Review: BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, Beacon Arts Centre

2023 marks 10 years of the Beacon Arts Centre annual pantomime. This is the second year of the panto being produced inhouse and Beauty and the Beast is written by Alan McHugh and directed by Beth Morton. 

Belle (Shannon Swan) and her pals have come to the town of Auchterdreich and are looking for accommodation for the night. She's accompanied by her childhood nanny Betty Blumenthal (Jimmy Chisholm) and her son Boabby (Inverclyde's favourite silly wee sausage, Lee Samuel).

They find refuge in a castle inhabited by a mysterious master and his employee Angus McFungus (Mark Cox). Once a handsome prince, Sebastian (Sam Willison) has been turned into a hideous beast by the wicked Deadly Nightshade (Jane McCarry) when he rejected her advances. McCarry tends to alternate between the fairy godmother type roles and the villain from year to year but when she's bad- she's very very good! 

The Beacon panto is one I'll always rush to recommend to anyone looking for a traditional pantomime. It's genuinely got everything, a fresh and funny script, a star casting with great talent and brilliant set and costume design. 

It's a tale as old as time as there's a limited window for Belle to love and accept The Beast as he is or he'll be doomed to spend an eternity in this form. Alongside the usual plot, there's laughs a plenty from Betty and Boaby, a real highlight of this show. A panto staple, the 12 days of Christmas is utter carnage and a delight for the audience of all ages. 

Once again the Beacon has proven itself to be one of the top pantomimes in the country and one I'll be continuing to nag everyone I know to get along to!

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