News: Disney’s Beauty and the Beast reveals rehearsal images and footage

Rehearsal images and footage has been released of Disney’s upcoming UK and Ireland tour of musical Beauty and the Beast. The production is set to open at Bristol Hippodrome on Wednesday 25 August.

Cast includes Courtney Stapleton (Dear Evan Hansen, SIX) and Emmanuel Kojo (Girl From the North Country, Show Boat) as Belle and the Beast.

Reimagined and re-designed, this production of Beauty and the Beast fuses spectacular new designs and state-of-the-art technology with the classic story, bringing the beloved tale to new life.

Further cast includes Gavin Lee (Mary Poppins) as Lumiere, Tom Senior (Eugenius!) as Gaston, Sam Bailey (Blood Brothers) as Mrs Potts, Nigel Richards (The Phantom of the Opera) as Cogsworth, Martin Ball (Wicked) as Maurice, Samantha Bingley (The Secret Garden) as Wardrobe, Emma Caffrey (42nd Street) as Babette and Louis Stockil (Miss Saigon) as Le Fou.

Company is completed by Jake Bishop, Pamela Blair, Liam Buckland, Jasmine Davis, Autumn Draper, Daisy Edwards, Alyn Hawke, George Hinson, Jennifer Louise Jones, Brontë Lavine, Thomas- Lee Kidd, David McIntosh, Aimee Moore, Sam Murphy, Ashley-Jordon Packer, Emily Squibb, Grace Swaby, India Thornton and Rhys West.

This production will feature an exuberant tap dance during “Be Our Guest“, created for Gavin Lee, who is recognised as one of the great tappers on either side of the Atlantic.

Beauty and the Beast is directed and choreographed by Olivier Award-nominee Matt West, with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Tim Rice, book by Linda Woolverton, scenic design by Stan Meyer, costume design by Ann Hould-Ward and lighting design by Natasha Katz.

There will be new dance arrangements by David Chase, musical supervision and vocal arrangements by Michael Kosarin and orchestrations by Danny Troob, with sound design by John Shivers, video and projection design by Darryl Maloney, hair design by David H. Lawrence, illusions design by Jim Steinmeyer and casting by Pippa Ailion Casting.

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