BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Plays the Palace Theatre, Now thru 10/14

Disney's Beauty and the Beast, the award-winning worldwide smash hit Broadway musical, is coming to Columbus as part of the Fifth Third Bank Broadway series. Produced by NETworks Presentations, this elaborate theatrical production will come to life on stage at the Palace Theatre tonight, October 9-14.

Tickets begin at $28 and are available at the CAPA Ticket Center (39 E. State St.), all Ticketmaster outlets, and www.ticketmaster.com. To purchase by phone, call (614) 469-0939 or (800) 745-3000. Orders for groups of 20 or more may be placed by calling (614) 719-6900. Performance schedule, prices, and cast are subject to change without notice.

The performance schedule is as follows:

Tuesday, October 9, 8pm
Wednesday, October 10, 8pm
Thursday, October 11, 8pm
Friday, October 12, 8pm
Saturday, October 13, 2pm & 8pm
Sunday, October 14, 1pm & 6:30pm

Disney's Beauty and the Beast features the animated film's Academy Award®-winning score with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by the late Howard Ashman, and additional songs with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Tim Rice. The book is written by Linda Woolverton.

The original creators of the Broadway production are together again for this new touring production. The play is directed by Rob Roth and choreographed by Matt West with costume design by Ann Hould-Ward (Tony Award®-winner for her work on Disney's Beauty and the Beast), lighting design by Natasha Katz, scenic design by Stanley A. Meyer, sound design by John Petrafesa Jr., and music supervision by Michael Kosarin.

"It has been wonderful to bring the entire original design team back together to work on this new production of Beauty and the Beast, "stated director Rob Roth. "As a director, it is rare to have the opportunity to revisit your work 15 years later. Hopefully I've grown and developed as an artist, along with my collaborators, and we can bring 15 years of experience to this new production. We have remained very close as a team over the years, producing the show around the world, and it has been so much fun getting together to re-explore and reinvent the show for this new NETworks tour. The theme of 'Beauty' is about seeing past the exterior into the heart of someone, and this is reflected in the design for the show which is about transparency and layers, seeing past one thing and into another."

Disney's Beauty and the Beast is the classic story of Belle, a young woman in a provincial town, and the Beast, who is really a young prince trapped in a spell placed by an enchantress. If the Beast can learn to love and be loved, the curse will end and he will be transformed to his former self. But time is running out. If the Beast does not learn his lesson soon, he and his household will be doomed for all eternity.

Disney's Beauty and the Beast has become an international sensation that has played to more than 35 million people in 21 countries.

For additional information, visit www.BeautyAndTheBeastOnTour.com.

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