The Hunchback of Notre Dame comes to the Candlelight

A sweeping score and powerful story make The Hunchback of Notre Dame a truly unforgettable musical and an instant classic.

Inspired by Victor Hugo’s gothic novel and songs from the Disney animated feature, this version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame was adapted for the stage by the creative team of Alan Menken (Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and Little Mermaid), Stephen Schwartz (Broadways Pippen and Wicked), and Peter Parnell in 2014. Quasimodo, the deformed bell-ringer of the Notre Dame Cathedral, has spent his life locked in a tower by his guardian, archdeacon Dom Claude Frollo. Longing to be with other people, Quasimodo escapes to spend one day ‘out there,’ which leads to his chance encounter with the enchanting gypsy, Esmeralda. Quasimodo isn’t the only one captivated by her free spirit though. The handsome Captain Phoebus and Frollo are equally enthralled. As the three vie for her attention and Frollo attempts to destroy the gypsies, powerful forces propel each of them toward their fate, be it malevolent, graceful, loving, or heroic.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame cast includes David Wygant as Frollo, Ethan Lee Knowles as Quasimodo, Scotty Shaffer as Clopin, Scott Hurst as Phoebus, and Sarah Grover as Esmeralda. Under the direction of Candlelight Dinner Playhouse newcomer Richard Cowden, the creative team includes Choreographer Heather McClain, Music Director Phil Forman, Scenic Designer Ranae Salmeyer, Costume Designer Kevin Wolfgang, Lighting Designer Christopher Waller, and Sound Designer Phillip Baugh.

Over the past hundred and eighty-five years, Hugo’s masterpiece has been adapted numerous times. In fact, it’s been made into 13 films, 5 movies made for television, 5 non-musical adaptations, 8 musicals, 6 operas, 5 ballets, and a video game. Clearly, this universal story of unrequited love and a yearning for acceptance resonates as powerfully today as it did when Hugo created it.

In an interview with PLAYBILL, composer Alan Menken spoke to the character of Quasimodo, saying, he’s the perfect example “of ugly on the outside and beautiful on the inside. That strikes a chord with everyone.” In the same interview, lyricist Stephen Schwartz agreed. Quasimodo “resonates very much for me. I write a lot of shows with outcasts in the lead.”

What’s more, Schwartz was so determined to connect to Quasimodo’s perspective on the world that he wrote the lyrics to “Out There” in the bell tower of the Notre Dame Cathedral. “I brought my little yellow pad up there with me and scrawled lyrics,” Schwartz recalls. “It was very helpful just for getting a feeling of what it must have been like for the character of Quasimodo to have lived his entire life up there.” “This story has been told countless times. People keep trying to do it in various forms – a film, a television movie, a musical, an opera,” Schwartz explains. “The story, as they say, has legs.”

Director Richard Cowden said about the show, “This classic source material is as relevant to us today as it was when it was published in 1831. It contains profound messages of tolerance, morality, and what it truly means to be human. Its characters are all deeply passionate and committed to their objectives, and its message of accepting “the other” could not possibly be more resonant to audiences during these times of great strife.”

Purchase dinner and show tickets by calling Candlelight’s box office – 970-744-3747, or online atwww.ColoradoCandlelight.com.