"We've been working on this for so long, " Swenson said. "We've never done anything completely like it. We're just trying to manage this elephant."

David Morgan from the Brigham Young University theatrical department is directing the show, recruited after Syd Riggs, who was scheduled to direct the play, unexpectedly passed away.

"We lost Syd just days before the auditions," Swenson said. "That was hard, but David has stepped right in and worked with the cast. We found the absolute right person."

The show, which is making its debut in Utah County at the Orem theater, will be dedicated to Riggs, she said.

Cast members include Ben Hale and Matthew Flynn Bellows as the Beast, Amy Shreeve and Breanne Folkman as Belle and Clayton Vance and Dave Burton as Gaston.

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If you go . . .

What: "Beauty and the Beast"

Where: Hale Center Theater, 225 W. 400 North, Orem

When: 7:30 p.m. nightly except Sundays from Sept. 16-Nov. 26; matinees at 3:30 p.m. each Saturday except Oct. 1.

How much: $14.50-$18.50

Phone: 226-8600

Web: www.haletheater.com

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E-mail: haddoc@desnews.com