Yea, Plates.

My wonderful husband took me on a date night this evening to see Beauty and the Beast: The Musical. It was actually a perfect surprise because he knows how much I adore the original movie. That particular Disney film changed my life! Up to that point most of the Disney princesses had simply been content to allow Prince Charming (or Prince Philip or Prince Whomever) to save the day and sweep them away to happily ever afters. (It wasn't until the late 80s when young girls were introduced to Ariel, the red-headed firecracker who insisted on defying her father's wishes and then gettin' hitched at the tender age of 16.) Still, even though I enjoyed them all, I could not really relate to any of the princesses. I didn't like to see myself as completely helpless, and I definitely had no desire to disobey my parents. Then She came along!

Belle was so incredibly different from any princess I had ever seen or read about! She was a brunette with brown eyes...just like me! She dreamed of far away adventures where magical things would happen to her...just like me! SHE LOVED TO READ BOOKS...wait for it...JUST LIKE ME! She was perfect! Belle didn't fall for the town hunk. She saw right through his arrogance and wanted more out of life than sitting at home and waiting on an ungrateful louse of a husband. However, she did have a kind heart and the patience to get past the Beast's surly demeanor to see that inside he was quite a catch. I love Belle even to this day! I never get tired of watching my movie (although "Human Again" did not need to be added in  the "Platinum Edition"-it's a stupid song). I would gladly name my daughter, should I ever be blessed with one, Belle! (Of course I probably wouldn't because I would hate for people to think I'm using a derivative of "Bella" from the Twilight Series-YUCK!) Even when my husband and I went to Disney World I insisted we have our picture taken with Belle! See:

All of this is why I was ecstatic about seeing the musical version of the "tale as old as time." Much to my dismay, my fanaticism for Beauty and the Beast caused the musical version to fall a little short in my opinion. The costumes and sets were exquisite in their colors and designs. Yet, the live action lacked something magical the movie contained. (My husband thinks it's because "Belle" phoned it in for the entire second act.)

Oddly enough, I was cheering Gaston on for Belle's hand! Oh my! The musical's idea of Gaston definitely had him more than narcissistic, but at the same time he seemed rather lovable and humorous. This is clearly a far cry from the jackass Gaston is meant to be in the movie. Not to mention he had all the best musical numbers on stage! The Beast, unfortunately, was a wimp! It irks me that they would destroy my Beast in such a way. All his numbers were pathetic and overly sentimental. He wasn't man enough (no pun intended) for Belle. Thus, I was actually upset when Gaston died. I liked him. Plus, they couldn't really pull off the iconic ball gown or the Beast's transformation back to man. As I put it to my husband on the way home, "it just works better in cartoon form" (yes he laughed heartily at this and told me I should put that on a t-shirt). And of course my favorite scene from the movie could not quite be replicated on stage:



By no means was this the worst stage musical I have ever seen. (I think Footloose wins that award.) It just is the type of show a person takes his 4 to 10-year-old daughters to because the entire performance is really geared for a younger audience. It was adorable to see all the little girls in their "ball gowns" they dressed up in for the show. But in the end I suppose my husband put it the best way right after "Be Our Guest" when he flatly said, "Yea, plates." Indeed my love, "Yea, plates."