Directing
THE ENCHANTMENT OF THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
Beauty and the Beast is a tale that goes far beyond its most famous Disney installation. First written down in 18th century France by writer Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, it was used as an allegorical support of arranged marriages of young girls to older aristocrats. Its archetypal structure is much older though, one of the most basic plots of humanity: loving the Other, upon whom we have projected our own fears in the form of a perceived monstrosity. Seeing through differences, whether they be in appearance, character, language, age, even species, is a crucial empathetic skill and it’s what lies at the heart of this ‘tale as old as time’.
By setting it in 18th century Qing Dynasty China, two cultures were merged, the West and the East, in the quest to show the universality of the tale. In Chinese mythology and legendary canon there are creatures, princes and farm folk aplenty, caught in the very same social structures of fearing what is different, having a hard time seeing past the beast.
The Enchantment of the Beauty and the Beast was produced by Harmony Tree and opened at Wan Chai Civic Theatre in Hong Kong, China on Aug 22, 2018, and won the Trinity College Grade 7 Distinction Award.
The Enchantment of the Beauty and the Beast
at Wan Chai Civic Centre Theatre
Book by Vera Morris
Lyrics and Music by Bill Francoeur
Directed by Peter Petkovsek
Produced by Harmony Tree
Costume design by
Lighting Design by
Set Design by
Staged Managed by Mabel Cheung
Performers:
Marcus Cheung (Prince / Masterpiece Painting)
Diya Purohit (Beauty)
Brian Chan (Beast)
Alysha Dodd (Madame Rondeau)
Damien Kwan (Greedo)
Charlotte Chan (Isabel)
Dorothy Fu (Masterpiece Painting)
Nathelie Yau (Masterpiece Painting)
Levana Lee (Moving Chair)
Charlotte Lah (Moving Chair)
Jonathan Law (Clock / Wolf)
Zoe Lin (Magic Looking Glass)
Javis Hong (Wolf)
Leah Fong (Lotus Legend / Old Woman)
Charmaine Sze (Helen)
Scarlett Tong (Louise)
Jack Ngan (Captain)
Charlotte Sze (Berta)
Monique Siu (First Princess)
Cheryl Chu (Second Princess)
Cici Liu (Third Princess)
Anne Chen (Fourth Princess)
Ming Ming Tan (First Guest)
Alice Sun (Second Guest)
Apple Tang (Third Guest)
Elsa Zhang (Fourth Guest)