La Bete

Fresh off a successful three-production tour to Auckland, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Talk Is Free Theatre (TIFT) is back in Canada and returning to a Toronto stage this March.

Can you recall way, way back to 1991 when the Disney animated film version of Beauty and the Beast was first released? Well, even if you can’t, I certainly can remember how every theater aficionado I knew was exulting about the wondrous work and how it should be made into a live stage musical. In fact, it appeared that every film and theater critic worth his or her salt was noting the worthiness of such a transfer from film to stage.

Syracuse Stage rings in the holiday season with the family musical a?oeDisney's Beauty and the Beast,a?? directed by Donna Drake and choreographed by Anthony Salatino with musical direction by Brian Cimmet. Preview performances begin Nov. 22. Opening night is Nov. 29, with performances scheduled through Jan. 5. Excellent seats remain for many performances and are available through the Box Office (315-443-3275) and at www.SyracuseStage.org.

What happens when a street performer is thrown into a court theatre troupe? In Soulpepper's production of the 1991 David Hirson play, the result includes a lot of body humour, monologuing, and deeper-than-expected political commentary.

Andrew Lloyd Webber has today announced that the New London Theatre is to be renamed in honour of the trailblazing choreographer Dame Gillian Lynne. The theatre will be formally recognized as the Gillian Lynne Theatre later this year and will be the first West End theatre to be named after a woman.

???????Political intrigue takes center stage at Actors' Playhouse in the Tony Award-winning drama All The Way by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan.

Long Wharf Theatre, under the director of Artistic Director Gordon Edelstein and Managing Director Joshua Borenstein, present Other People's Money, by Jerry Sterner, directed by Marc Bruni from tonight, November 23, through December 18 on the Claire Tow Stage in the C. Newton Schenck Theatre.

Long Wharf Theatre, under the director of Artistic Director Gordon Edelstein and Managing Director Joshua Borenstein, present Other People's Money, by Jerry Sterner, directed by Marc Bruni from November 23 through December 18 on the Claire Tow Stage in the C. Newton Schenck Theatre.

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University, under the leadership of Artistic Director Diane Paulus and Executive Director Diane Quinn, is pleased to present the new American play Nice Fish, conceived, written, and adapted by Mark Rylance and Louis Jenkins, and directed by Claire van Kampen.

Trap Door Theatre presents LA BÊTE, written by David Hirson and directed by Kay Martinovich, SDC.

Trap Door Theatre presents LA BÊTE, written by David Hirson and directed by Kay Martinovich, SDC.

Arden Theatre Company begins its 27th season of great stories with La Bete by David Hirson, under the direction of Emmanuelle Delpech. The production appears on the Arden's F. Otto Haas Stage from tonight, September 11 through October 12, 2014.

Arden Theatre Company begins its 27th season of great stories with La Bete by David Hirson, under the direction of Emmanuelle Delpech. The production appears on the Arden's F. Otto Haas Stage from September 11 through October 12, 2014.

In 1991, the animated feature Beauty and the Beast became the first 'cartoon' to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. Prompted by the unprecedented success of the film, and by critics who likened the music to a Broadway score, Disney executives began to develop a stage version with an eye toward the Great White Way, where it would capture the heart of every child in the audience. Disney's well-deserved reputation for quality family entertainment is what prompted BRAVO@KAT to present a spectacular double cast of talent for six shows in late January at Randolph Road Theatre.

In 1991, the animated feature Beauty and the Beast became the first 'cartoon' to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. Prompted by the unprecedented success of the film, and by critics who likened the music to a Broadway score, Disney executives began to develop a stage version with an eye toward the Great White Way, where it would capture the heart of every child in the audience. Disney's well-deserved reputation for quality family entertainment is what prompted BRAVO@KAT to present a spectacular double cast of talent for six shows in late January at Randolph Road Theatre.

After nearly 100 productions of the play around the world, including two by the Royal Court Theatre in London, Soho Rep and The Play Company, in association with John Adrian Selzer, will present the New York premiere February 1-26, 2012.

Tony and Emmy Award-winning actor David Hyde Pierce has been cast in the Vineyard Theatre's Developmental Lab Production of THE LANDING (previously titled 'Andra') -- a collection of three related one-act musicals written by the celebrated composer John Kander and his new collaborator, Greg Pierce - to be directed by Scott Ellis, with David Loud as musical director, it has been announced by artistic director Douglas Aibel and co-artistic director Sarah Stern. THE LANDING will be presented in the spring of 2012 at The Vineyard (108 E. 15 St.).

