Spectacle of Disney takes Tucson audience to alternate reality

Like how in the heck did they pull off the Chip Cup illusion?

We're not gonna lie: we Googled it and frankly, we're not buying the AI-generated explanation.

C'mon, all we saw was Chip's head on the coffee cart. When Mrs. Potts (the wonderful-voiced Kathy Voytko) went around the cart, we saw her legs through the front, so there was no way that was a painted on false front.

We stared hard into that cart and if there were mirrors that hid the rest of Chip's body, we couldn't see them. All we saw was the head of Chip (Levi Blaise and Kanoa Edgar alternate in the role), topped with a teacup.

The 2026 "Beauty and the Beast" is full-on Disney spectacle, from the brilliant lighting effects and magnificent projections that took us to a scary forest where Belle's father (Kevin Ligon) gets lost and ends up trespassing at the castle of the Beast (Fergie L. Philippe) and into the castle's forbidden west wing that Beast warned Belle (the terrific vocalist/actress Kyra Belle Johnson) to avoid.

The room was suddenly framed with bright lights and took on the feel of a cabaret as a cadre of house servants-turned household appliances (Javier Ignacio as Cogsworth; Danny Gardner as Lumiere; Holly Ann Butler as Madame and Cameron Monroe Thomas as Babette) joined the immensely talented ensemble cast for the signature number "Be Our Guest." The breathtaking tap-dancing reminded us of a long bygone era.  

Philippe brought some genuine vulnerability to the role of Beast, fumbling around like a tongue-tied teen trying to get a date with the out-of-his-league head cheerleader.

Johnson played Belle as a fiercely independent modern-day woman content to lose herself in her books but strong enough to stand up to the Beast's bullying and shoot down the advances of the borderline narcissistic Gaston (Stephen Mark Lukas, who at times reminded us of classic Jim Carrey).

The dynamics of Beast and Belle were just part of the 21st century upgrade from the original, Tony-winning 1994 Broadway play. The stunning special effects added a cinematic dynamic to the production that made it feel like we were watching in an IMAX theater.

Some of the most impressive of those effects came in the opening scene where the narrator (a recorded voice over by the late Angela Lansbury) tells how the Enchantress (Kate Wesler), appearing as an old woman, put a spell on Beast for turning away her offer of a flower because of her looks.

Right before our eyes, the old woman transforms into a towering beauty; OK, we're fairly confident there were stilts involved, although that doesn't explain her complete transformation.

And then there's Beast, who went from a normal-looking dude to this bulked, slightly hunched over bearded monster as soon as lightening struck and the strobe lights flashed.

We didn't see any movement that resembled an instant costume change or actors switching places on stage so we're at a loss to explain that whole now-you-see-him-now-you-don't action.

We're sure if we Googled long enough, we would find dozens of explanations, some of them even plausible. But sometimes you just have to sit back and let the Disney magic take you to an alternate reality.

"Beauty and the Beast" runs through Sunday at Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. on the University of Arizona campus. For showtimes and tickets, visit broadwayintucson.com.