Beauty & the Beast at Loughborough PS

Wilma Kenny | May 24, 2023

Last week, Loughborough Public School treated full houses of all ages to four superlative productions of “The Beauty and The Beast”. (My ticket was number 200, and many people came after me.)

This year-long project used the Disney copyrighted script, music and “authorized materials” and involved the whole school in coming up with a colourful, energetic and tightly choreographed production. There truly wasn’t a bad seat in the house: the enormous cast of all ages was miked, and there were a lot of excellent singers (notably Audrey Bateman, who sang the demanding part of Belle.) And perhaps most delightful of all, the entire cast, some of them covering multiple roles, certainly seemed to be having fun. There was genuine glee in the rhythmic raising of tankards in the hilarious tavern scene.

Retiring music teacher Gillian MacDonald and her production team of Elizabeth Kay, Alan Macdonald and Greg Ross (“Musicals R Us”) led a creative support team and crew: they all deserve great credit for this gift to both the students and the community.