The U.K. and Ireland tour of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, reimagined in a new production staged by members of the original Broadway creative team, will play the London Palladium this summer. Performances are scheduled for June 24-September 17.
Tickets for the Palladium engagement will go on sale January 28.
Courtney Stapleton (Dear Evan Hansen, Six) and Shaq Taylor (Girl From the North Country, Hadestown) will star in the title roles with Tony nominee Gavin Lee (Mary Poppins) as Lumiere, Tom Senior as Gaston, Sam Bailey as Mrs. Potts, Nigel Richards as Cogsworth, Martin Ball as Maurice, Samantha Bingley as Wardrobe, Emma Caffrey as Babette, and Louis Stockil as Le Fou.
The ensemble includes Richard Astbury, Sarah Benbelaid, Jake Bishop, Pamela Blair, Liam Buckland, Jasmine Davis, Matthew Dawkins, Autumn Draper, Daisy Edwards, Alyn Hawke, George Hinson, Jennifer Louise Jones, Brontë Lavine, Thomas-Lee Kidd, David McIntosh, Aimee Moore, Sam Murphy, Ashley-Jordon Packer, Emily Squibb, Grace Swaby, India Thornton, and Rhys West.
The tour, which has been reimagined with new designs, features a tap dance within "Be Our Guest" created for Lee. (Lee's tapping has become a signature of sorts, including upside down on the proscenium for Mary Poppins and with several tentacle legs for SpongeBob SquarePants).
Olivier nominee Matt West directs and choreographs the production, leading a team that includes composer Alan Menken, lyricist Tim Rice, book writer Linda Woolverton, scenic designer Stan Meyer, costume designer Ann Hould-Ward, and lighting designer Natasha Katz. The team received five Tony nominations and a win for Hould-Ward’s costume design, when Disney debuted Beauty and the Beast on Broadway 26 years ago.
The tour also has new dance arrangements by David Chase, with musical supervision and arrangements by Michael Kosarin, orchestrations by Danny Troob, sound design by John Shivers, video and projections design by Darryl Maloney, hair design by David H. Lawrence, illusions design by Jim Steinmeyer, and casting by Pippa Ailion Casting.
Beauty and the Beast is produced by Disney Theatrical Productions under the supervision of Thomas Schumacher.
The tour, which opened in August 2021, is currently playing the Sunderland Empire. For the itinerary and ticket information, visit BeautyandtheBeastMusical.co.uk.
