Quandrell Claybrooks is the chorale and theater director for Westlake High School, and he and the fine arts department are spearheading the musical for Disney’s Beauty and the Beast which is taking place on March 7, 8, and 9 at the Westlake High School auditorium. With an all-Black cast, the department is looking to reinvent the classic movie with their own style.
Claybrooks spoke with rolling out about the musical and what to expect.
Why did you all decide to go with Beauty and the Beast as the musical?
A year or so ago, the fine arts faculty sat down and we were thinking of shows, and the kids were kind of throwing some ideas out. We knew that we were just coming from Dream Girls. Last year we did Dream Girls, and we knew we wanted to go in a little bit of a different direction. From 2020, I’m a Disney Imagination teacher, and we also wanted to incorporate that in the upcoming show. It was not something that I made a decision on wholeheartedly, it was actually a collaborative vote between the students, the parents, and the faculty, and they all agreed. It was it was almost at 50/50, I think I was the deciding factor to do this show. It was between this and The Little Mermaid or something like that. We wanted to do a different aesthetic, so this show has a French Creole vibe to it. Because we are an all-Black cast, we wanted to do something different, so you will see some really cool things. For those who come to the show, you will see some costume changes and some things that are very related to our culture as African descendants. I’m really excited to be able to incorporate that into Disney’s overall aesthetic.
How important is it for a kid to see somebody who looks like them on the big stage or their television screens?
It is life-changing to be able to implement something that you’ve seen in society. For example, we chose Beauty and the Beast because at the time, H.E.R. had just done the NBC version of Beauty and the Beast, and we always like to do shows that are relevant. When we did the show last year with Dream Girls, it was the 30th anniversary. We always wanted to be relevant and we like to make it pertain to our culture. So we chose Beauty and the Beast because we knew that H.E.R. had just done it, and then we had The Little Mermaid because we knew Halle Bailey was about to do it, and Halle is from Atlanta. She’s from southwest Atlanta, so that was that connection.
What do you think is special about the story of the Beauty and the Beast?
The whimsicalness of it. It’s a very magical show. I think most people like the romantic love story, the prince saves the girl, that whole shebang. Then the music is just very lush and beautiful. People look forward to that iconic yellow dress. They look forward to that iconic blue suit that the Beast wears. We’re gonna do something real cool with our Beast, he’s wearing locs..
Where can people see the show?
Please come out and support Disney’s Beauty and the Beast at Westlake High School at 2400 Union Road SW, here in the city of South Fulton. Show times are March 7, 8, and 9. March 7 and 8 shows are at 7 pm and on March 9 the show is at 2 pm. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for scholars, so please bring your families out.
Tickets can be purchased here.
