'Beauty and the Beast' hits the stage next week

ST. JOHN - Three special performances of "Beauty and the Beast" will take the stage this month.

The play is being presented by Golden House Theater and will take place at St. John School, 301 W. Nob Hill Road. Admission is free, but donations are accepted.

The cast will feature eight families of actors from ages 4-23.

Performances are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 26; 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Saturday, July 27; and 3 p.m., Sunday, July 28.

Director Dominic Treis said that this year's production has a total of 35 cast members. This will be the first production that Golden House Theater can call themselves a 501(c)3 non-profit.

Treis said that the theatre troupe officially became a 501(c)3 non-profit as of January this year.

"The process was a lot of paperwork," Treis said, adding that the group had to get an official business license with the state, file a form with the federal government, create a board to govern, write bylaws and wait for approval.

Treis said that with the new 501(c)3 non-profit status the theater troupe was able to apply for a grant through Inland Power Community Foundation to purchase a sound board for the theatre. "We now have a fancy audio console that we can use to route all our microphones," he said.

"We are hoping to continue far into the future and this year is probably our most ambitious project to date in terms of costumes, choreography, music," Treis said, adding that it is an extremely complex production.

Treis said that the play will have four or five different locations that they have to accurately portray through backdrops and scenery. "It's been a huge challenge, but the kids have been doing so well, and we can't wait to share it with everybody."

The group decided to perform Beauty and the Beast according to Treis, not only because it is a fun production, but also the play will be restricted for smaller theaters to put on next year due a large broadway tour happening.

Golden House Theater, Treis said, now has a website goldenhousetheater.org. According to the website their theater company is "dedicated to enriching our community through the transformative power of the performing arts."