1. AmyHill
Production bridging work – Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the beast – the stage musical
Composed by Alan Menken
The book was originally written by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve in 1740
Lyrics where by Howard Ashaman and Tim Rice
The set was designed by Stanley Meyer and costume was by Ann Hould-Ward.
Choreographed by Matt West
The story: a spoiled young prince is cursed by an enchantress to the body of a beast as well
as his servants to household objects after refusing the enchantress shelter from the storm
because of her ugly appearance in the hopes the curse will teach the prince that beauty is
not only skin deep. The curse is on a time limit as the beast must learn to love another and
earn their love back by the time the last petal on a rose has fallen.
A young girl called Belle lives in a nearby village and doesn’t feel like she fits in as the
villagers think she is strange for her love of books and need for adventure. When her father
Maurice winds up at the Beast’s castle after surviving a wolf attack on his way to an inventor
fair he makes friends with the castles residents who are also cursed, Mrs pots, chip, Babette,
Cogsworth and Lumière. However, the Beast turns up and imprisons Maurice in the
dungeons. When Le Fou, Gaston’s second hand man, returns from the woods in Maurice’s
scarf Belle knitted from him she knows her father is in trouble and goes into the woods to
find him. She finds herself at the castle and switches places with her father, giving him
freedom and imprisoning herself.
Belle is given a guest room the castle and after a shouting match with the Beast over his
offer of dinner she stays in her room before later venturing to the kitchen where she is given
food and a tour of the castle by the servants.
Back in the town Maurice returns to the tavern and tells his experience to Gaston who plans
to lock Maurice away and black mail Belle into marrying him.
After her tour of the castle Belles curiosity leads her to the west wing where the rose is
stored. The Beast catches belle in the forbidden west wing and she flees, running away from
the castle only to be faced with a pack of wolves. The Beast comes to her rescue and is
injured in the fight, rather than going home Belle takes the Beast back to the castle and
nurses him back to health, the two growing closer.
After a dance in the ballroom the Beast offers the chance for Belle to see her father through
the magic mirror, Belle sees her father sick in the woods and the Beast allows her to go help
him. Belle finds her father and takes him back to their home when a mob led by Gaston
turns up to take Maurice to the asylum. Proving her father’s sanity, Belle shows the Beast
through the magic mirror, this error causes the mob to head towards the castle to kill the
Beast. Belle and Maurice attempt to reach the castle before the mob however fail. The
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servants keep the mob at bay however Gaston gets through and tries to kill the Beast. The
Beast doesn’t feel the need to fight back until he sees Belle. Gaston stabs the Beast however
this causes him to lose his footing and fall to his death. With their reunion Belles tries to
assure the Beast he will be okay although he is dying. As the Beast dies Belle tells himshe
loves him before the last petal falls and he is transformed back into a prince as well as all
the servants who are no longer household objects but people. Everyone celebrates with a
dance in the ballroom.
The characters:
Belle – the female lead who feels like she doesn’t belong in the small town she was raised in
as. She swaps her father’s place in the castle for herself and falls in love with the beast,
braking the spell
Maurice- Belles father who is an inventor, he finds the beasts castle originally and is locked
in the dungeons by the beast, long to be rescued by belle as she takes his place.
Gaston – the towns hero, he is admired by all and wants to marry belle even though she
rejects him and tries to kill the beast.
The Beast- a prince who has been cursed to the body of a beast until he can learn to love
another and earn another’s love in return as he needs to learn that beauty is not only skin
deep, captures belle in the castle and falls in love with her
Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs Potts,Babette,Madame de la Grande Bouche and Chip - are all
servants in the castle who were trapped in the curse turning them all into household
objects, they befriend Belle in the castle and encourage her to love the Beast.
Le Fou – Gaston’s right hand man who boosts his confidence after his rejection from Belle
and helps him plan to get her back.
The songs:
Prologue – explains how the Beast and the servants were cursed and why, also how the
curse can be broken.
Belle – introduces the character of Belle to the audience and shows how the villagers think
she is strange for her love of books and desire for adventure. Introduces Gaston and his
wishes to marry Belle.
No matter what – Belle talks to her father about what the villagers think of her and Maurice
reassures her they think he is strange too however they are unique and fine the way they
are.
Me – Gaston is asking Belle to marry him and imaging their future however Belle is refusing
him.
