Broadway Revival of Beauty and the Beast in the Works | Playbill

Broadway News Broadway Revival of Beauty and the Beast in the Works Disney Theatrical Productions will revisit the show that kicked off Disney’s reign on Broadway 25 years ago.
Susan Egan Joan Marcus

To mark 25 years on the Great White Way, Disney Theatrical Productions will retell a tale as old as time in its first ever Broadway revival.

Beauty and the Beast, the first Disney title to be adapted into a Broadway musical, is poised to return to the New York stage. The announcement arrives on the heels of the show’s 25th anniversary; it first opened at the Palace Theatre April 18, 1994 and went on to run for nearly 13 years.

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Terrence Mann and Susan Egan in the original Broadway cast of Beauty and the Beast Joan Marcus
Disney Theatrical Productions President Thomas Schumacher teased the plans on ABC News, though opted not to reveal any additional details, including a theatre or production timeline. “But I’m deep in it,” he assured, “so yeah, it’s happening.”

The show ushered in Disney’s consistent claim on a leading spot on the box office boards, though the company’s theatrical success was perhaps not as widely acknowledged back then. “It’s absolutely true that when Beauty opened,” Schumacher says, “much of the artistry of putting it together and the business of it was not nearly as respected as it is today.”

The company currently has three shows on Broadway: recent arrival Frozen, Aladdin, and The Lion King, which reigns as the highest-grossing entertainment property in the world.

Featuring a book by Linda Woolverton, the show expands the 1991 animated film’s score, penned by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman (the two having won an Oscar for the title song), with Menken teaming up with Tim Rice to create new songs specifically for the stage adaptation.

Beauty and the Beast on Broadway

 
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