Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” comes to life on the stage at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia this month, reuniting members of the Tony Award-winning artistic team for the production’s first North American tour in 30 years.

The director of the original Broadway production, Matt West, joins composer Alan Menken, costume designer Ann Hould-Ward and lyricists Howard Ashman and Tim Rice to reimagine the production as a glamorous, colorful spectacle with refreshed choreography and costume and set design. Every technical aspect of the show has been advanced, with new projections, scene transitions and props.

Familiar character archetypes are revisited with more depth, most notably in the portrayal of Beast, who is especially humanized in this production. His traditional characterization as an angry monster is softened and replaced by a focus on his inner turmoil. It becomes clear from the start that he is desperate to show Belle kindness and overcome his instinct to act as a beast.

Read the full piece at WHYY: https://whyy.org/articles/beauty-and-the-beast-disney-theater-philadelphia/