Josh Groban and H.E.R.
Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration airs Thursday, Dec. 15.
Shania Twain as Mrs. Potts
The country singer steps into the very complicated costumes of Mrs. Potts.
H.E.R. as Belle and Josh Groban as Beast.Credit: Christopher Willard/ABC
“I felt like a queen.
Practical wasn’t important to me.
I just wanted to wear the gorgeous costumes as poised as possible to do them justice.
Shania Twain as Mrs. Potts.Christopher Willard/ABC
They were a labor of love by the costume design department.
Executive producer Raj Kapoor was considerate in making sure the costumes represented both Shania and Mrs. Potts.
It made me giddy stepping into them.”
Rizwan Manji as LeFou and Joshua Henry as Gaston.Christopher Willard/ABC
“Everything is supposed to come easy to them.
It’s really funny when you see them come up against resistance.”
Josh Groban gets Beastly
Operating this Beastly puppet was no small order.
Christopher Willard/ABC
“He’s like, ‘I was not expecting this.
It’s so clever.
I’m so in.'”
Derek Hough (with mic) leads ensemble through finale choreography.Christopher Willard/ABC
“He was like, ‘I’ll do whatever,'” adds Kapoor.
“‘Because I already see what the vision is and it’s so different.'”
and Hamish Hamilton with Jon Jon Briones as Maurice
“Nobody knows how intense it was,” H.E.R.
Josh Groban as Beast.Christopher Willard/ABC
says of making the celebration. "
But also how much fun it was.
It didn’t feel like work."
H.E.R. as Belle, Jon Jon Briones as Maurice, and director Hamish Hamilton.Christopher Willard/ABC
“I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is hysterical.
I’m going to give this to my mom or something for Christmas.'”
Joshua Henry and H.E.R.
Christopher Willard/ABC
with Rizwan Manji as LeFou
Gaston’s selfishness is the antithesis of Belle’s kindness.
“He’s buffoonish and arrogant,” notes Henry.
And I don’t think that that is true.
Josh Groban with his Prince Adam painting.Christopher Willard/ABC
I took that on as representing that in all of its sickness.
I was like, ‘How over the top can I be, yet charming?
What happens when someone who always gets what they want doesn’t get what they want?'"
Christopher Willard/ABC
Little town, it’s a quiet village
H.E.R.
’s Belle jumps right off the pages of the sketchbooks used for by original animated film’s team.
Does anyone still wear a hat?
H.E.R. as Belle.Christopher Willard/ABC
“He first saw the movie as a boy,” explains director Hamish Hamilton.
“I got to meet the original Belle, Paige O’Hara, which was so amazing.
It was so surreal hearing her voice and seeing her face talking with her.
Christopher Willard/ABC
I love her.”
Fountain framing
Belle sings in front of this fountain in her opening number.
“It’s a whole different sort of preparation and it’s a lot more challenging.”
Christopher Willard/ABC
So much so that H.E.R.
says she’d like to voice an animal in a Disney animated film.
For Groban’s part, he wants to tackleThe Hunchback of Notre Dameand its unique score next.
Christopher Willard/ABC
“The things that she cares about, she really cares about,” says H.E.R.
“She pays attention and she reads about them.
That’s what made [the chemistry] easy.”
Christopher Willard/ABC
“I was most looking forward to the opening song,” says H.E.R.
Home sweet home
Though H.E.R.
“Everything was challenging,” she says.
Christopher Willard/ABC
“It wasn’t necessarily just dancing, it wasn’t just singing, just acting.
It was doing everything all at once and remembering.
Even choreography is not simple because of the arrangements and he different time signatures within the songs.
H.E.R. as Belle with the ensemble.Christopher Willard/ABC
“Even for the most hardened of TV live directors and producers, it was intimidating.
A Belle and her beauties
H.E.R.
(with gold and red triangle trim on her dress) with the ensemble.
Christopher Willard/ABC
“This version shows more of a peek into Belle’s mind,” says the recording artist.
“It’s more metaphoric in that scene.
Joshua Henry gets camera ready
Henry describes Gaston as the physical opposite of him in many ways.
Christopher Willard/ABC
“It’s fire,” brags Henry.
“This Gaston is lit, no joke.”
“That was one of the most romantic and sweet, flirty moments,” she says.
Christopher Willard/ABC
“I didn’t expect to have so much fun with that one.
It was a challenging song to sing, and I love challenges.”
Christopher Willard/ABC
Christopher Willard/ABC
A rosy look at ‘Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration’.Christopher Willard/ABC
