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| Kyra Belle Johnson and Fergie L. Philippe in 'Beauty and the Beast: The Musical' courtesy photo |
By Darlene Donloe
Some tales don’t age. They deepen.
Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: The Musical has roared back to life in its first North American tour in over 25 years.
A recent night at the Pantages proved the wait was worth every second.
This is not nostalgia on autopilot. Director and choreographer Matt West has polished the rose to a full, radiant bloom — lavish, emotional, and genuinely thrilling.
The bones of the story remain as potent as ever.
Based on the 1991 Oscar®-winning film, Linda Woolverton’s book still crackles with wit and heart, and Alan Menken’s score — with lyrics by the late Howard Ashman and Tim Rice — is Broadway royalty for a reason.
From the first swell of the overture to the final, soaring “Beauty and the Beast,” the music wraps the Pantages in pure cinematic romance.
Yes, “Be Our Guest” stops the show. It’s meant to.
Under West’s choreography, it’s a stampede of color, wit, and tap-dancing flatware that earns the standing ovation mid-act.
But the surprise is how the quieter numbers land. “If I Can’t Love Her” and “A Change in Me” — written for the stage — feel like the emotional spine of this production, and they’re devastating.
What elevates this tour is the cast. Every actor gives a stirring performance, but Fergie L. Philippe as the Beast is exceptional. Philippe, known to Broadway audiences from Hamilton and Camelot, brings a vocal power that rattles the rafters and an actor’s soul to match.
His Beast is not a growl in a costume. He’s wounded, feral, funny, and achingly human.
When Philippe unleashes “If I Can’t Love Her,” it’s not just a ballad — it’s a reckoning. You hear the man inside the monster, and you believe his transformation because you’ve witnessed his breaking.
Opposite him, Kyra Belle Johnson’s Belle is luminous.
Johnson plays her not as a wide-eyed ingénue but as a woman with steel under the kindness.
Her “A Change in Me” is crystalline, and her chemistry with Philippe gives the title duet real stakes.
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| (l-r) Javier Ignacio (Cogsworth), Christina Rose Hall (Mrs Potts), Danny Gardner (Lumiere), and Cameron Monroe Thomas (Babette) courtesy photo |
The supporting ensemble is first-rate across the board. Stephen Mark Lukas makes Gaston hilariously, terrifyingly vain without tipping into caricature.
Danny Gardner’s Lumiere is all Gallic charm and perfect comic timing, trading quips with Javier Ignacio’s exasperated, endearing Cogsworth.
Christina Rose Hall gives Mrs. Potts a warm, maternal gravitas that turns “Beauty and the Beast” into the emotional high point you expect.
Harry Francis as Le Fou, Aaron Kaburick as Maurice, and Cameron Monroe Thomas as Babette round out a company that sings, dances, and commits to every beat.
The physical production is sumptuous.
Stanley A. Meyer’s sets unfold like a pop-up storybook, moving from provincial village to gothic castle with cinematic fluidity.
Ann Hould-Ward’s Tony®-winning costumes remain a masterclass — the Beast’s transformation, Belle’s gold gown, the enchanted objects — all rendered with wit and tactile detail.
Natasha Katz’s lighting paints the stage in shadow and candlelight, making the castle feel both cursed and alive. The illusions are seamless, the pacing brisk, and West’s direction honors the film while letting the stage breathe on its own terms.
What’s most uplifting is how current it feels. This Beauty and the Beast doesn’t wink at the audience or sand down its edges. It trusts the material: a story about looking past the surface, about anger and forgiveness, about choosing empathy when arrogance is easier. In 2026, that lands.
Disney took 25 years to bring this tour back. It shows. This is a company of actors, designers, and musicians working at the top of their craft, in service of a score and story that earned its place in the canon.
The Pantages audience — kids, parents, date nights, theater diehards — rose to their feet not out of obligation, but because the show earned it.
See it in Hollywood while you can. Take the family. Take yourself.
The enchantment is real, and Fergie L. Philippe’s Beast is the kind of performance you’ll talk about long after the rose’s last petal falls.
On the Donloe Scale — D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likeable), O (oh, yes), and E (excellent) — Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: The Musical gets a resounding E: Excellent.
Disney's Beauty and the Beast: The Musical, Pantages Theatre through September 6, 2026, then Segerstrom Center for the Arts Sept 22 – Oct 11.
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