The North East Premiere of

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast

comes to the PLAYHOUSE

 Having recently enjoyed a successful UK tour, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, with music by Alan Menken, has now been made available to non professional companies, for a limited time only. The North East Premier stage version by Tynemouth Amateur Operatic Society, is coming to delight family audiences at the PLAYHOUSE Whitley Bay sponsored by the Evening Chronicle from 8 to 13 March 2010 for a run of only 7 performances. 

The musical stage version of Beauty and the Beast tells the magical story of Belle who finds herself in a castle which has been placed under a magical spell. Her ferocious captour can only break the spell if he can learn to love another and earn their love in return, before the last petal falls from an enchanted rose. Filled with loveable characters, beautiful tunes and enchanting sets and costumes, this ‘tale as old as time’ is sure to be appreciated by audiences of all ages.

In New York, Beauty and the Beast played to over 5,000 sold-out houses and this tony Award winning production went on to become the sixth longest running Broadway musicals of all time, seen by over 25 million people. The production by TAOS will be directed by Lesley-Anne Crawford & Christopher Carr, along with musical direction from Andrew Clarence - the team responsible for TAOS’ last production at the PLAYHOUSE: Titanic the Musical in 2007.  

Beauty and the Beast stars Natalie Gilbert and Andrew James in the title roles, both regulars on the PLAYHOUSE stage. They will be accompanied by other ‘enchanted objects’: Andrew Neale as Lumiere (the candlestick), Phil Dixon as Cogsworth (the clock) and Hazel Glynn as Mrs Potts (the teapot). 

 Co-director Christopher Carr, said: “It has taken a lot of hard work to secure the rights to stage the show, but working with the same team again is a dream come true. I have had a tour around the new PLAYHOUSE after its £8 million refit and it is breathtaking and inspiring, with the best technical facilities to stage such a massive production”.