When he was six years old, Harry Francis auditioned for Chip in a West End production of “Beauty and the Beast” in London. He didn’t get the part, and – as any six year old would be – was completely devastated.
His parents, both actors, were understandably worried about their son having to deal with rejection at such a young age.
“My dad said, ‘My son is not going to experience the ups and downs of being an actor at the age of 6,” Francis said. “He said, ‘I would rather he didn’t audition at this point.’”
But Francis didn’t let up. While watching a production of “The King and I,” he pointed at the actor playing Louis, Anna’s young son, onstage and said to his mother, “I want to play that part.” He couldn’t let it go.
That determination paid off. As a child, he would appear in West End productions of “The King and I” and “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.” More recently, his “Beauty and the Beast” audition story has come full circle. He will appear as LeFou in the touring production of “Beauty and the Beast” coming to the Fox Theatre May 26-31.
Atlanta plays a special role in Francis’ musical theater journey. After a long, arduous process of getting his green card so he could move to the United States (Francis is originally from the United Kingdom), his first job in the U.S. was in none other than Sandy Springs. Francis played Mister Mistoffelees in the 2023 City Springs Theatre Company production of “Cats.”
“It’s a show that meant a lot to me,” he said. “It was really great to return to that show, but also to do it in City Springs in Atlanta, and make that my debut.”
Francis has always wanted to work in musical theater, he said, but also trained as a ballet dancer. That training helped him land one of his first big roles in “West Side Story.”
“I was spotted by the casting director in ballet class,” Francis said. “He saw me jumping across the floor and asked me to come and audition for the show.”
LeFou is the sidekick of the show’s villain, Gaston (Stephen Mark Lukas), and isn’t a role you might normally think of as one that’s dance-heavy. But this particular production is different. Members of the 1994 Broadway creative team – including choreographer Matt West, designer Stanley A. Meyer, and costume designer Ann Hould-Ward – have reunited for this touring production, but are bringing a new vision.
“When it came to making changes, we were in such safe hands because it wasn’t a new team who didn’t know what works about the show,” Francis said. “They truly know what works, and then they had the room to expand their vision artistically.”
Francis is particularly excited about the choreography, particularly in one of the musical’s showstopping numbers, “Gaston.”
“I was very excited in the auditions that it’s a very athletic number and I really like that they wanted Lefou to really dance,” Francis said. “I get to really dance full out in the middle of the number, which is great because normally, it’s a very high energy role, but it’s more of a character role, so it doesn’t normally lend itself to a big dance break.”
The choreography isn’t the only thing that’s changed. The sets and costumes will be different, and book writer Linda Woolverton has added new scenes, including one for LeFou and Gaston. For Francis, it was fun to have new things to try within the context of an old show.
“Going into a show that’s been around for a long time is always wonderful, but getting the chance to originate a scene and work out what’s funny, what’s working, what we need to tweak, that was a very exciting few days of rehearsal.”
Tickets for “Beauty and the Beast” are on sale at the Fox Theatre’s website.
