Disney’s new production of Beauty and the Beast will open in Adelaide for the first time next month in a highly anticipated season at the Festival Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre. The spectacular new production has sold over one million tickets to date in Australia, playing to audiences in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. Beauty and the Beast will have its first Adelaide performance on Thursday 8 May 2025.
Beauty and the Beast is a much-loved classic that will fill the hearts of a new generation with the timeless tale of Belle and her Beast. Based on the 1991 animated film, the original production of Beauty and the Beast played for more than 13 years on Broadway.
It remains to this day one of the top 10 longest running shows in Broadway history, touring to 37 countries worldwide. Adelaide audiences will be enchanted by this reimagined production, featuring the nostalgic and spellbinding songs of Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice. Songs include Belle, Gaston, Human Again and Be Our Guest.
With spectacular new sets, costume designs and state-of-the-art technology fused with this beloved, classic story, the timeless romance is brought to life on stage by a stellar Australian cast. Shubshri Kandiah stars as Belle and Brendan Xavier stars as Beast.
They are joined by Rohan Browne as Lumiere, Gareth Jacobs as Cogsworth, and Jayde Westaby as Mrs. Potts. Hayley Martin as Babette, Alana Tranter as Madame. Jackson Head as Gaston, and Adam Di Martino as Le Fou.
Adelaide locals Nathan Stafford, Ambrielle Payne and Lewis Shilvock round out the talented ensemble and swing cast.
Members of the creative team from the original, ground-breaking Broadway musical have returned to reimagine this classic tale. Olivier Award nominee Matt West directs and choreographs. He is leading a team that includes original composer Alan Menken, lyricist Tim Rice, book writer Linda Woolverton.
Scenic designer is Stan Meyer, costume designer is Ann Hould-Ward and lighting designer is Natasha Katz. The creative team collectively received five Tony® nominations and a win for Hould-Ward’s costume design when the musical made its debut on Broadway 28 years ago.
The Adelaide season will also include a relaxed performance on 14 June at 2pm, in partnership with Aspect (Autism Spectrum Australia) and Autism SA. This will be the first of its kind for a Disney show at the Adelaide Festival Centre.
This unique and inclusive performance will be tailored from start to finish to ensure audience members who may need specific support can attend, engage and feel welcomed. A relaxed performance means that audience members are encouraged to be completely themselves during the performance. They are free to make sounds, move around, fidget or use noise cancelling headphones.
Aspect’s autistic staff assessed the show and recommended modifications for the relaxed performance that considered the diversity of audience preferences, including sensory sensitivities.
Adjustments include:
- a visual story that explains the show step by step
- inclusive and welcoming language used on the official website and during the ticket buying process
- increased staff and volunteers to assist audience members
- turning off all announcements throughout the theatre
- providing a dedicated quiet room and multiple quiet spaces for use by anyone who needs a break
Amendments to the production for the cast and crew include noise reduction, keeping the house lights dim during the performance, and employing visual cues to act as a ‘pre-warning’ mechanism prior to potentially overwhelming scenes or moments.
A short pre-show welcome has been designed to introduce the audience to certain characters and stage effects that may be unpredictable or sensorially significant in advance. The character of Lumiere’s hands are candles that light up with real fire, which will be explained in an approachable and respectful way to get the audience ready for the performance ahead.
Ticketing Information:
Disney Theatrical Productions are thrilled to offer accessible pricing options. Some tickets are available for as low as $50 with no additional transaction fee. Those looking for the best value tickets are encouraged to look at mid-week and Sunday evening performances. Book in early to avoid disappointment. Customers who wish to buy 4 tickets at once can access great value seats on mid-week and Sunday evening performances and save $20 per ticket in selected price reserves.
Groups of 8 or more are encouraged to contact (Re)Group on (02) 9037 6563 to save on their booking. Tickets to the relaxed performance will be available across three price points, $60, $85 and $125 with no additional ticketing fees.
Beauty and the Beast runs from 8 May to 6 July at Festival Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre, King William Street, Adelaide SA 5000.
Tickets: https://beautyandthebeastmusical.com.au/tickets/?city=adelaide
Website: https://beautyandthebeastmusical.com.au/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/beautymusicalau/
Photo credits: Daniel Boud
About Aspect (Autism Spectrum Australia)
Aspect (Autism Spectrum Australia) is Australia’s largest autism-specific service provider, with one of the biggest autism-specific school programs in the world. A not-for-profit organisation, Aspect works in partnership with people of all ages on the autism spectrum, and their families to deliver evidence-informed solutions that are person-centred, family-focused and customer driven.
Aspect’s services provide people on the autism spectrum with the opportunity to realise their unique potential, as well as providing much-needed support to their families, carers, friends and colleagues. Aspect’s vision is to provide the best possible opportunities for people on the spectrum. They believe that people on the autism spectrum are a different brilliant®. For more information please visit www.aspect.org.au
About Autism SA
Autism SA was founded in 1964 by autistic people and their families and was the first organisation of its kind in Australia.The founding members were families driven by the desire to ensure that they had access to the best information, education and support. They also advocated for acceptance and understanding and encouraged research and leadership in the community.
Since its beginnings, Autism SA has been single-minded in its focus on supporting the autism community and has been at the forefront of service development and advocacy, with a strong legacy of being responsible for introducing many firsts in South Australia and nationally.
