Date: Aug,21,2009
Event: 'Beauty and the Beast' At Hale Center Theater.
I have been looking forward to this for about a year since I found out Hale was doing it. My parents were kind enough to get me a ticket and so I waited for it to start and tonight I finally got the chance to go.
Now I got the chance to go see it at the Gammage Theater when it came like forever ago. And I only remember bits and pieces of it. And I was up in the balcony so it was kind of hard to see from where I sat.
But in the close audience feeling of the Hale Theater. The experience was so much better.
Now I love Hale performances, they are always enjoyable. But this was enjoyable for several reasons.
One: The acting. Several people really stood out for the show.
'Lumiere'(Thomas Brower): With his dynamic character, he really made the character stand out and was amusing. He was fantastic and a joy to watch.
'Gaston'(Gary Caswell): First of all is an amusing character to begin with. With the Broadway version of the classic Disney movie. They have extended the character well into the stage. The actor portrayed him very well.
Now for the main leads: Belle(Linsey Maxson), was good. With a great singing voice and a sweet personality.
But without a doubt, the one character who stole the show, at least for me, was Beast played by Tyler Maxson.
Tyler Maxson is a superb actor with a strong singing voice that always manages to portray all the passion and pain his character is going through. I also had the chance to see his role as "Percy," in "The Scarlet Pimpernel" another strong role where he was amazing. And I am glad I got the chance to see him in this one.
Two: The costumes and Choreography.
Were imaginative and fun. The costumes were especially great in "Be Our Guest" with the dancing silverware and plates, with several bright colors that caught the eye. My personal favorite was the spatula. Another great number was "Gaston" in the bar where the whole ensemble broke into a dance involving the banging of cups together.
That they were so choreographed and together was amazing to watch.
Only one thing bothered me about the choreography, was when Geston ever beat up on 'Lefou'. After a while it became a little to slapstick and a little over done. Making it seem cheesy and out of place.
The wolves during the moments were the Beast fights them off to save Belle, or when they attacked Maurice was nifty. Frightening creatures with red eyes as they came down the stairs to attack their pray. With the darkened lights of the theater their eyes stood out the more giving a really nice effect. Which brings me to my next point.
Three: Lighting, Sets and Effects.
I happened to take Stage Craft while in High school and spent most of my time either on or behind stage. Helping build the sets and figure out lighting was something that I still enjoy. Seeing how Hale does their sets with such plays is always something that I look forward too. With it's theater in the round layout it's always interesting to see. For this production, they pulled it off beautifully. And used their space well.
The lighting was great and the effects they pulled off with the transformation at the end was very well done. The bright lights during 'Be Our Guest' made it even more enjoyable.
At the end the night was ended with a shower of streamers that shot across the room over the actors and the audience as they made their bows. All in all a very enjoyable experience and one I would gladly do again.
Other things that made the experience enjoyable: Being Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast' naturally several parents brought their children. Little girls were dressed in princess dresses that made you smile, and during intermission, some of them were dancing in the middle of the floor on the painted ballroom scene that was there. It was all very sweet.
During 'Tale as old as Time' I got to watch one little girl dressed in a yellow type Belle dress. As she scooted forward in her seat as Belle came down dressed in her own. That moment watching them dance, made me feel like a little girl again and made me cry. I am not ashamed to admit it. It was the same feeling one gets when going to Disneyland.
All in all, It was an enjoyable experience that I would recommend to anyone in a heartbeat.
