Hey my Lovelies,

Last week Friday I went to see Beauty & The Beast – The Musical, for their grand opening at The London Palladium Theatre. This was my first time seeing this production in the theatre and let me just say it was nothing short of SPECTACULAR!

‘A TALE AS OLD AS TIME’

Beauty & The Beast is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and was officially published, in 1740 in La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins (The Young American and Marine Tales). Over the years it has had many adaptations from writers across Europe, using the same plot for the novel but changing styles to fit either adults or a child-based audience. The musical live-action version of this tale came about in 1987, just 3 years before Walt Disney decided to take this classic and turn it into the animation movie that most people have seen and come to love since childhood. 

The musical production went back on the roads in 2021, as they set out to tour the UK and Ireland. London’s grand opening show was held – on 24th June at 7:30pm at The Palladium Theatre

THE SHOW

The show was breathtaking! From the actors, the costumes, choreography and the band, the whole thing was a visual and audible treat! The costume changes were almost unreal, tricks and stunts were executed to the T. Not a mistake and if there were, then we the audience would never know.

Tim Rice who worked alongside Alan Menken to compose the 1991 Disney soundtrack is also the composer for this revived Theatre production. The authenticity of the songs was kept the same but some flavour was definitely added to keep you locked in. The scene when Gaston’s very own self-loathing song, ‘Gaston’ came on was executed with acrobatics and a trick-filled dance routine. ‘Be Our Guest’ had a range of different musical styles fusing from classical to jazz. ‘A Change in Me’, sung by our very beloved Belle was the arrangement that bought me to tears. Courtney Stapleton the actress who plays Belle has a phenomenally powerful but ever so gentle voice. Her heartfelt performance touched me and made me think of where I am in my life, what I want and what I have achieved in my personal journey thus far. To evoke so much emotion and heart takes a solid professional. The visuals for the show were spectacular beyond imagination.

Another treat was realising Mrs Potts is being played by our nation’s X Factor series 10 WINNER and sweetheart, Sam Bailey

*There are a few scenes with flashing/strobe lights so if you are light-sensitive or suffer from epilepsy then take this as a warning! I had forgotten and had a bit of a shock but was able to turn away and compose myself!

SEATING

My tickets were a little more than usual pricing as I got them for the grand opening show in London. Saying that, I paid about £80 for the royal circle seats that were in the middle section facing the stage and they were definitely worth it. Toilets were easily locatable and very near to the seats so as soon as half-time started I was able to get to the toilets first. If you go during the week and at non-peak times you could get ‘reasonable’ and still pretty decent viewing tickets. Also, I advise you to get ticket protection whilst purchasing since we are very much still being hit by a global virus and never know if any shows will need to be cancelled at short notice.

Book tickets here – https://lwtheatres.co.uk/whats-on/beauty-and-the-beast/

LOCATION & TRAVEL

The London Palladium is an absolutely gorgeous Theater. It’s so beautiful inside and the production team for B&TB have added a few touches to make the theatre feel like a Disney dream

The theatre is clean and well kept, plus it’s in the heart of SOHO which means there are lots of restaurants nearby, in case you wanted to grab a bite to eat before or after. The closest underground station to the theatre is Oxford Circus (Central, Victoria, Bakerloo line) and Bond Street (Central and Jubilee line)

Address:

The London Palladium,

8 Argyll Street

London

W1F 7TF

HAIR & OUTFIT

For my hair and outfit I decided to go with the theme of ‘Belle’ but kept it casual and relaxing. I chose a bright-coloured yellow top which pays homage to Belle’s bright yellow dress that she wears to the ball with the beast. My hair was brushed up into a half up/half down ponytail and I wore my ‘LOVE’ hoop earrings – Kiioni Jewellery

I felt like a Disney Princess that could potentially run for the bus if need be!

Now, I most definitely have to put Beauty and The Beast in my top 3 theatre productions!

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Have you been to see this epic production? or planning to?

Interested in seeing Beauty & The Beast or want to inquire – Visit their official website – beautyandthebeastmusical.co.uk/

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Thanks for stopping by.

Laura,

XOXO