By GABRIELLE SHIOZAWA
Moapa Valley Progress
The story of Beauty and the Beast has gained plenty of public adoration since its Disney debut in 1991. Interest in the beloved tale has been newly rekindled since the release of the 2017 live-action film remake. This resurgence continued last Friday when the Hampstead Stage Company came to the Overton library to perform the familiar tale.
There was a twist, though: this performance wasn’t based on the Disney films. Instead, the nationally-touring theatre group based their play on the classic novel, which was written in the middle 18th century by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve; truly, a tale as old as time!
“Our plays are adapted works of classic literature, encouraging young audiences to read and instilling a love of the theatre arts for years to come,” reads an official statement from Hampstead.
Isaac Snyder and Abby Railsback are the sole actors in the performance, which means that the wide range of characters they portray, coupled with the complexity of their wardrobe changes and their variety of theatrical voices, is an impressive feat in itself. This theatrical talent, combined with a well-written play, creates a magical show.
The play opens with an introduction to Beauty, her sisters Beverly and Gretchen, and their father, who is easily recognizable with his shock of messy white hair and gentle albeit clumsy demeanor. Over the course of the play, we come to know Beverly and Gretchen as greedy, rotten, and self-absorbed. When Beauty enters the stage, however, the audience finds her as faithful and kind as ever.
While on his way to town to buy gifts to appease the spoiled Beverly and Gretchen, the father finds himself in the Beast’s garden. Angered, the Beast tells the girls’ father that he can go home to say goodbye to his family, but he must then return to the castle and be the Beast’s prisoner for the rest of his life. Beauty refuses to let her father go and insists on taking his place instead.
After moving into the castle, Beauty starts to get to know the Beast, who is awkward and unsure of what to say after having lacked human contact for so many years. She warms to him, though, and they soon find themselves bonding over the castle, the garden, and books like The Legend of King Arthur.
There is no magical mirror in this tale, so it is through a nightmare that Beauty learns of her father’s illness. The Beast encourages her to return home to take care of him, and she does so.
Beauty tells her father that although she has feelings for the Beast, she isn’t sure she can love him completely.
“You can’t expect people to be who you want them to be,” Beauty’s father teaches her. “You have to take them as they are.”
After nursing her father back to health, Beauty journeys back to the castle, only to find that the Beast himself is growing ill. Beauty tells him that she loves him. The Beast’s curse is magically reversed by Beauty’s declaration, and he transforms into his true self: a handsome prince.
While this tale was told with only two actors, it also featured a few young volunteers from the audience. Three masked wolves became part of the play as they howled and chased after the protagonists.
Later, while searching for her father, Beauty stopped to ask the audience which way to go. “That way!” They shrieked, pointing around the back of the stage.
This bizarre yet endearing rendition of Beauty and the Beast featured charmingly awkward characters and unique, compelling storytelling. There were no special effects, no anthropomorphic candles and teapots, no elaborate set changes. There were only simple props and a simple set. Yet it was all brought to life by the wit and talent of Snyder and Railsback, who brought new vitality to an old tale.