Asolo Repertory Theatre announced the complete cast of its upcoming production of Bonnie & Clyde a thrilling new musical with book by Ivan Menchell (The Cemetery Club, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang); music by Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, The Scarlet Pimpernel); lyrics by Tony Award-winner Don Black (Sunset Boulevard, Song and Dance); Music Supervision, Arrangements and Orchestrations by John McDaniel; and direction and musical staging by Tony Award- winner Jeff Calhoun (Deaf West's Big River and Pippin, Grease!). The production runs from November 16 - December 19, 2010 on the Asolo Rep mainstage-The Mertz Theatre. The press opening is November 19, at 8 p.m.

The first major revival of David Hirson's Olivier Award-winning comedy LA BÊTE starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Mark Rylance, Tony and Emmy Award winner David Hyde Pierce, and BAFTA Award winner (and star of 'Absolutely Fabulous') Joanna Lumley began previews at Broadway's Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street) on September 23, 2010. This new production, helmed by acclaimed director Matthew Warchus (God of Carnage, Boeing-Boeing, The Norman Conquests), opened last night, October 14. This immediately follows a limited summer engagement at the Comedy Theatre in London's West End from June 26-September 4, 2010 with opening night of July 7. BroadwayWorld was on hand for the opening night arrivals and brings you photo coverage below.

The first major revival of David Hirson's Olivier Award-winning comedy LA BÊTE starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Mark Rylance, Tony and Emmy Award winner David Hyde Pierce, and BAFTA Award winner (and star of 'Absolutely Fabulous') Joanna Lumley began previews at Broadway's Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street) on September 23, 2010. This new production, helmed by acclaimed director Matthew Warchus (God of Carnage, Boeing-Boeing, The Norman Conquests), opened last night, October 14. This immediately follows a limited summer engagement at the Comedy Theatre in London's West End from June 26-September 4, 2010 with opening night of July 7.

The first major revival of David Hirson's Olivier Award-winning comedy LA BÊTE starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Mark Rylance, Tony and Emmy Award winner David Hyde Pierce, and BAFTA Award winner (and star of 'Absolutely Fabulous') Joanna Lumley began previews at Broadway's Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street) on September 23, 2010. This new production, helmed by acclaimed director Matthew Warchus (God of Carnage, Boeing-Boeing, The Norman Conquests), opened last night, October 14. This immediately follows a limited summer engagement at the Comedy Theatre in London's West End from June 26-September 4, 2010 with opening night of July 7.

American playwright David Hirson's rollicking 1991 play, LA BÊTE, is a comic tour de force about Elomire (David Hyde Pierce), a high-minded classical dramatist who loves only the theater, and Valere (Mark Rylance), a low-brow street clown who loves only himself. When the fickle princess (Joanna Lumley) decides she's grown weary of Elomire's royal theatre troupe, he and Valere are left fighting for survival as art squares off with ego in a literary showdown for the ages.

The first major revival of David Hirson's Olivier Award-winning comedy LA BÊTE starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Mark Rylance, Tony and Emmy Award winner David Hyde Pierce, and BAFTA Award winner (and star of 'Absolutely Fabulous') Joanna Lumley began previews at Broadway's Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street) on September 23, 2010. This new production, helmed by acclaimed director Matthew Warchus (God of Carnage, Boeing-Boeing, The Norman Conquests), will officially open tonight, October 14. This immediately follows a limited summer engagement at the Comedy Theatre in London's West End from June 26-September 4, 2010 with opening night of July 7. Click below for a video preview of LA BETE!

The first major revival of David Hirson's Olivier Award-winning comedy LA BÊTE starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Mark Rylance, Tony and Emmy Award winner David Hyde Pierce, and BAFTA Award winner (and star of 'Absolutely Fabulous') Joanna Lumley will open on Broadway October 14, 2010 at the Music Box Theatre. Joining Rylance, Pierce, and Lumley in both London and New York are Stephen Ouimette, Lisa Joyce, Greta Lee, Robert Lonsdale, Michael Milligan, Liza Sadovy, Sally Wingert, Deanne Lorette, and Steve Routman.

The first major revival of David Hirson's Olivier Award-winning comedy LA BÊTE starring Tony and Olivier Award winner Mark Rylance, Tony and Emmy Award winner David Hyde Pierce, and BAFTA Award winner (and star of 'Absolutely Fabulous') Joanna Lumley began previews at Broadway's Music Box Theatre (239 West 45th Street) on September 23, 2010. This new production, helmed by acclaimed director Matthew Warchus (God of Carnage, Boeing-Boeing, The Norman Conquests), will officially open October 14, 2010. This immediately follows a limited summer engagement at the Comedy Theatre in London's West End from June 26-September 4, 2010 with opening night of July 7. The first Broadway production shots have been released and BroadwayWorld brings you a look below.