Broadway's Original Belle, Susan Egan, Made a Surprise Appearance with the Touring Company of "Beauty and the Beast"

The current North American touring company of Disney on Broadway's production of Beauty and the Beast, and one lucky audience, got a big surprise this past weekend when Susan Egan stopped by for a visit and to perform the title track from the production.

What's Happening:

• Susan Egan paid a surprise visit to the Beauty and the Beast touring company this past Friday, during the production's run at Nashville's Tennessee Performing Arts Center.
• Egan originated the role of Belle when Beauty and the Beast debuted on Broadway in 1994, a show which simultaneously launched Disney on Broadway, as their first ever production.
• Egan of course is an important figure in both Disney stage and animation history, having gone from playing Belle to voicing Megara in 1997's Hercules.

• As seen in the video above, Egan first surprised Kyra Belle Johnson, the current voice of Belle, with the two performing the song "Beauty and the Beast" together.
• Then, during the curtain call for that night's show, Johnson introduced Egan to the crowd, with the two once more dueting on the show's iconic title track to the delight of both the audience and Johnson's costars.
• The North American touring production of Beauty and the Beast features Kyra Belle Johnson as Belle, Fergie L. Philippe as the Beast, Stephen Mark Lukas as Gaston, Danny Gardner as Lumiere, Kathy Voytko as Mrs. Potts, Javier Ignacio as Cogsworth, Harry Francis as Lefou, Kevin Ligon as Maurice, Holly Ann Butler as Madame, Cameron Monroe Thomas as Babette, and Levi Blaise Coleman and Kanoa Edgar alternating as Chip.
• The Ensemble includes Vinny Andaloro, Benjamin Cheng, Spencer Dean, Julian Marcus De Guzman, Michael Dikegoros, Leigh-Ann Esty, Masumi Iwai, Darrell T. Joe, Emily Larger, Lena Matthews, Caleb McArthur, Melaina Rairamo, Ellen Roberts, Grace Marie Rusnica, Ben Sears, Michael Seltzer, Jasmine Pearl Villaroel and Kate Wesler.
• Reuniting to create this new production are members of the original Tony Award-winning artistic team, including composer Alan Menken (who wrote the film’s beloved score with the late lyricist Howard Ashman), Tim Rice, who wrote lyrics for the stage adaptation, book writer Linda Woolverton, director and choreographer Matt West, scenic designer Stanley A. Meyer, costume designer Ann Hould-Ward and lighting designer Natasha Katz.