Breath-taking Beauty & the Beast

Beauty and the Beast down at Mandurah...this is my review B - for the absolutely Breath-taking sets and lighting E - for the Excellent theatre A - Amazing singing especially from Belle played by Miss Cassandra Kotchie U - the Utterly great characterisation from the Mrs Potts, Lumiere and Cogsworth T - the Terrific choreography and execution especially in the tavern scene by the men Y - the Yummy biscuits that were complimentary with coffee and the B - for the BEST 'amateur' - though professional in performance show to maybe ever hit a WA stage?? E - the Energetic and enthusiastic chorus and ensemble A - for the Awesome job that Susan Vincent did with solo 'Beauty and the Beast' S - the Sensational acting from lead to support to chorus T - a Tragedy that i only saw it on the last day and do not have the privilege of seeing it again I have nothing but praise. Well done!

terrific choreography... have you been living in a box? agree with the rest though.

Who choreyed the show?

i think it was someone called daniel??? can't remember and i (regretfully) didn't grab a program... was a great show!

agree with most of the coments. I thought the Choreo did a great job remembering these were amateurs. Thought Maurice the father was a nicely portrayed character . Any opinions?

The show was choreographed by Daniel Box, who is now heading back over East after doing a few shows in Mandurah, and Ashton Boaden as his assistant, who is now in Melbourne at a dance school after passing some gruelling auditions.

What was wrong with the choreography? What was it that you were expecting? I saw the show and was captivated from beginning to end. I know that at least 3 months of solid, tiring, dedicated work was put in, and it showed! 8,000 people attended 10 sold out shows which would indicate it was a huge hit. The highlights for me was Mrs Potts and her singing, the dance in the tavern and the transformation from the beast to the prince (that was very cleverly done).

I loved the chore for the guys in the tavern. It was slick and strong - exactly what you would expect. The wolves were also effective. I was disapointed with the chore in Be our Guest. I found alot of it was lost behind the other cast and also the set. But I understand how hard it is sometimes to chore and teach the dance and then fit it onto the stage. And they did a good job with working with some rather large costumes and set pieces which I believe only arrived the week before the show opened. My other issue with the chore was more from a cast point of view. I found that Belle was fighting the Beast's lead in the waltz - I know this may seem picky but it is something that I noticed. Overall the show was extremely professional and i really enjoyed it.

I'm intrigued by those of you that choose not to use your name when making your comments. Personal opinions are just that and if you don't have the balls to stand behind them, why bother making them? Thank you to all those that came to the show and supported it, as an audience, you were a huge reason why this cast were lifted to new heights. To all of you that didn't, you did miss out on something special. The show had its strong points and it had its weak points. Every show does, professional or amateur. I think considering the circumstances, every person involved in this show did a tremendous job. I've enjoyed working with the talented people here at MPAC and I hope the bar continues to rise with each Inhouse Production. I look forward to returning for MPAC's Singing in the Rain!

Daniel My apologies if you feel that the use of my username is hiding my identity. For your information: I am Kristen Twynam-Perkins I am a 30 year old Libran who enjoys long walks along the beach at sunset. I am happy to stand behind my comments. I have been involved with over 50 productions since 1994 in all aspects from performing to direction and chore. Hence the Dancektp username. As I have previously stated I did enjoy the show. I also knew a number of people who were involved with the show (including the Beast) and have not stated anything on this site that I would not say to them. I hope that I have not offended anyone with my comments, I only meant for them to be constructive. Kristen

Kristen, thank you for your apology however it was not yourself that I was refering to in regards to using names or not. Only because you are displaying a picture. Constructive critisism is not something that I am apposed to. Especially when it is backed up with some beef. I'm not here to make enemies, I just find half the people that use this site think they know more then they really do. Obviously you have an abundance of experience in the industry, therefore your comments are taken on board with no offence. Infact, as the choreographer, I would agree with most of your comments. Best Wishes. Daniel

It is great to be able to come on a website and have people comment on the show. There were many logistical problems that occurred when we decided to hire the scenery from Melbourne. Most of the information that we required for blocking, chorey and scenery did not arrive until 2 weeks before production week, which is well after the production was at the full run through stage. And what took the crew and cast to work out over many weeks in Melbourne was done here in Mandurah over 5 days. I take my hat off to the other members of the production crew that had to reblock, adapt, re-direct and try to give the audience the best show ever.Many of the elements that have been mentioned were still being finalised 2 hours before the opening curtain. The cast were excellent probably one of the best I have worked with in both amateur and professional theatre . The orchestra, stage crew were of a highly proffessional standard that I would love to work with again. Please remember this was amateur and everyone gave their time. Was it value for money ? I think so and I just wish the show was still running. Take abow the BATB cast and crew you did well Best wishes all Shane Stage Manager, Lighting Designer, Head Mech and Head Flyman For Mandurah's Beauty and The Beast

Chorey often gets a beating in community/amature theatre and I think it's a little unfair.... Often it's the poor execution from non-dancers who find even the simplest of steps a challenge and when they do eventually get the choreography, they don't have the technique and style to move with the conviction and natural-ease a trained dancer would. For the record - I was "Walter Plingey" who asked who chorey the show and the only reason I didn't use my name was because I can't login on all my computers... Something to do with cookies? I didn't even see the show. But as a dancer/choreographer I'm always interested to see who's working around Perth/WA. The end. It's a crowd favourite. Everybody loves a good jazz square.