Beauty and the Beast: The secrets of “It’s the Party”, “Belle”, “Gaston”, “Eternal History”…
Composer Alan Menken deciphers his cult songs.
In 2017, on the occasion of the release of the live version of Beauty and the Beast, Entertainment Weekly had released a special issue dedicated to the Disney animated film and its transposition produced by Bill Condon and carried by Emma Watson. Who says Disney cartoon, says cult songs, and the team had the good idea to ask the composer Alan Menkenrewarded at the 1992 Oscars for his music, to reveal the manufacturing secrets of “Beautiful”, “It’s Party”, “Eternal History”… Not to be missed if you like the original filmwhich returns this Friday evening on M6.
To wait, you can also test your knowledge of the studio’s animated films with our killer quiz ? You will find there in particular a not easy question on Gaston’s real name…
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“Beautiful”
The opening song of Beauty and the Beast was the biggest challenge for the team responsible for imagining its music, because it was quite simply the first time in the history of the studio that a cartoon opened with 7 minutes of song. Alan Menken explains that the lyricist Howard Ashmanwho wrote all the titles for the film, but died a few months before its release due to HIV, was very afraid that this concept would be rejected by Disney. “He didn’t want to send it to them. He kept saying, ‘This is crazy. What were we thinking!’ But in the end, the producers loved it. They were happy to say ‘Hello’ to ‘Belle’.”
Two years ago, he detailed to the same magazine: “We wanted to start in a very calm and classical way, like Mozart, by presenting ‘a small town, a quiet village’, and suddenly it explodes: ‘Hello! Hello!'”. A pure “operetta” where words are interspersed with dialogue. The choice of Page O’Harathe voice actress for Belle in English, is no coincidence: she was spotted on the stages of Broadway.
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“Be our guest”/“It’s a party”
A true music hall “number”, this very dynamic piece where the objects of the castle bend over backwards to impress Belle is heady. “However, at the time, it seemed too simple to me, I thought Howard was going to send it back to me and ask me to throw it away (laughs).” Ahsman sent him the piece back… but with words! Et “Be our guest”in original version, has become obvious. “I couldn’t get it out of my head. I couldn’t believe he made it so unforgettable.”
“It’s not the party” in the Honest Trailer for Beauty and the Beast
“Gaston”
Parody of “tavern song” presenting extolling the qualities (well rather the faults) of the most popular hunter in the village who has all the women at his feet except Belle, Gaston was imagined by Howard Ahsman echoing the “sadistic song” from the dentist Little Shop of Horrorsreveals Menken. “When I discovered the lyrics, I was bursting with laughter. I couldn’t get to the end of the song!” “The loudest is Gaston, the funniest is Gaston, and no one has a better song than Gaston…”
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“Something There”/“I didn’t know”
When Paige O’Hara And Robby Benson recorded this duet, Howard Ahsman was so weakened that he almost had no voice. He whispered his instructions to Menken, who repeated them out loud to the team. “O’Hara was singing the phrase ‘New and a bit alarming’ too softly, and he just whispered ‘Streisand’ to me. She knew right away what he wanted. ‘New, in a bit a- LAR-ming’. It brings a certain irony to what she says, it’s perfect.”
Beauty and the Beast: in French, Belle has the same voice as Anna from Frozen
“The Mob Song”/“Let’s kill the beast”
For the darkest song in the film, where the deep voice of Richard White encourages the villagers to go to the castle to eliminate the beast, Menken wanted to find the side “pure operetta”accentuating the theatrical rhythm of the scene. “As with The Little Mermaid, we wanted, with Beauty and the Beast, to rediscover the tone of the first Disney, which was very classic, very European. This piece represents this idea perfectly.”
Beauty and the Beast fails to make us forget its animated model
“Beauty and the Beast”/“Eternal History”
The most famous song from the film, which won the Oscar in 1992, was given two versions: a “lullaby” sung by Angela Lansbury (Madame Samovar) during the ball scene, and another by Celine Dion And Peabo Bryson within the credits. Ashman had recorded a demo of the first version, and Menken that of the second, in order to offer them to the artists they wanted to work with. “Angela initially refused, explaining that she didn’t see herself in this project. I asked the team what demo they had offered her, because I didn’t understand how she could have refused, when we had written that for her. That’s when I found out they had sent the wrong version. I shouted, ‘Oh, no, no, no, give her Howard’s!’ I remember it felt urgent.” Lansbury finally agreed upon hearing “its” version and she recorded the song in one take.
In the live film, it’s Adriana Grande and John Legend who will sing the credits song. Here is his clip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7G6w8f80Ks
Before Beauty and the Beast, Emma Watson was already the prom queen