Belle, Beast, Gaston, and the whole castle crew are making their way to the Merced Theatre on March 3 and 4 as Weaver Performing Arts performs the musical version of the original movie, Beauty and the Beast Jr., including popular songs, such as “Be Our Guest” and “Beauty and the Beast.”
Special school shows exclusively for local student classes will also be held on Feb. 28.
The Weaver Performing Arts program has been performing musicals with 4th through 8th-grade students since 2003. The last production was Frozen in 2020. Beauty and the Beast Jr. features a cast and crew of more than 50 students from all three schools in the Weaver Union School District.
In this tale as old as time, a spell is put on a castle as punishment for the prince who has been selfish and unkind. This spell transformed him into a horrible Beast. All who live in the castle have slowly become objects, including Cogsworth, who becomes a clock, Lumiere, who becomes a candelabra, and Mrs. Potts, who turns into a teapot. The spell can only be broken if the Beast can learn to love another and earn her love in return. When a young girl named Belle comes to the castle, the Beast imprisons her, hoping she will be the one to break the spell. The Beast must learn to be kind and gentle so that Belle will overlook his monstrous appearance and see into his heart. Cogsworth, Lumiere, and Mrs. Potts are there to guide and encourage the Beast in how to act like a gentleman. If the Beast is successful, the spell will be broken, and they will all become human again. If he fails, they will remain objects, and the prince will be doomed to be a Beast for all time.
Show times for the public shows are: 7 p.m. on March 3; and 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. on March 4.
Tickets are $10, and can be purchased at the Merced Theatre Box Office and online at www.mercedtheatre.org. $3 per ticket added for online purchase.
The Box Office is open Tuesday through Friday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., at 301 W. Main Street in downtown Merced. For more, call 381-0500.