Beauty and the BeastMusic by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, book by Linda Woolverton. Until Dec. 31 at Young People’s Theatre, 165 Front St. E. youngpeoplestheatre.ca or 416-862-2222, ext. Young People’s Theatre is staging what director Allen MacInnis calls a chamber version: 85 minutes long in one act, and scaled down for a relatively modest budget and a cast of 14. The highlights of the show are the big group numbers; under Diane Leah’s musical direction the diction and harmonies are impressive. Playing the Beast is always going to be challenge, underneath all that costuming and hair (here, a full face mask).

Source: thestar November 13, 2017 17:26 UTC