Panto Company USA's “Beauty & the Beast" at the University of Dubuque -- April 21.
Sunday, April 21, 1 p.m.
University of Dubuque's Heritage Center, 2255 Bennett Street, Dubuque IA
A tale as old as time will be given a magical new stage presentation when the University of Dubuque's Heritage Center unveils the classic story of Beauty & the Beast on April 21, with the gifted members of the Panto Company USA bringing the beloved musical to life with flawless comic banter and lavish dance routines.
Dating back to a late-18th-century classic French fairy tale, Beauty & the Beast tells the story of Belle, a beautiful and intelligent young woman who feels out of place in her provincial French village. When her father is imprisoned in a mysterious castle, Belle’s attempt to rescue him leads to her capture by the Beast, a grisly and fearsome monster, who was long ago trapped in his gruesome form by an enchantress. The only way for the Beast to become human once again is if he learns to love and be loved in return. There is a time limit, too: Once a magical rose loses all of its petals, all hope will be lost and he will stay a Beast forever. The Beast’s enchanted household watches anxiously as Belle and the Beast grow to understand and befriend one another, and their feelings grow ever deeper as the clock ticks and petals continue to fall off the enchanted rose. But will they confess their love for one another before it's too late?
As detailed on the theatre organization's ThePantoCompany.com Web site, "Initially, The Panto Company did just that – produced pantomime tours for schools and clubs in the north east of England and beyond. Back then, its aims were clear: to restore magic to children’s theatre and return high production values to the genre. It wasn’t long before a bigger audience than those found in school halls beckoned.
"We have had national theatre tours taking venues by storm with hit shows such as Robinson Crusoe, Jack & Jill in the Forgotten Nursery, and Hey Diddle Diddle. And these were just the first productions to thrill audiences around the country as the company’s touring casts were invited back to theatres again and again. The company's productions include Goldilocks & the Three Bears, Jack & Jill in The Return to the Forgotten Nursery, Rumplestiltskin, Humpty Dumpty & the Incredibly Daring Rescue of the Alien Princess In Deep Space, and Humpty Dumpty & the Big Book of Nursery Rhymes.
"While enjoying its entertainment productions enormously, we also took our responsibility towards children very seriously, and created a series of issue based plays and workshops for schools on topics such as bullying, and teenage pregnancy. Plus, a SeeThrough Shakespeare project helped pupils prepare for questions about the Bard in their SATs tests, and the literacy-based game show Boredom Busters, took the pain out of working with words. Success followed success, and it wasn’t long before we were providing and managing entertainment teams at holiday centers up and down the country; devising and staging enterprise and training events for organizations such as Business Link, One North East, and Job Centre Plus; and being commissioned to write and deliver new shows for SureStart and Health Action Zone."
The Panto Company USA's Beauty & the Beast will be presented in the John & Alice Butler Hall of the University of Dubuque's Heritage Center on April 21, and admission to the 1 p.m. production is $19-29, with lap seating at $5. For more information and tickets, call (563)585-7469 and visit Dbq.edu/heritagecenter.
