You’ve met Beauty, now it’s time to meet the Beast. Junior Ben Dickman plays the role of the Beast, in the upcoming spring production of “Beauty and the Beast”.

Not many juniors in high school can take on the role of playing a main part in a production, but Ben Dickman is up for the challenge.

Recently, Dickman was chosen to play the role of the Beast, in the spring upcoming production of, ‘Beauty and the Beast’. Dickman says that although this was not the role he originally auditioned for, he is happy that he got this opportunity.

“I actually didn’t even try out for the Beast,” Dickman said. “I really wanted to be Lumiere, mostly because I wasn’t too familiar with the Beauty and the Beast musical and that’s what people were telling me I’d get. I’m glad I surprised everyone, including myself.”

Due to the fact that Dickman did not even audition for the role of the Beast, he had to learn the technique of a whole different character. Dickman says the technique he had to learn for the role of the Beast was much different from other roles he has played, but it is also the best part about the role.

“The best part about the role is definitely the technique and skill it takes to portray such a difficult character,” Dickman said. “It’s like trying to put yourself into the shoes of a walking, talking, sapient grizzly bear who’s looking for love. I love the challenge.”

Although playing this role is going to be a fun journey for Dickman, it is also going to be a hard one. According to Dickman, he puts in a lot of work at rehersal to perfect his role.

“I probably put in about ten hours every week because I have practice almost every day,” Dickman said. “Some practices are only one hour, but some can be up to three.”

Perfecting his role is now second nature to Dickman. Dickman has been participating in plays since he was in the third grade, and has fallen in love with plays ever since.

“I did my first play at Mount Tabor Elementary when I was in third grade,” Dickman said. “It was mediocre, as you could imagine a third grade play might be, so I took a break and found theatre again in sixth grade at Hazelwood. I’ve been doing plays ever since.”

With all of the hardwork throughout the years, and the time that Dickman puts into rehearsals before the play, he says he ususally doesn’t need to really prepare much before the actual performance, but sometimes he still needs a little push.

“I don’t get stage fright very often because I have been doing this for such a long time,” Dickman said. “Sometimes whenever I need a little push, though, I give myself a pep talk and listen to motivational videos on YouTube. I always listen to my songs beforehand, too.”

Dickman’s love for theater won’t stop at high school, he says he has big plans for his future.

“My plan for after high school is to follow my dream of becoming a movie star,” Dickman said. “However cliche that sounds, it’s my dream. I plan to go to college and double major in ccting and Spanish.”