Beauty and the Beast’s Shubshri Kandiah on life as a Disney princess

Think being a Disney princess is all swishing around in a nice dress with a big smile then think again. Here’s what it really takes.

There’s more to playing a princess than meets the eye – just ask Shubshri Kandiah.

The talented performer is the definition of Disney royalty, having starred on stage as Jasmine in Aladdin The Musical, and now Belle in Beauty and The Beast, which will make its long-awaited Adelaide debut on May 8.

Kandiah says her latest role, as the studious yet strong-willed Belle, has been among her most challenging.

“I timed it once and there’s only 14 minutes, out of the two-and-a-half-hour show, where I’m just hanging in my dressing room not doing anything. It’s a lot,” she says.

“And the content sometimes gets glossed over. Everyone thinks you’re just a Disney princess but really when you zoom into Belle’s role, she’s locked away from her family and dealing with somebody (The Beast) who is quite aggressive towards her … I find that quite emotionally draining.

“I haven’t experienced that before on any other show and it took a while to get used to.”

But Kandiah, 29, wouldn’t change a thing.

Playing Belle is something of a dream come true for the rising star, who vividly remembers watching the classic animated movie while growing up in Perth.

Shubshri Kandiah plays the studious yet strong-willed Belle in Beauty & The Beast. Picture: Julie Adams.

Shubshri Kandiah and Brendan Xavier in Disney's Beauty and The Beast the musical. Picture: Daniel Boud

The character’s evolution over three decades has added another layer of appeal for Kandiah, who embodies many of Belle’s much-loved qualities.

“She was really one of the first Disney roles that was a fiercely strong and independent woman, who stood up for what she believed in. Her love of books and reading was quite unusual,” she says.

“But even in this version of the show, Belle wears her glasses, and they’ve gotten rid of the apron that she used to wear.

“The character continues to be accessible and updated.

“The original animated version is always going to be there, but now a different group of people can connect with ours and that’s a special thing.”

The timeless fairytale about a prince who is turned into a monster by an enchantress’s curse was originally written by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont in 1756.

More than two centuries later, it was famously adapted into an award-winning feature film. In 1994 it became Disney’s first Broadway venture, eventually clocking up an incredible 5500 shows in 13 years in New York.

The smash-hit musical premiered in Melbourne in 1995, with then-TV actor Hugh Jackman cast as Gaston, Bert Newton as Cogsworth, Rachael Beck as Belle and Michael Cormick as the Beast.

But the production never made its way to Adelaide – until now.

“It’s always exciting to go to a new city and see the response from the crowd but it’s the first time the show has ever come to Adelaide so everyone is really excited to share it,” Kandiah says. “I once met an older lady who came to the stage door after one of the shows.

Shubshri Kandiah and Brendan Xavier.

Shubshri Kandiah and Brendan Xavier in Disney's Beauty and The Beast the musical. Picture: Supplied by Disney

“She told me she brought her daughter to Beauty and the Beast 30 years ago and now she was here with her granddaughter.

“It’s such a special musical for so many families and now Adelaide gets to experience that.”

Kandiah and her parents, mother Raj and father Kumar, have a unique link to South Australia.

Both from Malaysia of Indian heritage, the couple met in Adelaide after immigrating to Australia (he to Victoria, her to SA) with their families as teenagers.

“My dad’s family friend was roommates with my mum (in Adelaide) so he came down to visit him and met my mum here,” Kandiah says.

“They did long distance for a while, then moved to Melbourne before settling in Perth.”

Kandiah’s love of music was cemented at a young age. Raj and Kumar noticed her vocal talents during a school performance and they moved swiftly to place their only child in singing lessons.

“I didn’t know much about musical theatre. I had never seen a musical in person,” she says.

“I knew I loved singing and dancing but I didn’t think much of it.”

After completing year 12, Kandiah was at the crossroads, and pondered a career away from the stage. It was only after starting a full-time teaching degree that her future finally crystallised.

“That’s when I went, ‘Oh, this is not for me’. I realised I really wanted to focus on musical theatre,” she says. “My parents thought I should finish my degree but I was like ‘Absolutely not!’.

“Nothing gives me the same feeling as being on stage and acting and singing. I love doing that work and I have never experienced the same kind of love doing anything else.”

Kandiah initially studied to be a teacher. Picture: Julie Adams

Beauty and the Beast star Shubshri Kandiah. Picture: Brett Hartwig

Her big break – and her first professional role after graduating from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music – came in 2018 as Princess Jasmine in Disney’s blockbuster Australian production of Aladdin.

“I had no expectations of getting a job, it was just one of those things I loved doing and I wanted to keep doing,” Kandiah says.

“Jasmine was a really beautiful introduction to being a lead in a show. It was definitely a prominent part but the responsibility as Belle is a lot greater.”

In 2022, she finally secured that coveted role following a gruelling audition process, during which she crossed paths with Brendan Xavier, the man who would star opposite her as the Beast. Their undeniable chemistry comes naturally, Kandiah says.

“I didn’t know him very well, we hadn’t worked together but we kept bumping into each other and I remember seeing him at the audition for this,” she says.

“It’s been an incredible journey. Sometimes we’re dancing together now and I feel like neither of us are touching, we’re just moving as one unit.

“That’s two years of working with someone, you’re just so aware of each other.”

Disney’s reimagined show is an unforgettable, big-budget spectacle. There are 300 elaborate costumes, remarkably detailed sets (including 97 custom electric candles in the Beast’s castle) and several dazzling dance numbers, highlighted by a stunning 11-minute version of Be Our Guest led by Rohan Browne, who plays Lumiere.

“I would love to see the full show from the front. When we were in technical rehearsals I would run out and try and see things … the town just looks like a storybook,” Kandiah says.

“Watching it gives you a completely different perspective from actually being in it.”

Beauty and the Beast leading lady, Shubshri Kandiah, in costume. Picture: David Caird

Then there’s the production’s cutting-edge technology – such as the Beast’s wilting, enchanted rose – which combines stage craft, optical illusion and traditional magic to bring the cast of characters to life.

“It’s very clever. You leave the theatre and you hear people talking about, ‘I wonder how Chip was in the cart? How does the Beast make his transformation at the end?’ I love hearing that,” she says.

“But I can’t say how we do it, that has to stay filed under ‘Disney magic’.”

Raj and Kumar have seen Beauty and the Beast countless times, but there’s every chance they’ll be at the Adelaide Festival Theatre this month or next, to watch their little girl take centre stage once again.

“I think they will be here,” says Kandiah.

“For me, I’ve really enjoyed Adelaide every time I’ve been here, whether it’s performing or to see family and friends.

“It’s clearly a city that loves to host shows so it’s always a joy to be back.”

Beauty and the Beast opens on May 8 and runs until July 6. Tickets are on sale now.

Originally published as Beauty and the Beast’s Shubshri Kandiah on life as a Disney princess