the West End for the set surround, so masking doesn’t have to be used, as this looks uniformly terrible - Hairspray is a good example of this at the London Coliseum. The main set that is centre stage is where the money has been spent and doesn’t need changing.

Emanuel Kojo who played the Beast was well very enjoyable, but another thing - where has Courtney Stapleton, who played Belle has been hiding, she was utterly brilliant, she deserves to perform her role in the West End, where she will enchant the critics as she did me. She absolutely nailed it.

4 stars

Went to the matinee yesterday, got the Disney dayseats in the morning (looked to only be four available, two on each of the centre aisle front row!) and then set off straight for Bristol.
Well worth the journey, having read on here about the reliance on projections I was concerned but in all honesty, the production was great. From the front row I didn't feel the projections were intrusive and there were more than enough physical set pieces too.

What really stands out about this production is the cast - there is no weak link, and Courtney especially shines and leads the company with such ease. Gavin Lee is also particularly brilliant in this.

Two huge production numbers in act one with Gaston and Be Our Guest, both look great.

Very enjoyable and I can definitely seeing this coming into town. I don't think it needs additional changes or set pieces if I'm honest.

...there is no way this would sit in the Coliseum - what a waste of a venue that would be. Besides they've got My Fair Lady for the summer.

Also, hasnt it already basically been confirmed this is taking the summer slot at the Palladium?

Absolutely agree it doesn’t need additional set pieces, the set is of a West End standard, it just would be a shame when it does come to the West End if the production used blocking because of the size of the set, I would like to see this avoided.

It hasn’t been confirmed for the London Palladium, but just heavily rumoured. Very likely that to Dominion will be free and the Prince Edward likely, not at all impossible for the Adelphi to be free,

was at the show last night and how long must this go on and the scene between belle and the wardrobe have been cut. it seems that cast are still in rehearsals everyday and things are constantly changing so in the air on wether or not it gets added back? they also had quite a few tech issues last night but they all did amazingly and coped with it really well. short show stop but the audience were very supportive and the dress reveal got a massive applause straight after show stop

It is going to the Palladium.