'Beauty and the Beast' back in Chicago

The NETworks national tour of “Disney's Beauty and the Beast” is headed back to the Windy City. The non-Equity production previously played a two-week run at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago last year, but now it's set for a five-week run at the Oriental Theatre during the city's prime summer tourist season.

The NETworks tour boasts the original “Beauty and the Beast” creative team behind the 1994 Broadway hit production, though the designs have been rethought and streamlined. The stage musical is based upon Disney's Academy Award-winning 1991 animated feature, which tells the tale of a cursed beast in an enchanted castle who learns how to care for others from a lovely bookworm named Belle.

“Disney's Beauty and the Beast” plays from Wednesday, June 29, through Sunday, Aug. 7, at the Oriental Theatre, 24 W. Randolph St., Chicago. The performance schedule varies, but is largely 2 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are $18-$85. Call (800) 775-2000 or visit broadwayinchicago.com.