Capital Region Performance Gallery

by Dick Frantzreb

Before the lights went down on the opening night of Lincoln Theatre Company’s Disney’s Beauty and the Beast Jr., LTC co-founder Peggy Schechter gave a welcome in which she commented that “People in this show have loved what they’re doing.” It showed.

It’s a tale of an imaginary small town in France where beautiful misfit Belle fights off the attentions of the arrogant Gaston, finds herself trapped in an enchanted castle, captive of a prince-turned-beast, only to fall in love with him so he can become human again. The young cast embraced this fantasy, and they presented a show that was full of youthful exuberance. It bubbled over in the way each young performer carried out his part, and they seemed to feed off each other’s energy in big numbers like the tavern scene in Act 1. We in the audience could see how much fun the kids were having, and it made the whole thing fun for us, too. But along with the fun was quality.

I’ve seen Beauty and the Beast staged a couple of times in recent years, and most recently I saw the movie. But, for me, Emma Watson’s Belle couldn’t compare with that of Mia Andreatta. For one thing, Mia presented a far more winsome appearance. And her voice was such an asset to the show. She impressed me from the first note she sang: she was so easy to listen to, and she had the power of a Broadway voice that she occasionally turned loose.

(Click here to open the playbill in a new window.)

Jaden Dunmore struck me as a perfect Gaston ― brash, self-confident, narcissistic.  But none of his swagger would have worked if he were not also good-looking, big enough to toss LeFou around ― and flash real biceps and a hairy chest. And his manly voice completed the picture of an ideal foil to Belle. Then there were the subtle touches to his character ― his own ideas or those of Director Jason Bortz ― that completed the picture. For example, before singing to Belle at one point he put his hand in front of this mouth to check his breath and added a wink at the song’s conclusion. There were so many of these little enhancements to his performance.

One other humorous highlight to the show was the six “silly girls,” whose adulation of Gaston surpassed whatever you may have seen of teenage rock star fans. There were numerous times when the outrageous behavior of Gaston and his groupies made all of us laugh. And for a serious highlight of the show there was the ensemble singing. Beauty and the Beast has many excellent songs, and I was constantly impressed with the quality of ensemble singing from the young cast of 22.

I have to add that I also heard good singing and comic acting from key principals: Ben Fidler (as LeFou, Gaston’s sidekick), Jackson Fidler (as Maurice, Belle’s father), Christian Espinosa (as Cogsworth, the clock), Amaralyn Ewey (as Lumière, the candelabra), Makayla Whitsell (as Babette, the featherduster), Clarity Bortz (as Mrs. Potts, the teapot), Roxi Poplawski (as Chip, the teacup), and Jovi Faria (as Madame de la Grande Bouche, the wardrobe).

Jackson Chandler was enough of a Beast that I was worried he might scare some of the youngest children in the audience. Indeed, his anger was frightful, and the eventual transformation of his character was touching. In fact, the eventual reconciliation of Belle and the Beast was charming, highlighted by excellent acting from Mia Andreatta. I’d like to say the same for Jackson, but that Beast mask doesn’t give much latitude to expressing emotion.

Of course, with a Beast presiding over a charmed castle with anthropomorphic furniture (candelabra, clock, wardrobe, featherduster, teapot and cup), this fanciful story requires excellent costumes ― and it got them. It also got an array of props that transformed the bare stage and brought the story to life. The “Be Our Guest” number ― with all the living furniture, plus dancing spoons, forks, and a vegetable grater ― was an eyeful. The costumes in this number, plus the singing and choreography, brought cheers from the audience as it concluded.

The young cast were of all ages. The littlest ones were cute as they could be. You could look at their faces and see how energized they were, and their smiles showed how much they loved this opportunity contribute to something important, while having fun being kids. I’ll admit, though, that it was a little strange in one of the tavern scenes to see little girls holding beer steins.

But that is the kind of wry humor I would expect of Director Jason Bortz, whose work as an actor and director I have admired for many years. Bortz, who seems to have been born for the theatre and who is an experienced wrangler of young actors, did a beautiful job of turning loose the members of this cast to take a chance, experiment with being someone else― and probably discover something about themselves in the process: abilities and self-confidence that they didn’t know they had.  His “Director’s Note” is inspirational, and I urge you to read it in the attached playbill.

Perfect for a director like Jason, this is a show that invites exaggeration and uninhibited acting, and that’s what we got. There was the scene just before “Kill the Beast” when Gaston tries to pressure Belle to marry him, and those young townspeople surrounding them didn’t want her to agree. There was nothing scripted in their acting, but each found a way, in words or gestures, to say “Don’t do it!” Then as they all get roused into a fury over the Beast, I could see how much they enjoyed pretending to be evil. And in one of so many clever touches of director Bortz, I noticed that, among the weapons they carried to the Beast’s castle, were a broom and a mop. Then when the townspeople confronted the staff of the castle, pandemonium broke out, and I could see that the kids were having a great time. A bit more serious was the fight between the Beast and Gaston, which I felt was well choreographed.

Throughout the show I could hear laughter around me, and I could imagine smiles because I was smiling myself almost constantly. So I could gauge the reaction of adults in the audience from the laughter and applause. But the children were different. I didn’t witness reactions from them, and I imagine all the activity and costumes (wolves with red eyes) were a lot for them to take in. One exception was a scene with the Beast’s magic lighted mirror. Belle told the townspeople that they could use it to see the Beast in his castle, and a young voice behind me said, “Is it actually working?”

There was great energy and flair in the unfolding of this fanciful story, and it affected all of us in the audience ― children and adults alike. How do I know? Enthusiastic applause and standing ovations are pretty commonplace these days. But as the actors in this show were taking their bows, the audience began clapping in time to the music. Audiences don’t do that unless they have been really energized and uplifted by what they have just witnessed.

Follow Lincoln Theatre Company at their website:  www.lincolntheatrecompany.org.

All photos by Anthony Bersamin.