About Disney’s Beauty & The Beast
Based on the 1991 film – the first animated feature ever nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture – Beauty and the Beast opened on Broadway in April 1994. It garnered nine Tony nominations and one win. It played for more than 13 years on Broadway (before closing in 2007) and remains to this day one of the top 10 longest running shows in Broadway history. The 2017 live-action retelling of the animated classic starring Emma Watson quickly became the highest grossing live action film musical of all time, a record beaten only by The Lion King live-action release in 2019.
The original Australian production of Beauty and the Beast opened in Melbourne at the Princess Theatre in 1995. It starred Rachael Beck in the role of Belle, Michael Cormick as the Beast, a young Hugh Jackman as Gaston, and the late Bert Newton as Cogsworth. The production played for over two years across Melbourne and Sydney and won the 1996 ARIA Award for Best Australian Soundtrack/Cast/Show Release.
The structure and tone of the story and score – as conceived for the 1991 film by its executive producer and lyricist Howard Ashman with a continued evolution for the Broadway adaptation three years later – made Disney history. Only once before, in Menken and Ashman’s previous film musical The Little Mermaid, had a Disney film been structured like a stage musical. This is where the songs are integral to plot and characterisation rather than only ornamental or digressions.
This Menken/Ashman innovation is credited with the 1990’s Disney animation renaissance that went on to create such film classics as Aladdin, The Lion King and Hunchback of Notre Dame. In the process, helped re-introduce the book musical form to popular culture.
This new stage production of Beauty retains the lush period sound of the Oscar-winning and Tony® award nominated score. Classics including Be Our Guest and Beauty and the Beast, as well as Change in Me were added to the musical production in 1998 and retained thereafter. New dance arrangements by David Chase have allowed original choreographer Matt West to re-visit his work. Longtime Menken collaborators Michael Kosarin and Danny Troob are musical supervisor/vocal arranger and orchestrator, respectively.
Completing the design team, Tony® award winner John Shivers is sound designer. Darryl Maloney is the video and projections designer. David H. Lawrence is hair designer. Jim Steinmeyer is the illusions designer, as he was on the original 1994 production.
Beauty and the Beast is produced in Australia by The Walt Disney Company and Disney Theatrical Group, under the direction of Andrew Flatt, Anne Quart and Thomas Schumacher.
About Disney Theatrical Group
DISNEY THEATRICAL GROUP, a division of The Walt Disney Studios, was formed in 1994 and operates under the direction of Andrew Flatt, Anne Quart and Thomas Schumacher. Worldwide, its ten Broadway titles have been seen by more than 200 million theatregoers and have been nominated for 62 Tony® Awards, winning Broadway’s highest honour 20 times.
The company’s inaugural production, Beauty and the Beast, opened in 1994, playing a remarkable 13-year run on Broadway. It was produced in replica productions around the world for over four decades. In November 1997, Disney made theatrical history with the opening of The Lion King, which received six 1998 Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Director for Julie Taymor. She became the first woman in Broadway history to win the award.
Surpassing 25 landmark years on Broadway, it has welcomed over 124 million visitors worldwide to date and has multiple productions currently running worldwide. The Lion King has played over 100 cities in 24 countries on every continent except Antarctica and its worldwide gross exceeds that of any film, Broadway show or entertainment title in box office history.
Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida opened on Broadway next, winning four 2000 Tony Awards. It was followed by Mary Poppins, a co-production with Cameron Mackintosh, which opened in London in 2004 and went on to enjoy a six-year Tony-winning Broadway run. Tarzan®, Tony-nominated for its 2006 Broadway premiere, went on to become an international hit with an award-winning production enjoying a ten-year run in Germany.
In January 2008, The Little Mermaid opened on Broadway and was the best-selling new musical of that year. Disney Theatrical Group opened two critically acclaimed productions on Broadway in 2012, winning seven Tony Awards between them: Peter and the Starcatcher and Newsies. Both enjoyed a two-year run and launched North American tours. Newsies also played in a record-breaking Fathom Events in-cinema release.
Aladdin, Disney Theatrical Group’s 2014 hit, continues its smash Broadway run. It has launched nine productions on four continents and has been seen by more than 21 million guests. Disney Theatrical Group’s newest hit, the 2018 Tony-nominated Best Musical Frozen has launched eight productions around the world.
Other stage ventures include the world-premiere of Hercules in Hamburg, Germany, the Olivier-nominated West End hit Shakespeare in Love, stage productions of Disney’s High School Musical, Der Glöckner Von Notre Dame in Berlin and King David in concert on Broadway. Disney Theatrical Group has collaborated with preeminent theatres in the US to develop new stage musicals including The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Freaky Friday.
As a part of the recent acquisition of 21st Century Fox, Disney Theatrical Group also heads the Buena Vista Theatrical banner, which licenses Fox titles for stage adaptations. These include Anastasia, Moulin Rouge! The Musical and Mrs. Doubtfire.
Next on the Disney Theatrical schedule include the premiere of Hercules in London’s West End, the North American tour of a reimagined production of Beauty and The Beast, and the ongoing development of the smash film The Greatest Showman as a stage musical.
With dozens of productions currently produced or licensed, a Disney musical is being performed professionally somewhere on the planet virtually every hour of the day.
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