Beauty and the Beast set to take the Stage!

“Beauty and the Beast,” the Disney-Broadway musical version, will play at the Cutler Brother’s Theatre in Deer Lodge from June 16th to July 2nd marking the entertainment company’s second major musical of the 2017 theatre season.  The popular children’s show has music written by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tom Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton.  It plays Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm and Sunday matinees at 2:00 pm.

​The stage version of “Beauty and the Beast” implements several facets from the world renown Disney cartoon, which was produced in 1991, as well as a few new songs to beef it up for Broadway.  The ever-popular “Be Our Guest” will entertain audiences for nearly ten minutes straight with intricate dance moves and enough comedy to last the rest of the show.  Other popular songs from the Disney cartoon include “Gaston,” “Belle,” “Kill the Beast,” and the heartstrings puppeteer “Tale as Old as Time.”

The Deer Lodge cast boasts nearly forty people.  Maggie Chrisman, a long time Cutler Brother player since 5th grade, will play the lead role of Belle while her brother Marik, last seen as Oliver Twist in Cutler Brother’s “Oliver!” will steamroll the comedy side of things playing Lumiere the French candlestick.  Lumiere’s sidekick, the ever cautious Cogsworth, will be played by Deer Lodge youth Louis Savalla.  Louis has taken part in Rising Star Academy theatre camps for the past three years and his sister Izzy was last seen as the star child role in “A Miracle on 34th Street.”  Izzy will play the role of Chip.
           
Other castle characters include Elizabeth Cozby as Mrs. Potts, Solveig Munson as Wardrobe, Kamryn Johnson as Babette, and Jake Nachtigal as the Beast.  Cozby is the co-founder of Stage Left Productions in Deer Lodge while Solveig Munson is the drama coach at Powell County High School.  Kamryn Johnson was last seen as the lead role of Audrey in PCHS’s “Little Shop of Horrors” produced this past spring.  Jake Nachtigal is a newcomer to Cutler Bros. Productions.  He was discovered in Missoula’s “Urinetown” this past January when he performed side by side with Kelly Cutler, the director of Deer Lodge’s entertainment venture.

Cutler will take the villainous role of Gaston and will be joined side by side with Josh Pentland (Lefou) and his brother Patrick who plays the asylum director Monsieur D’Arque.  The last show Patrick performed in was “Thoroughly Modern Millie” in the 2012 season.  The other 25 people in the cast will make up the huge ensemble of villagers, flat wear, and dancers.  Kyle Gillette will play Belle’s crazy inventor father Maurice and the show will be accompanied by an eight piece live orchestra.
           
​Reservations for Cutler Brother’s “Beauty and the Beast” are highly recommended and may be made by calling the Box Office at (406) 846-4096.  Tickets are $15 general admission and theatre space is limited to 120 seats.  Visit cutlerbros.com for more information or follow the theatre troupe on Facebook.