<P> Animator Mark Henn observed that, unlike Ariel, Belle does not "fall in love at first sight"; instead "there's an actual relationship you see grow". In the original fairy tale, Belle has two selfish sisters who both have their own respective love interests, all of whom Woolverton omitted from the screenplay in favor of focusing solely on Belle's relationship with Gaston . At one point, Belle had a younger sister named Clarice and a cruel aunt named Marguerite, both of whom were discarded--Clarice to emphasize Belle's loneliness, and Marguerite to be replaced by Gaston as the film's villain . Woolverton also eliminated the subplot of Belle asking her father for a rose . Despite constant "regressive" re-writes, Woolverton's overall vision for Belle generally remained intact . Beauty and the Beast's story department was predominantly male, a time during which few women were involved . Woolverton often found herself at odds and disagreeing with the more traditional story artists in regards to Belle's role in the film, but continued to be supported by Katzenberg and lyricist Howard Ashman . </P> <P> According to Woolverton, the story team challenged nearly every line of dialogue Woolverton suggested for the character . On one occasion, the story artists re-wrote what Woolverton had originally scripted as Belle using a map to indicate places to where she would like to travel to the character baking a cake . Arguing that the liberated Belle would not even know how to bake, Woolverton decided to compromise by having the character read a book instead, which was similarly debated because some filmmakers considered reading to be too passive an activity . To resolve this, Woolverton scripted Belle walk while reading, an activity in which Woolverton herself partook as a child . In Beaumont's fairy tale, Belle is essentially forced to replace her father as the Beast's prisoner . To make the character more independent, Woolverton re-wrote her so that she willingly ventures into the woods in search of her father, bravely confronts the Beast and ultimately trades her own freedom in return for Maurice's instead . During Gaston's climactic fight with the Beast, the character's line "Time to die!" was changed to "Belle is mine!" in order to return the focus of the story to Belle . </P> <P> Disney had originally considered casting actress Jodi Benson, who famously voiced Ariel in The Little Mermaid, as Belle, but ultimately felt that she sounded "too American" and young, opting for a "more classical...womanly" voice instead . Describing the character as "a woman that was ahead of her time," the filmmakers wanted Belle to sound "more like a woman than a girl ." However, Benson voiced Belle in a few episodes of Disney's House of Mouse . Director Kirk Wise was particularly interested in casting an actress capable of "creat (ing) a character completely with her voice", envisioning a voice similar to that of American entertainer Judy Garland . American actress and singer Paige O'Hara was performing on Broadway when she first read about Disney's then - upcoming animated project Beauty and the Beast in an article in The New York Times . Upon discovering that the studio was holding auditions for the lead role of Belle and, at the behest of lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken, specifically recruiting Broadway performers, O'Hara immediately insisted that her agent get her an audition . Familiar with O'Hara's Broadway stint as Ellie May Chipley in the musical Show Boat; Ashman had already been eyeing O'Hara for the part . O'Hara auditioned for the role five times, competing against approximately 500 other actresses . First auditioning solely for casting director Albert Taveres, O'Hara's next two auditions simply required the actress to mail audio recordings of her voice to the studio in Los Angeles . Required to perform a song of her choice, O'Hara sang "Heaven Help My Heart" from the musical Chess . At her first legitimate audition, O'Hara spoke and sang in a higher register than her own in an effort to mimic Snow White from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, but the filmmakers insisted that she use her own voice instead . In addition to Ashman and Menken, O'Hara's last few auditions were attended by directors Wise and Gary Trousdale, and producers Katzenberg and Don Hahn . O'Hara recalled that the songwriters would first close their eyes and listen to her before finally watching her perform . An hour after her fifth and final audition, O'Hara received a telephone call from Disney on her birthday informing her that she had been cast . The actress was fairly confident that the role was hers before she was officially cast, and credits the fact that Ashman enjoyed her performance on the cast recording of the musical Show Boat . O'Hara admitted, "I'm not usually confident about auditions...but I just understood (Belle) so much ." </P> <P> 30 years - old at the time of her audition, O'Hara consequently imbued Belle's voice with a mature, "womanly quality" despite the character's young age . Woolverton appreciated the fact that O'Hara sounded more mature than traditional Disney heroines . Additionally, O'Hara identified with her character because they were both ostracized by their peers throughout their childhood because of their unconventional interests, explaining, "I was odd growing up myself . I mean, I was into musical theater and Gershwin and Rodgers and Hammerstein while people were going to Led Zeppelin concerts . So I understood that...I wasn't the norm either . I was very focused on my career, on my performing all through my childhood and my teens...I had a one - track mind, and I think that Belle was like that a lot ." O'Hara also shares Belle's interest in reading . Wise was pleased with the quality of O'Hara's voice, which reminded him of Garland . O'Hara initially found it challenging to control her speaking volume due to having been trained to project as a stage actress . O'Hara told The Guardian that to solve this she "softened and used the microphone ." As per the filmmakers' encouragement, the actress would occasionally ad - lib her own dialogue, none was included in the final film because it sounded "too modern". The animators would videotape O'Hara daily while she recorded to incorporate her "quirky" mannerisms, expressions and gestures into the character, among them her hair constantly falling into her eyes . O'Hara and American actor Robby Benson, who provides the voice of the Beast, asked Disney to allow the co-stars to record together as opposed to the traditional method of being isolated in a recording booth, to which the studio agreed despite its costliness . O'Hara credited the filmmaker's decision with developing both the film and Belle and the Beast's relationship . O'Hara and Benson became the first Disney voice actors to record together . In total, the recording process took over two years to complete . O'Hara had already been friends with co-star Richard White, who voices Gaston, for 15 years . Despite her successful stage career, O'Hara was virtually unknown to Hollywood audiences when she was cast in Beauty and the Beast; she was one of the last obscure actresses to be cast in a feature - length Disney animated film before the studio began casting better known talent in subsequent animated projects . </P>

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