Aladdin is one of my favorite Disney musicals that I’ve seen live (with Newsies as a close second). I’m still waiting for a Beauty and The Beast revival so I can finally see that show live as well. This is such a fun show! The way they brought the story from screen to stage back in 2014 is incredible and to this day the production still has a shinning factor to it. They announced about a year ago that the show was going to be going back on tour after COVID-19 shutdowns, but that the new tour was going to be a reimagined production. One day in February, I was bored at work and decided to see what tours were coming near me that wasn’t a part of our season at Broadway Dallas. Imagine my surprise when I saw that Aladdin was going to be in Little Rock, AR in about two weeks time. Luckier still: it happened to be there on a weekend I had free!
After a few days of thinking about it, I decided to get tickets for the show. They were super affordable. I ended up getting my boyfriend and I tickets for the balcony area. The view was very good despite being a good distance from the stage. We didn’t feel like we missed anything. This was his first professional musical to see live and I wanted to make sure he had a great experience. Spoiler: he had a fantastic time! Disney is definitely the right way to introduce someone to musicals. Everyone knows the movies the shows are based on, the songs are catchy, and it has all the big show musical elements needed – gorgeous costumes, fun choreography, and a thriller tap number.
This show first opened in New York City in 2014 and just celebrated its ninth anniversary (if you don’t take out the 18 months of closure due to COVID-19). I’ve seen the show twice in NYC: once with the original cast and a second time to celebrate my friend’s birthday and to see an understudy performance. Seeing the show on tour would mark my first time seeing Aladdin without Jonathan Freeman in the show (the original Jafar for both the movie and the musical), so I was definitely hesitant on how much I would enjoy Anand Nagraj’s performance. Plot twist: I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Our only understudy for this performance was Cameron Siran in the role of Iago, which in turn had Asten Stewart appearing in the ensemble performing in Siran’s normal track. Overall, I didn’t see much difference between the New York City production and this new touring production. Other than the standard differences they have to make when touring a show and not performing in the same theater every day, it seemed pretty much the same. I’m not really sure why they called it a “reimagined” production, unless it was more of a marketing plan than a production plan. However, it did feel like the tempo of the songs were a little faster, so it could be that this tour has new orchestrations.
Marcus M. Martin was fantastic as the Genie and really had the audience involved in not just his performance, but in the entire show as well. The comedic skills one needs in the role of the Genie are tough and Martin stepped up to the plate and carried the show. Adi Roy and Senzel Ahmady were precious as Aladdin and Jasmine respectfully, and the entire cast powered all the tough Casey Nicholaw choreography. I still love the addition of Aladdin’s three friends to the production, even if it meant having to exclude his monkey friend Abu. The two songs that they are featured in bring a lot of energy and humor.
Aladdin is still holding a quality of magic and newness nine years in. I would see this show over and over again if given the opportunity! I’m actually really debating going to see it in Fort Worth when it makes a stop there during the 2023/2024 season. This is definitely a must see show for everyone of all ages, especially those who love Disney. Like I said before, Aladdin is also a great show for anyone who wants to experience a musical for the first time.
My favorite songs from the show in no particular order: “Diamond in the Rough”, “A Million Miles Away”, and “Friend Like Me”.
Aladdin is currently touring around the country through May 2024 and is also running at the New Amsterdam Theatre in New York City. My Aladdin cast was Adi Roy (Aladdin), Senzel Ahmady (Jasmine), Marcus M. Martin (Genie), Anand Nagraj (Jafar), Aaron Choi (Iago, was out for my show), Sorab WAdia (Sultan), Jake Letts (Babkak), Ben Chavez (Omar), Colt Prattes (Kassim).
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