Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” will be the next collaboration between Easy Street Productions and the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra.

Auditions will be held Feb. 8 for the ensemble of singers and dancers who will join the guest artists on stage, who will perform with live accompaniment by a streamlined version of the YSO conducted by Randall Craig Fleischer.

Easy Street co-founder Todd Hancock said they wanted to pick a show with younger appeal after their first two joint projects.

“When we did ‘Guys & Dolls,’ we did about as well as you could for one night,” Hancock said. “‘South Pacific’ was wonderfully successful for a two-day run, but it was limited to kind of a date-night crowd. That property has a timeless score, but some felt it was dated or old. We didn’t get a younger audience. Next time we decided to pick a more family-friendly title.”

“Beauty and the Beast” certainly meets that description. The 1991 animated featured won Academy Awards for best original song and best original score and was the first full-length animated feature to be nominated for best picture.

“That score, they just knocked it out of the park,” Hancock said. “I think that’s really why Randall Fleischer was so on board with it. It’s a score worthy of a symphony.”

The stage version, which added additional songs to the ones written by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, ran for 13 years and more than 5,400 performances on Broadway and was nominated for nine Tony Awards.

Easy Street also has a history with the show, staging the musical in 2007 at Powers Auditorium for five performances.

There isn’t a concert version of “Beauty and the Beast” available, but the staging will be similar to the productions of “Guys & Dolls” and “South Pacific” — actors will be fully costumed, but the show will rely primarily on projections rather than traditional sets.

“As a director, it’s going to save me a lot of headaches,” Hancock said. “We literally had a castle we brought in that revolved on stage. I’m not saying we’ll shortchange the audience. We’re working with an animator to do a lot of the computer graphics. We’re going to custom design the show for our needs around the symphony.”

Not all of the guest actors are confirmed for the production, but Hancock said he and Easy Street co-founder Maureen Collins will reprise their roles as Lumiere and Mrs. Potts, respectively, from the 2007 production.

“I just love the show to begin with, but I’m being a little selfish,” he said. “This is something Maur and I can be in. It’s wonderful to sit on the sidelines and cheer everyone on, but we like performing too.”

The May performances also will mark Hancock’s first appearances on stage since narrating “Guys & Dolls” last February. He only directed “South Pacific,” and heath issues forced him out of Easy Street’s annual Christmas show, “Miracle on Easy Street.” After multiple stents to open heart blockages, Hancock said he’s healthy and ready to get back on stage.

The rest of the cast should be announced by the time tickets go on sale Feb. 14 for performances at 7:30 p.m. May 2 and 2:30 p.m. May 3 at Powers Auditorium, 260 W. Federal St., Youngstown.

Auditions will be Feb. 8 at DeYor Performing Arts Center’s Ford Family Recital Hall. Dance auditions run from 2 to 4 p.m. and are open to dancers ages 13 and older who have had years of formal training at a studio. Singing and gymnastic ability is a plus but not required.

Auditions for singers run from 5 to 7 p.m. and are open to performers ages 13 and older. Singers should prepare a one-minute (32-bar) song to be sung acappella or with pianist. Bring sheet music for the accompanist provided. Those wishing to be considered for understudies and supporting roles may be asked to read from the script. Video submissions are also being accepted.

For more information on auditions, email easystreetshows@aol.com.