Disney’s enchanted Beauty and the Beast musical is coming to Manchester
Sing your heart out to iconic songs like Be Our Guest, Belle and Beauty and the Beast as you relive all the best bits of Disney's hit 1991 animation at The Palace Theatre
A musical retelling of Disney’s magical Beauty and the Beast tale is coming to Manchester for what looks set to be a huge run next year.
Based on the hit 1991 film, the new musical production features some iconic songs from the smash-hit animation, including Be Our Guest, Belle and Beauty and the Beast whilst also uniting some members of its original Broadway team.
The show has already kicked off in Liverpool this week as part of a huge UK tour. It will be coming to the Mancheter Palace Theatre in the new year, running from Thursday 31 March 2022, through until Saturday 4 June.
Spectacular new designs and state-of-the-art technology fuse with the classic story, as the timeless romantic tale is brought to life on stage like never before, with all the charm and elegance audiences expect from Belle and her Beast.
Courtney Stapleton and Emmanuel Kojo will play the iconic lead roles. Courtney’s credits include Dear Evan Hansen, Six, Les Misérables and Bat Out of Hell, and Emmanuel is best known for performing in Oklahoma!, Girl from the North Country, Show Boat and The Scottsboro Boys.
ADVERTISEMENT
Image: Johan Persson (c) Disney
Gavin Lee (Mary Poppins, SpongeBob SquarePants, the Broadway Musical, Les Misérables) plays Lumiere and Tom Senior (The Pirates of Penzance, Eugenius!) is Gaston.
Sam Bailey (The X-Factor winner 2013, Blood Brothers) plays the legendary role of Mrs Potts, with Nigel Richards (The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables) as Cogsworth.
ADVERTISEMENT
Martin Ball (Les Misérables, Wicked, Top Hat) takes the role of Maurice, Samantha Bingley (Martha In The Secret Garden) is Wardrobe, Emma Caffrey (Curtains, 42nd Street, Funny Girl) is Babette and Louis Stockil (Miss Saigon, Mamma Mia!) plays Le Fou.
The full company is completed with Jake Bishop, Pamela Blair, Liam Buckland, Jasmine Davis, Matthew Dawkins, Autumn Draper, Daisy Edwards, Alyn Hawke, George Hinson, Jennifer Louise Jones, Brontë Lavine, Thomas- Lee Kidd, David McIntosh, Aimee Moore, Sam Murphy, Ashley-Jordon Packer, Emily Squibb, Grace Swaby, India Thornton and Rhys West.
Among the many new features is an exuberant tap dance within the legendary production number Be Our Guest, created expressly for Gavin Lee, recognised as one of the great tappers on either side of the Atlantic.
ADVERTISEMENT
The structure and tone of the story and score as conceived for the 1991 film by its executive producer and lyricist Howard Ashman with a continued evolution for the Broadway adaptation three years later – made Disney history.,
This new Beauty, while retaining the lush period sound of the Oscar-winning and Tony®-nominated score will be heard afresh with new dance arrangements by David Chase, allowing original choreographer Matt West to re-visit his work.
The original West End production of Beauty and the Beast opened at the Dominion Theatre in April 1997, playing over 1100 performances to more than two million people. It won the 1998 Olivier Award for Best Musical and enjoyed a hugely successful UK & Ireland tour in 2001.
Based on the 1991 film – the first animated feature ever nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture – Beauty and the Beast opened on Broadway in April 1994 and garnered nine Tony nominations and one win.
It played for more than 13 years on Broadway, closing in 2007. It remains to this day – 26 years after it opened – among the top 10 longest-running shows in Broadway history.
ADVERTISEMENT
Beauty and The Beast is produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, under the supervision of Thomas Schumacher.
Tickets for the new production go on general sale in Manchester From Tuesday 12 October and can be purchased here.
Feature image- Johan Persson (c) Disney
What's On
All the free things you can get with a Great Manchester Run finisher’s medal this year
Danny Jones
What’s the best part about doing the Great Manchester Run, we hear you ask? All the freebies, of course. You’ll be glad to hear there are more free things than ever for finishers this year.
