A timeless love story about a king that is transformed into a beast who must learn to love and an unselfish woman who must love with the heart instead of the eyes comes to life when Beauty and the Beast is performed on the stage of Shryock Auditorium Nov. 26.

This production of Beauty and the Beast, a new romantic version of the classic fairy tale, will have a 30-piece orchestra touring with it.

The story is about a king who is turned into a hideous beast because he is selfish and does not know how to love. The Beast is transformed by a magical Wizard with a dancing wand. The Beast becomes obsessed with Beauty after seeing her in his magic mirror his only link to the outside world.

Advertisement

Beauty’s father, a merchant who has recently lost his fortune at sea, wanders into the Beast’s garden looking for a rose to bring back to Beauty for her birthday. The Beast captures him and will release him only in exchange for Beauty.

Once Beauty sacrifices herself for her father, the Beast falls in love with her, and the spell cast by the Wizard can only be broken if Beauty agrees to marry the Beast. There are a variety of interesting characters inside the castle, Tony Magner, producer of Beauty and the Beast, said, including fireplace Griffins that do a hip-hop dance number, magical dresses that dance, a gargoyle that the Beast speaks through in the garden and the Wizard’s magic wand. Magner said the most interesting character in the show is the Wizard who can transform himself to another time and is more like the narrator of the show.

He said this is a new romantic version of the fairy tale.

This story focuses more on the two leads and their love for each other than in any other version of this story ever done, he said. There are three romantic love songs they sing to each other in the show, and the most romantic one is called Roses.

The stage of Beauty and the Beast revolves on a big turntable that is designed like a sundial. The stage becomes a forest, a castle, Beauty’s house and the great dining hall inside the Beast’s castle in just a few seconds, Magner said.

He said this story was revised since people love the classic fairy tale so much.

We knew this was a popular love story since there have been so many versions of it done, he said. The story of Beauty and the Beast’ is one of the oldest fairy tales in print. The Phantom of the Opera’ and The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ can all be traced back to Beauty and the Beast’.

Advertisement*

Beauty and the Beast plays at Shryock Auditorium at 3 p.m. Nov. 26. Tickets are $18.50 and can be purchased at the Shryock box office. For more information call 453-ARTS.