Aladdin (musical)

***Aladdin*** is a stage musical based on the 1992 film of the same name which made its world premiere at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre from July 7-July 31, 2011. After successful runs in Utah and Missouri, the show made its Broadway debut with previews beginning February 26, 2014 at the New Amsterdam Theatre with the official opening night on March 20 of that same year which followed a tryout during the holiday season in Toronto. The show won a Tony Award for James Monroe Iglehart as the Genie as the Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical.

With its popularity, this Broadway style musical is all set to grace the Indian theatre scenes this 2018.

## Background

### Story

The story follows a local street-rat in the Middle Eastern kingdom of Agrabah. After finding a magic lamp containing an all-powerful Genie with the ability to grant three wishes. Aladdin uses the Genie to become a prince and win the heart of the beautiful Princess Jasmine, while the Sultan's Royal Vizier, Jafar, plots to steal the lamp for himself to usurp the throne.

### Production

Even though a stage version of *Aladdin* was already playing at Disney California Adventure and eventually on the Disney Fantasy cruise ship, a full-length version had been in development for quite some time. In November 2010, Alan Menken confirmed that a musical adaptation was officially in the works. Disney Theatrical Productions finally confirmed that a full length stage musical of "Aladdin" will premiere in Seattle at The 5th Avenue Theatre in July 2011.

The show features most of the songs by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman that were cut from the film as well as the songs in film by Menken and Tim Rice, along with new songs by Menken and librettist Chad Beguelin.

Jonathan Freeman, the voice for Jafar in the film, was later announced to recreate his performance on stage.

A number of the songs featured in the show were deleted songs from the 1992 film, restored for the musical. Others were written especially for it. The genres are a mix of both Broadway-style songs and adult contemporary ballads, in accordance to the two song-writing teams that worked on the show.

Note that the "Arabian Night" reprises do not match up with how they are listed in the Music Behind the Magic disc set. Every reprise deleted from the film was restored here besides Reprise 3, which takes place while Aladdin is in jail. It was replaced with a fourth-wall breaker regarding the intermission.

## Variations from the 1992 film

### Characters

* Abu, Rajah, Gazeem and the Peddler were all excluded from the show. Abu was replaced by Aladdin's three human friends (Omar, Babkak and Kassim, who ironically were replaced by Abu in the original film's production), Rajah was replaced with human handmaidens that serve as Jasmine's friends and confidantes, while the Peddler's dialogue and scenes were given to the Genie, a callback to an abandoned concept that had the Genie reveal himself to be the Peddler at the end of the original animated film. Abu and Rajah were omitted primarily because they would be hard to convincingly depict on-stage, though Abu makes a cameo on a sign during "Prince Ali".

* Instead of a parrot, Iago is a human in this production, most likely because using a puppet like in the Disney California Adventure and Disney Cruise Line productions would be unconvincing or too similar to how Zazu is depicted in the *The Lion King*musical.

### Plot points

* Aladdin's second wish is used to free him and his friends from imprisonment, instead of saving himself from drowning.

* Jafar's first wish is to make Jasmine his prisoner, while his second is to become Sultan. In the film, Jafar first wish is to become sultan, while becoming the most powerful sorcerer in the world is used as his second.

* The scene in which Jafar sends Aladdin to the arctic wastelands to freeze to death has been removed.

* Instead of being sucked into the lamp with Jafar, Iago is arrested for his crimes following Jafar's downfall.

## Pre-Broadway

Act I

* "Arabian Nights" – Babkak, Omar, Kassim & Company
* "Babkak, Omar, Aladdin, Kassim – Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "One Jump Ahead" – Aladdin, Crowd
* "One Jump Ahead (Reprise)" – Aladdin
* "Proud of Your Boy" – Aladdin
* "Arabian Nights (Reprise I)" – Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Call Me A Princess" – Jasmine & Attendants
* "Call Me A Princess (Reprise)"– Jasmine
* "Why Me?" – Jafar, Iago
* "A Million Miles Away" – Aladdin & Jasmine
* "Arabian Nights (Reprise II)" – Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Friend Like Me" – Genie, Company
* "Arabian Nights (Reprise III)" – Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Act I Finale (Friend Like Me (Reprise)/Proud of Your Boy (Reprise I))" – Genie, Aladdin

Act II

* "Prince Ali" – Genie, Babkak, Omar, Kassim, Company
* "A Whole New World" – Aladdin & Jasmine
* "High Adventure" – Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Somebody's Got Your Back" – Aladdin, Genie, Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Wedding Suite" – Orchestra
* "Prince Ali (Reprise)" – Jafar, Sultan, Company
* "Finale Ultimo (Arabian Nights (Reprise IV)/A Whole New World (Reprise))" – Company

## Broadway

Act I

* "Overture" – Orchestra
* "Arabian Nights" – Genie & Company
* "One Jump Ahead" – Aladdin, Crowd
* "Proud of Your Boy" – Aladdin
* "These Palace Walls" – Jasmine & Attendants
* "Babkak, Omar, Aladdin, Kassim" – Babkak, Omar, Aladdin, Kassim & Crowd
* "A Million Miles Away" – Aladdin & Jasmine
* "Diamond in the Rough" – Jafar, Iago, & Aladdin
* "Friend Like Me" – Genie, Company
* "Act I Finale (Friend Like Me (Reprise)/Proud of Your Boy (Reprise))" – Genie, Aladdin

Act II

* "Entr'acte" – Orchestra
* "Prince Ali" – Genie, Babkak, Omar, Kassim, Company
* "A Whole New World" – Aladdin & Jasmine
* "High Adventure" – Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Somebody's Got Your Back" – Aladdin, Genie, Babkak, Omar, & Kassim
* "Proud of Your Boy (Reprise II)" – Aladdin
* "Prince Ali (Reprise)" – Jafar, Sultan, Company
* "Finale Ultimo (Arabian Nights (Reprise)/A Whole New World (Reprise))" – Company

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## Trivia

* The Spanish production has original songs created only for the musical.
* Jonathan Freeman is the first actor to recreate his role from a Disney film in a stage adaptation.
* At the end of the musical, a small acknowledgement of Iago joining the side of good - as seen in the second film, *Return of Jafar* - is made.
* Jafar posing himself as Aladdin’s uncle appears to be a callback to the original folktale.
* In the pre-Broadway tryout, Babkak, Omar, and Cassim served as the narrators. When the creative team discovered this wasn't working, they instead had the Genie open the show.
* Lyricist Tim Rice discusses his experience working on the musical in his podcast Get Onto My Cloud.

## External links

* Broadway official website
* West End official website