More than 35,000 runners are set to take on the challenge, be it the half marathon or the 10k, and we firmly believe every single one of these legends should be entitled to as much free stuff as possible.
If it were up to us, they wouldn’t pay for anything all day, but hey, we make don’t make the rules.
So yeah, without further ado, here are all the freebies you can get for taking part in the Great Manchester 2025.
Free stuff and offers for Great Manchester Runners to cop in 2025
Without further ado, here are a tonne of freebies, discounts and deals you can grab by simply flashing your finisher’s medals:
Credit: The Manc/Supplied
Dishoom –Complimentary 330ml Kingfisher/Kingfisher Zero (0.0%) for anyone with anyone dining with a finisher’s medal.
Blacklock –Free glass of fizz on us with your medal.
Maray – Free glass of fizz/pint (or non-alcoholic beer/soft) for anyone with a medal who is dining on Sunday
Electric Shuffle – Free house wine, prosecco or pint for anyone with a 2025 medal.
Salon Madre – 2-4-1 margaritas all day Sunday for anyone with a race medal.
Suki Suki – Free bao bun for anyone with a medal.
Refuge/Kimpton Clocktower Hotel – 100 free pints of Manchester Union Beer (first come, first served)
Hello Oriental – Discounted soft serve ice cream, plus a free beer or soft drink with any meal for all finishers
The Shack – Flash your medal to claim a free glass of Prosecco or beer, plus parties with medals get 20% off their food bill.
Dough Religion (House of Social) – half price slice at Manchester Jazz Festival on Sunday
Tate McRae at Co-op Live, Manchester – tickets, times, setlist and more for ‘Miss Possessive’ tour
Thomas Melia
Canadian performer Tate McRae is bringing her viral bangers to Co-op Live, Manchester for a night of sass, synths and of course dance breaks.
The time has come to let all your ‘exes’ know, put your ‘Sports car’ in drive and get ready to ‘run for the hills’ because it’s finally time for Tate McRae to take to the Co-op Live stage in Manchester.
Now the Calgary-born talent, four albums deep and only 21 years old, is ready to perform to 23,500 Manchester fans at our city’s largest indoor entertainment venue.
Tate McRae gig guide
Tate McRae is visiting Manchester twice, 24 May and 25 June, playing Co-op Live.
Sun 22 June – Nottingham, UK – Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
Tue 24 June – London, UK – The O2 Arena
Thu 25 June – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Tate McRae tickets for Co-op Live gig
‘What would you do?’ if I told you that there were tickets left for Tate McRae’s Co-op Live shows in Manchester, because there just might be.
Any fans of this Canadian pop star will have to act fast because there are only a select number of precious tickets left for both of her Manchester dates.
Tickets for both Tate McRae’s shows on Saturday, 24 May and Thursday, 25 June, are selling fast and are in high demand.
What are the stage times for Tate McRae in Manchester?
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm meaning the Canadian performer might have her set wrapped up before the clock hits ’10:35′.
Anyone attending can expect the doors to open at 6:30pm with a kick-off time of 8pm and support from New Zealand star BENEE, best known for soundtracking lockdown with her huge hit, ‘Supalonely’, collaborating with the likes of Gus Dapperton, Spacey Jane and more.
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, you’ll be glad to know it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.
Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre and until 1:00am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Bus
You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus, which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live. You also get free Bee Network travel with any valid event ticket.
Getting there by car and parking
If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue, but this must be pre-booked ahead of time, and there are designated drop-off areas.
The postcode is M11 3DU and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer; directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.
Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide come event day, though estimates will obviously vary:
ADVERTISEMENT
Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.
There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live, but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:
Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces
Walk/cycle
Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly, and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes through the Beryl, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.
For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.
ADVERTISEMENT
Expect nothing but hits from 21 year old superstar Tate McRae when she performs at Co-op Live, Manchester.
Georgina Pellant -
1st October 2021 
