Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and The Beast

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Beauty and the Beast Production Image (8) - credit David Munn Photography

Opening Night verdict ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Reviewed by Nikki Cotter

Regal Entertainments and St Helens Theatre Royal’s usual run of family-favourite pantomimes throughout the year came to an abrupt halt when the Coronavirus pandemic closed theatres across the country back in March. The creatives rallied together producing an innovative virtual show: Rapunzel: The Lockdown Panto, back in April and now through lots of hard work, commitment and Covid compliance bring Beauty and The Beast to the stage, opening the doors of the Theatre Royal to audiences once again.

Directed by Chantelle Nolan and written by Liam Mellor, Beauty and The Beast tells the famous fairy-tale of a prince cursed to live as a monstrous beast, the only thing that can break the curse is…of course true-loves kiss! But just how does a furry monster find true love, especially when we are all social distancing!

Beauty and the Beast Production Image (1) - credit David Munn Photography

Regal Entertainments have well and truly pulled out all the stops to ensure their first live show in a long 9 months is an unforgettable one. The script is positively jam-packed with Covid gags with Boris Johnson getting a hilarious ribbing while Joe Wicks, Chris Witty and even the track and trace app all feature.

French Frank and Pretty Polly played by Scott Gallagher and Jamie Greer respectively are a perfect comedy duo, guiding us through the ups and downs of life in the village of Petit Pois as they try and save their master (Andrew Geater) from a hairy ending. They bounce off each other brilliantly, the quick-witted pair are clearly having a ball being back in front of an audience, throwing themselves full throttle into the slapstick silliness as well as offering plenty of cheeky gags for the grownups.

Beauty and the Beast Production Image (5) - credit David Munn Photography

Timothy Lucas as a scene stealing Gaston is an absolute joy, self-obsessed, pumped up and completely outrageous he has the audience in the palm of his hand from his first swivel-hipped lunge onto stage. His mother the Cruella De Ville-esque Madam Botox (Abigail Middleton) is as detestable as her air-head son, the two make a perfectly ghastly pair of pantomime villains.

Olivia Sloyan makes for a superbly sassy Belle while Andrew Geater’s charm shines through as the reclusive Beast. Jenna Sian O’Hara acts as narrator in her role as Fairy Rose, her no nonsense Northern attitude sees her giving as good as she gets in an unforgettable 12 Days of Covid which leaves the audience roaring with laughter (behind our Covid compliant masks of course).

Beauty and the Beast Production Image (2) - credit David Munn Photography

Choreographer Nazene Langfield has created some beautiful numbers for the talented senior dancers, sadly no juvenile dancers this year due to Covid restrictions but the seniors do a wonderful job of filling the stage adding real depth to the musical numbers. There’s some great song choices this year, many with a Covid twist which are an absolute stroke of genius and while the audience can’t participate in the usual way a TikTok dance off fills the gaps perfectly.

By the time of the final transformation scene, you’ll be wishing you could stay in your seat and watch it all over again. This hilarious production at a time when theatre making is more challenging than ever before is an utter treat, just what’s needed to lift spirits, create magical memories and remind us all just how precious the arts are. Kudos to all at St Helen’s Theatre Royal for creating a perfectly safe environment for families to enjoy some much-needed escapism.

Beauty and the Beast Production Image (9) - credit David Munn Photography

Beauty and the Beast is an absolute Christmas cracker, in the words of my Godson Freddie “The best one we’ve ever seen”

Beauty and The Beast is on at St Helens Theatre Royal until Sunday 3rd Jan tickets from £16 available via Ticketsolve – St Helens Theatre Royal

Disney on Ice – 100 Years of Magic

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Reviewed by Kate Goerner

Opening Night verdict ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

From the hundreds of children dressed as their favourite Disney idol to the myriad of swirly flashy things lighting up the inside of Manchester Arena – it was definitely Disney on Ice time!

The always-popular ice spectacular is a staple of the family entertainment calendar, offering people the chance to get a glimpse of their Disney favourites without having to go to Paris or Florida. Throw in dazzling skating skills, gorgeous costumes and plenty of iconic Disney songs and you have all the elements for a magical night out.

This year’s Disney on Ice show is called 100 Years of Magic and sees a loose plot of Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy trying to decide on a movie to make – drawing inspiration from Disney‘s back catalogue of celluloid smashes.

Perhaps less Princess-centred than Disney on Ice shows I’ve seen before, 100 Years of Magic includes tributes to some absolute classics like Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin (why have one ice skating Genie when you can have 20!) The Lion King and more.

Of course there is the chance to see all the Princesses and their Princes skate as well as a fabulous extended section that gives the delighted audience Frozen in about 20 minutes – this is a real highlight with goosebumps galore as Elsa twirls and swoops across the ice to Let It Go. And it even snows!

Our other favourite bit was a simply gorgeous tribute to Mulan featuring a beautiful solo to Reflections followed by the very talented full company of skaters performing a stunning martial arts-inspired routine to I’ll Make a Man Out of You. This was followed by the entrance of an impressive Chinese Dragon onto the ice – that drew gasps from the audience.

But probably the crowd-pleasing cameo of the night was from Toy Story 4 scene-stealer Forky, whose arrival on the ice brought cheers of joy from the youngster sat around us. Indeed the whole Toy Story section was clearly a hit with the young fans of Woody, Buzz and the ‘plastic’ effect wigs on the toys were a nice witty touch too.

But the whole show was fantastic – a welcome bit of Disney magic delivered on skates. We had an absolute blast!

Further information, tickets and tour dates can be found here.

Preview | Disney on Ice

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Writer Kate Goerner

The ever-popular Disney on Ice spectacular returns to the rink at Manchester Arena next month – offering a timely opportunity to get a bit of Disney magic in your life in these unsettled times!
So why not grab those Mickey Ears and prepare to celebrate 100 Years of Magic in this all-new arena show that’s led by the Mouse-ter of Ceremonies (ahem, sorry!) Mickey Mouse with Minnie and lots of other pals and princesses alongside him.
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The family friendly production will be skating into Manchester from the 9th to 13th October and features more than 50 performers, a sing-along score of Disney musical masterpieces, exhilarating choreography and beautiful costumes and sets.
The show is packed with iconic Disney characters from much-loved films that Disney fans young and old will love seeing in the flesh – with added ice theatrics!
Audiences will travel to the heart of Africa with Disney’s The Lion King, come along for an adventure in friendship with the gang from DisneyPixar’s Toy Story, and watch as Belle breaks the Beast’s curse in the tale of Beauty & The Beast.
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And OR COURSE no Disney on Ice show would be complete without a trip to the kingdom of Arendelle from Disney’s Frozen and journey up the North Mountain with adorable snowman Olaf and hunky Kristoff, as they help royal sisters Anna and Elsa discover that true love conquers all.
Over 14 tales are featured, with some absolute classic songs like Hakuna Matata, You’ve Got A Friend in Me, Let It Go, At Last I See The Light, A Whole New World and loads more.
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Producer Kenneth Feld said: “This is a show, more than any other, which is truly for everybody. When I sit with the audience, I see those that are grandparents, like I am, enjoying a lot of the classic Disney stories, while young kids and parents really respond to modern day favourites like Frozen.”

Disney on Ice: 100 Years of Magic is produced by live family entertainment specialists Feld Entertainment.

Tickets and more information are available here.
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Disney on Ice | Dream Big

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Opening Night verdict ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Reviewed by Kate Goerner

Created in the late 1980s and seen in over 65 countries around the world, Disney on Ice as a brand is now a firmly established part of the Disney family. And the current tour – billed Dream Big – is indeed a  bit of a dream for fans young and old.

Produced by live family entertainment specialists Feld Entertainment, Dream Big is a lavish all-twirling, all-jumping show that packs in more than enough Disney princes and princesses, songs (and special effects) to keep audiences in a Disney dreamworld.

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For those who are unfamiliar with a Disney on Ice production. Minnie and Mickey act as hosts and introduce segments devoted to various iconic movies – this time round including Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Tangled, Cinderella (complete with coach) and recordings of the soundtracks are played that the skaters perform and mime too.

With a stunning set backdrop and literally dazzling costumes and perfect wigs – we really do see our favourite heroes brought to life in front of our eyes. (It was particularly lovely to see them all regularly waving at audience members throughout the show). The skating was stunning – and for some of the performers (Maui and Sebastian the Crab – I’m looking at you) some in what must be quite tricky costumes.

A real highlight was the (new for this tour) Moana section – the solo skating routine performed by ‘Moana’ to How Far I’ll Go was a perfect example of music, performance and skating combining perfectly. I had goosebumps and a large lump in my throat – just stunning! It was as it had always been on ice!

Be Our Guest from Beauty and the Beast was a big company number, and a real crowd pleaser, as was Under the Sea from The Little Mermaid.

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Another favourite was the extra-long segment donated to Frozen, that was basically a mini version of the movie. Yes we’ve all heard Let it Go a million times, but it was pretty special seeing a version on ice! With twirling! Yet more goosebumps.

My 3 year old was admittedly a little scared of Ursula the sea witch from The Little Mermaid and the fire-breathing dragon from Sleeping Beauty (we took the opportunity to beat the loo queues and later on get an ice cream when it got a bit too scary for him), but he loved the Genie from Aladdin, Mickey and Minnie, Belle and (of course) seeing Elsa. He genuinely did not want to leave when the house lights went up.

Cynics begone – if there’s a more magical and uplifting way to spend an autumn evening, well…..I’ll get my skates on!