On March 15, 2024, Toby's Dinner Theater in Columbia, Maryland started its show run of Disney's Beauty and The Beast (it runs to June 16th). The show is obviously based on the Disney cartoon and features characters and songs from the famous cartoon. For those who don't know the story line, it tells of a spoiled handsome prince who because he refuses to help an ugly hag who in reality a power enchantress is transformed into a hideous beast. As the beast, he must win the love of a lady before the last petal on an enchanted rose falls or be doomed to be a beast forever. The lady who he ultimately wins over is a local beauty named Belle who dreams of adventure and far off places and gets more than she bargained for when it really happens. She will find out who the real "beast" is in the process.
On March 19, 2024, I went to Toby's to see the show. I expected it to be very good and, I wasn't disappointed. Toby's does an outstanding job of bringing this cartoon to life. The cast's costumes make them look very much like the characters in the cartoon. Also, the cast absolutely nails a number of the songs example: the actress (sorry I gave my program away and so can't cite the name of the wonderful actress) who plays Mrs. Pott does a fantastic version of the title song Beauty and The Beast. Another interesting thing about Toby's is that your waiter or waitress will actually have a part in the show. In my case, to my total surprise, my waitress Rachel (will cite her last name when I find out what it is when I go back, the show webpage didn't list it) played the part of Belle and was both a great waitress and Belle. She made sure my glass of Sprite didn't run empty while wowing me with her singing and acting.
Food wise, they had a nice salad bar as well as cole slaw, pasta salad, cubed pieces of 2 kinds of cheese, macaroni and cheese, fish, meatloaf, ham, roast beef (with optional horse radish sauce), and turkey breast, cheese cake, chocolate cake, rainbow sherbet and vanilla ice cream with sprinkles and other toppings. There are undoubtedly more food items that I haven't noted here. Your waiter or waitress will let you know when you can go to the salad bar and to the dinner buffet. Sodas are not included in the price of the ticket. I believe my Sprite cost $3.14 and included free refills. Coffee and Tea are included.
Tickets cost $79 on Tuesday through Friday, $86 for Saturday and $85 for Sunday brunch and evening shows for adults. For children, the prices are $60 Tuesday through Thursday and $63 Friday, Saturday and Sunday. There is a Senior ticket price on Tuesdays and Wednesday (matinee and evening) of $67.15. For those who bought a subscription, you must make a reservation before hand and then present one of your subscription tickets when you check in. Doors open at 6 p.m. There is decent parking. On the show I saw, the show started at 8:00 p.m., had a half hour intermission where people paid their drink bills, got 1 last drink and the second part of the show finished around 10:30 p.m. (Source: the Toby's website)
Overall, I was really delighted with this show and look forward to seeing it again (I'll cite the names of the people I noted in this review in an update). One last note: Toby's will also be doing Jersey Boys (tells the story of Franki Valli and the Four Tops), The Addams Family and The Sound of Music. I plan to see the Jersey Boys and Sound of Music so stay tuned for more show reviews on shows at Toby's. Ciao.
