Not just for kids

Newbury Operatic Society's beastly challenge to sell Disney show to adults

Newbury Operatic Society is taking something of a gamble with their latest production. Better known for their excellent G&S operettas and big musical revivals, the local society and their sponsors have put up about £40,000 to bring Disney's Beauty & the Beast to West Berkshire.

“We were lucky enough to secure the licence for the show three years ago”, said NOS chairwoman Kate Mayo.

“We wanted to be the first to première the show in our area with the aim of bringing in a new generation of theatregoers to experience a big, live musical.

“Our main challenge is getting the wide appeal across to audiences. It really is a show for all ages and musical tastes – a great show for adults and a really good introduction to the theatre for young people. The songs and orchestration are brilliantly written”.

Disney's Beauty & the Beast is a spectacular and technically tricky production and NOS has a large team dedicated to doing it justice.

Directed by Jez Mann, the production opens at the Corn Exchange on April 12 with a cast packed with local talent. Taking the headline parts of Belle and the Beast, are Claire Butler and Martin Rogers. Jon Lovell, who plays the part of Lumière, was last seen as both Jekyll and Hyde in last year's show and Paul Hyde (Belle's father) and Helen Bonner (Mrs Potts) are often seen treading the boards in the Community of Hungerford Theatre Company projects.

With award-winning music, Disney's Beauty & the Beast tells the ‘tale as old as time' of love triumphing over evil and happy endings all round.

A full live orchestra, under the baton of musical director Michael Evans, will accompany the enchanting score, which includes all the songs from the award-winning Disney cartoon, and many more, including the title song Beauty & the Beast and Be Our Guest.

Tickets are available from the Corn Exchange box office, telephone (01635) 522733.