Despite a histrionic and not particularly beastly beast (there were hissy fits and the poor thing was within an inch of Belle's height; a rather poor facsimile of Glen Keane's wonderful animated creation), Beauty and the Beast was an entertaining show. The sets were great, and I'm continually impressed by the rehearsed effeciency of these productions; everything, all cues and production numbers, worked perfectly (my mind is that of a director). Of course, Alan Menken's music - complimented by Howard Ashman's lyrics - is absolutely brilliant. There's never been a finer Disney musical...and, sadly enough, there probably never will be.  ¶ 05:34