Entertainment
The future of musical theatre in Southland is in great hands.
Invercargill Musical Theatre’s second youth production, Disney Beauty and the Beast, is every bit as good as the first, The Wizard of Oz, with engaging leads, strong ensemble work, lively choreography, and clever stage sets.
It dazzles, delights and delivers on every level you’d expect from the timeless story of true love overcoming all and ugliness being more than skin deep.
The pace builds gently at first, rising to a dramatic crescendo as the race against time and that last falling rose petal escalates.
The story hinges on a believable chemistry between the leads, and IMT has cast its key roles perfectly.
Emilia Dermody is captivating as Belle, the object of the affections of both the comically despicable Gaston, played to the cartoonish hilt by a scene-stealing Travis Oudhoff, and the Beast, Sam Cullen, whose performance is all the more remarkable as for most of it he is concealed beneath that gruesome mask.
The depth of Cullen’s characterisation evolves from intense malice and rage to sadness to tenderness for Belle, as he rediscovers the strand of humanity inside himself that breaks the fatal spell.
Dermody is a beautiful Belle, with a strong singing voice to match a truly lovely aura. She is a real find for IMT and looks to have a bright future on the stage.
All the leads are gifted moments to shine in this taut, tightly scripted 75-minute production, and they do not waste the opportunity. They’re a very talented front line, well directed and fully committed to their own performances and their interaction with the other characters.
Lumiere (Jeromy Tiatia), Cogsworth (Tapani Maka) and Mrs Potts (Madison Brown) have particularly juicy roles and the comedic timing between the two males is exquisite. Brown’s voice fills up the Civic Theatre in the epic theme song.
All the cast deserve congratulations. The acting is confident and strong, the French accents stay consistently true and the subtlest of movements or expressions speaks volumes. Take a bow, if you can in your wardrobe costume, Madame de le Grande Bouche (Ruby Bodkin-Oien).
All the big set pieces are spectacular, with swirling dance and movement, colour, superb costumes and big, brightly lit sets.
There are many memorable moments and too many outstanding performances to mention every one individually. But everyone up on that stage is so good. See for yourself.
This really is a richly rewarding hour and a quarter of entertainment from some of Southland’s rising stars.
Show times:
15 March 7pm
16 March 7pm
17 March 2pm – Matinee Performance
17 March 7pm
Review
DISNEY BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Jr
Invercargill Musical Theatre youth production
Civic Theatre, Invercargill
Director: Jan Brown
Musical director: Michael Buick
Choreographer: Melanie Bradley
https://whatsoninvers.nz/events/imt-junior-production-beauty-and-the-beast/