PHOTO PROVIDED Students from Montgomery Area High School's Virtuoso music and theatre ensemble rehearse the song "Gaston" for their upcoming performance of "Beauty and the Beast".  Standing, from left to right, are: Brooke Rupert (junior), Jennifer Klobe (junior) and Bethanie Patterson (junior) in the roles of "Silly Girls".  Seated, are Josh Glover (senior) playing the role of Gaston and Cameron St. James (junior) in the role of LeFou.

MONTGOMERY – Virtuoso, the Montgomery High School music and theatre ensemble, will be presenting their spring musical, “Beauty and the Beast”, Friday, April 22 at 7 p.m., Saturday, April 23 at 7 p.m., and Sunday, April 24 at 2 p.m. in the high school auditorium.

With music by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman, along with new music written by Mr. Menken and Tim Rice, the musical is based on the Academy-Award winning animated feature. The classic story tells of Belle, a young woman growing up in a provincial town, and the Beast, a young prince trapped under the spell of an enchantress. The curse will only be lifted if the Beast can learn to love and be loved. Time is running out. If the Beast does not learn to love soon, he and his household will spend eternity under the spell.

Tickets are available on the Showtix4u website or can be purchased by calling 1-866-967-8167. Tickets can also be accessed through the school website at www.montasd.org. Tickets will be sold at the door two hours prior to each show but reserved seating is encouraged.

Virtuoso has been in existence for 17 years, but is in its eighth season as a combined theatre and vocal ensemble. Virtuoso’s most recent performance was “It’s a Wonderful Life” in November and “Footloose” last spring. The ensemble is co-directed by Carina McNear and Jessica Carpenter, with orchestra direction by Brian Rehn and technical direction by James Carpenter.