Aladdin is coming to town!! Yay!! Aladdin the Broadway musical is on a national tour for at least the second you in a row. If your kiddos are fans of the movie, it is a must see.
The show was in Seattle last year, and we took a day trip up there just in case it wasn’t going to make it to our area. And this year we will be seeing it here as well!
The musical follows the story of the Disney movie pretty closely. All your favorite songs are included, complete with bright, glittering sets. Aladdin is a bit more angsty, and has a couple solos about how he hopes his parents are proud of him. Um, he’s a thief. But a sweet and adorable thief.
And Disney must not have been able to find incredibly well trained animals who they could guarantee wouldn’t “let it go” on the middle of the stage. Abu is turned into two of Aladdin’s human friends who provide quite a bit of levity. Raja becomes Jasmine’s girlfriends, and honestly I didn’t feel like they added much. Iago also becomes a man- although somehow Nugget walked away with the impression he was Jafar’s wife. His mind must have taken some interesting detours.
We saw the show when Adam Jacobs was in the title role- he originated Aladdin on Broadway. It was pretty cool to see the original actor and recognize the voice from the soundtrack we had been listening to. He is no longer playing Aladdin, but I’m sure the new actor will be fantastic, too.
The costumes in this show are gorgeous and colorful. There is so much to look at and be amazed by. The cave of wonders is very well done, and the stage is covered in golden treasure. The dancing is fantastic and the whole show is so high energy. It’s kind of like a multicolored singing glitter bomb going off on stage for 2 plus hours. In a good way.
The kids both loved it. Although Nugget was very concerned that we saw so much of Jasmine’s belly button. He didn’t feel like that was appropriate. Or the kissing. Chicken reveled in following him around saying “belly button, belly button, kiss, kiss, kiss” for several week. Actually, she still does it sometimes and he still curls up into the fetal position. So there’s that. But he was entranced by the flying carpet. He knows there should be ropes holding it up, but since we couldn’t see them he is sure there must be some actual magic involved. Chicken still occasionally bursts into “High Adventure”- one of the new songs that was one of our favorite parts of the play.
I wouldn’t say this is one of the meatier or best acted Broadway tours. But it sure is fun. If you are looking for an afternoon of color, dance, humor, and Disney joy, this show is definitely for you. Run and get your tickets now!
If you are interested in going to Aladdin while it is in town this March and April, you can find them at https://portland.broadway.com/
And yes- Frozen is coming! Eek!
UPDATE: We saw this show in Portland for the second time on April 6, 2019. It was even better than last time! Even accounting for the fact that we didn’t have to drive three hours each way, we enjoyed the show even more. Three actors are now portraying Genie, and we lucked out by seeing Major Attaway in the role, who has previously played Genie on Broadway. He was out of this world! We also preferred this year’s Aladdin and Jasmine- they had better chemistry and Jasmine was just a touch sassier in a way we loved. I think Aladdin’s three friends were perhaps a bit stronger last year, but these actors were also fantastic.
We had slightly better seats this time and it really made a difference in how much we noticed the sparkle that is all over the stage and costumes, as well as all the small details that are part of the set. Chicken and Nugget both giggled more this time and overall we had a fantastic time.
So, my assertion still stands- if Aladdin comes on tour to your area and you have little fans at home, it it totally worth a family date night!
Adventures with Chicken and Nugget 