No matter what (reprise) – Maurice is caught in a wolf chase leading him to the castle
Belle (reprise) – Belle sings about repulsed she is by Gaston’s offer of marriage and how she
desires for adventure outside of the small town she lives in.
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Home – Belle is in the castle and wonders about if she should learn to call it home however
is thinking about her house in the village with her father and wishes she could return there.
Home (reprise) – Mrs pots is telling Belle that she may find home at the castle and to look
for the best of the situation.
Gaston – Gaston is dwelling over his rejection from Belle and Le Fou is bringing up his
confidence by telling him how great he is
Gaston (reprise) – Gaston plots to use Maurice to get Belle to marry him
How long must this go on - the Beast is frustrated by the curse and wonders how long he
will be cursed for
Be our guest – Lumiere and the rest of the household welcome Belle to the castle and serve
her dinner as they try to make her stay at the castle to break the spell
If I can’t love her – the Beast is learning his lesson of beauty not being only skin deep and
describes his feelings towards Belle but he doesn’t think he will love her.
Something there – Belle and the beast are growing closer and are noticing the good sides to
each other. The Beast shows Belle his library and gifts it to her.
Human again – Mrs pots, Chip, Lumiere, Babette and Cogsworth sing about what they are
going to do when the spell is broken and they are humans again.
Maison Des Lunes – Gaston and Le Fou plan to lock Maurice away in the asylumto blackmail
Belle into marrying Gaston.
Beauty and the Beast – the Beast and Belle dance in the ballroom and their feelings for each
other increase
If I can’t love her (reprise) – the Beast has let Belle go to find her father and gives up on
breaking the spell
The mob song – Gaston leads a mob to the castle to kill the Beast after Belle shows the
village the Beast through the magic mirror. Gaston wants to kill the Beast as he sees himas
a rival for Belle’s affections.
The battle – the servants try to fight and hold off the mob as the Beast has given up on
breaking the spell and just lets the mob come.
End duet/transformation – Belle and the Beast are reunited after the fight with Gaston and
Belle is admitting her feelings in the song to the Beast as he dies, this breaks the spell and he
is transformed back into a prince.
Beauty and the Beast (reprise) – all the servants are back into their human selves and the
Beast is back to a prince as they all dance in the ballroom.
Production roles in musical theatre
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Producer – the producer makes the show happen as they pick the show to put on, where
the show will happen and how many shows there will be. The producer must also consider
getting the rights to the musical they want to put on and all the finance for the production.
The producer is the one who people will come to when there is a problem needing solving
they ensure everyone has their job to do and that the job is done to the highest possible
standard. The producer must attend all production meetings. Producers should be very
organised and have good communication skills
Director – the director analyses every part of the musical, the set, costumes, characters and
plot. They need to research the person who originally wrote the musical, the era the musical
is set in and the style of the show. The director must communicate the artistic vision to the
different departments who control what the show looks like e.g. The costume and set
designers. The director must have a good understanding of all aspects of theatre and the
willingness to work with all the people involved.
Musical director – the musical director is in charge of all the musical elements in the show,
they teach all the cast the music and lead the musical rehearsals. They must also hire the
conductor and orchestra to play in the musical and work closely with the sound designer.
The musical director must attend the production meetings as well as the rehearsals.
Choreographer – the choreographer is responsible for all dance and movement throughout
the production. They work with the director by recommending them people for the cast and
audition the dancers for the show. With the director, they also block areas of the show
moving in and out of numbers. The choreographer must be patient when teaching the
dance moves to the cast.
Technical director – the technical director must work within to organise the technical needs
to put on the musical such as lights, materials for set and costume and sound equipment.
The technical director must oversee the load in and set up, attend production meetings, the
first rehearsal and any other rehearsals they can especially technical rehearsals e.g. dress
rehearsals. They should be financially responsible and have a gratitude for the design
process.
DSM – (deputy stage manager) the DSM is in charge of calling the technical ques and cast
ques during the show, they are usually sat with a head set backstage during the show. The
DSM also works with the director during rehearsals to create the prompt book. Deputy
stage managers should be calm and able to solve last minuet problems under pressure. The
DSM oversees the whole show every time its performed.
ASM – (assistant stage manager) the ASM is given tasks under the watch of the stage
manager, these may be assisting with paperwork, getting the rehearsal props or prompting.
During the production, the assistant stage manager controls the backstage traffic while the
stage manager is doing their job. The assistant stage manager is the most low-ranking
member of the stage team therefore their responsibilities are much less them the other
members of the stage team.
