Beauty and the Beast – Storyhouse

The festive season has returned and Storyhouse have treated us to a spectacular original version of Beauty and the Beast, full of beautiful scenery, fantastic costumes, songs to please all ages and a stellar cast who put their all in to bring us joy and cheer.

Written by Anne Odeke with her debut panto, there are some strong messages throughout about treating people with respect, being kind to others and understanding that everyone deserves happiness. There are plenty of laughs, lots of joy but a lot of heart that will leave you feeling warm inside and maybe shed a little tear or two.

Set and costumes, designed by Amy Jane Cook, are beautiful, extremely colourful, especially in Fromageville, shown off in all its glory by the wonderful lighting, designed by Aaron J Dootson. The set is simple to look at but does a wonderful job of framing this gorgeous story and used extremely well. The lighting is fantastic, making the show bright and joyful when it needs to be but adds so much drama in some darker scenes and added magic when it needs to. Sound by Kieran Lucas is great, with fantastic sound effects that add a lot to the story.

Direction by John Young is great, adding small touches that bring out details that could easily be overlooked but is so important to the story and Choreography by Christopher Tendai is fun. Simple for the most but delivered well by the cast. House of Dance are once again involved throughout the show and are used well to fill out some of the scene and add some strong dance sections. Musical direction came from Rebecca Applin and the songs sounded great with some lovely harmonies and powerful vocals. I personally feel it loses a bit of extra magic by not having live musicians playing as the show is all played to backing tracks, although they sounded fantastic it doesn’t give any room to play about with the timing of the songs.

The cast of Beauty and the Beast are perfect, and each bring a touch of magic to their role and is a joy to witness. Katarina Zofia shines as Belle, bringing a strength to the role and some wonderful vocals. Daniel Bowskill brings a wonderful vulnerability to the Beast, taking the character on a great journey and delivering some phenomenal vocals, especially during Creep.

Emmy Stonelake shines as Lavender, delivering some hilarious moments but also some very tender moments with the most gorgeous voice. Miriam O’Brien brings villain Nightshade to life and is wonderful in the role. Getting the audiences booing and hissing at her, creating the perfect balance evil and likeability.

Tom Richardson and Tom Lloyd are wonderful as Pascal (the clock) and Grégoire (the candlestick) and are the perfect comedy duo. Each hilarious in the roles while delivering some important messages about love and acceptance. Richardson also plays Marcel, Belle’s father, and shines in this role, bringing a lot of physical comedy and playing on the fact that he multiroles, which becomes a bit of a joke towards the end of the show. Lloyd also plays the judge and is hilarious in the role, with his cat Chanel and some brilliant Scouse humour in the role but is incredibly funny as Grégoire, throwing himself around the set and delivering some cracking comedy lines.

Belle’s best friend, Amélie, is played by Caitlin Drake who has some of the story’s strongest messages, especially during songs like Manchild, where she can show off her incredible vocals. Stunning. Pranav Viswanathan is brilliant as Pierre, the role everyone fancies but who never quite seems to get it right. Viswanathan brings so much humour, especially during Pink Pony Club and also a special appearance as a Superhero.

The Ensemble (and covers) are made up of Poppy Afolabi, Tom Pigram and Alfie O’Connor and do a fantastic job of playing numerous roles and keeping the piece moving along while helping with some smaller set changes and some great choreographic moments.

Storyhouse have an incredible festive hit on their hands and there is something for everyone, with songs ranging from Whitney Houston, Kelly Clarkson, Radiohead to Chappell Roan and HUNTR/X and everything in between. You will leave with a huge smile on your face and warmth in your heart.

Beauty and the Beast is running at Storyhouse until 4^th January 2026 and tickets are available at www.storyhouse.com

Reviewer: Damian Riverol

Reviewed: 11^th December 2025

North West End UK Rating: