Disney announces Beauty and the Beast live concert with Zooey Deschanel as Belle
The tale as old as time is being spun once again, this time as a live concert at the Hollywood Bowl with Zooey Deschanel playing Belle.
Beauty and the Beast Live in Concert is a special two-night event taking place this May, with an all-star cast assembled to perform the film’s classic tunes. That cast includes Zooey Deschanel as Belle, Kelsey Grammer as Lumiere, Taye Diggs as Gaston, Rebel Wilson as LeFou, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’s Jane Krakowski as Mrs. Potts, and The Voice alum Anthony Evans as Beast (singing “Evermore,” an original song from the live-action version of the film).
“I love this film, I love Alan Menken, and I loved Jerry Orbach — the title song, as sung by Angela Lansbury, makes me cry to this day,” Grammer said in a statement about joining the concert experience. “Walking in the footsteps of such a brilliant cast is an honor; and as for singing the music of the incomparable Alan Menken, it goes without saying.”
The event follows Disney Concerts’ 2016 production of The Little Mermaid Live in Concert at the Hollywood Bowl, which featured Wilson as Ursula and Sara Bareilles as Ariel. Richard Kraft, who directed that concert and will return for Beauty and the Beast, said in a release, “Like our celebration of Disney’s The Little Mermaid in Concert at the Hollywood Bowl, we are mixing film, live music, singers, dancers, digital projections, effects, and special guest artists to create an event that pays homage to the original movie but also delivers something that can only be experienced live.”
Beauty and the Beast in Concert at the Hollywood Bowl will be performed on May 25 and May 26. Tickets will be available on this Friday, March 16, on Ticketmaster.