I have been in love with Aladdin the Musical in the West End
since I first saw it in previews back in May. (As per my first blog). Since
then it has been difficult to get tickets, the 2nd time I saw
Aladdin was in Sept and I knew this could be my new guilty pleasure musical.
This turned out to be true as I am now writing a second Aladdin Blog after
seeing the musical in the West end for the 10th time.
As you know Aladdin the musical is based on the Disney’s
animated film about an orphan boy named Aladdin who is poor, a thief and a bit
of a rebel. Meets a beautiful princess named Jasmine and falls in love. But we
all know it’s not that easy. Jafar who is known as the villain wants to become the
next Sultan, finds out that there is a magic lamp hidden in the ‘cave of
wonders’ and the only boy that can go into the cave is the ‘The Diamond in The
Rough’ known as Aladdin. Aladdin visits the ‘cave of wonders’ finds the magic
lamp but notices an Egyptian jay necklace which Aladdin was warned not to touch
by Jafar and the cave collapses with Aladdin inside. Aladdin manages to keep
hold of the lamp and rubs the lamp and can’t believe his luck as outcomes a
genie who grants Aladdin 3 wishes. Then we can all guess what happens next
Aladdin and Jasmine fall in love and live happily ever after.
As this is my second blog about Aladdin the musical I wanted
to blog about my experience of the show as well as the cast.
The original west end cast stars the amazing Dean
John-Wilson as Aladdin, Trevor Dion Nicholas as the Genie and Jade Ewen as
Princess Jasmine.
As it was my 10th visit I had to get one of the
best seats in the theatre, so I brought a front row ticket in the stalls. When
I got to the theatre it turned out my seat was almost central which was amazing
I couldn’t believe how close I was either. My experience in the front row was a
fantastic one. If you want a great place to sit in the Prince Edward Theatre
the best place is the stalls or the front of the dress circle but for Aladdin
in my opinion definitely the stalls. You could see the faces very clearly and
could see everything that was going on onstage. All the way through the show I
couldn’t keep a straight face I was just smiling and laughing throughout. My
favourite songs in the show is Proud of your Boy, Friend Like me and Somebody’s
Got Your Back. I would give the show a standing ovation every time I visit if I
could. I even got a wave from Trevor and a thumb’s up from Dean at the end
which made me smile, even though I was a little scared to wave back.
The show starts off with a fantastic overture of all the
songs in the show and at this point I am already bouncing up and down in my
seat. Once the overture is over the curtain rises and the show begins in a market
place in the town of Agrabah.
The set is phenomenal, very bright and colourful as well as
the costumes. The special effects always amaze me especially the magic carpet as
when the carpet starts to fly you hear either a cheer or a gasp from the
audience because it is very magical and clever.
There are a couple of changes in the show to the animated
film as Aladdin has 3 friends called Kassim, Omar and Babkak, Jafar has an
assistant called Iago and Jasmine has 3 attendants but it works amazingly. I
prefer the stage version to the actual movie. Also, there is a couple of new
songs too which fit into the show perfectly.
The cast are absolute stars especially Dean John-Wilson and
Trevor Dion Nicholas who are my absolute favourites.
Jade Ewen who portrays Princess Jasmine is a feisty but with
a heart of gold princess who wants to be independent and doesn’t want people to
make up her mind up for her. A very convincing Jasmine. A lovely sweet voice.
Trevor Dion Nicholas who portrays the Genie. First, can I just
say what a legend Trevor is as the Genie, I mean WOW I’ve never watched a west
end actor play a part like that. Out of this world. Trevor had fantastic comic
timing, loved the different references and jokes including Bruce Forsyth and
the Generation Game, Strictly Come Dancing, etc. Loved the different Disney songs
in a Friend Like Me. Friend Like me is the big show stopper that is sung by
Trevor, it’s 7 minutes long and is completely bonkers, (I mean that in a nice
way). That number has everything possible going on in it. A very convincing
genie with a lot of cheekiness added to the character. Loved the relationship
on stage between genie and Aladdin as they make a great duet. It’s always a
pleasure to watch Trevor as the genie because I know that he is bound to make
me smile and laugh. Every time I see the show Trevor steals the show. Also, he
is one of the nicest guys that you can ever meet. Bravo Trevor and Thank You.
Dean John-Wilson who portrays Aladdin. Is another favourite of
mine was fantastic as Aladdin. You can’t help to fall in love with Dean as
Aladdin or help to feel sorry for him at certain points in the show. Dean’s
take on Aladdin is that he comes across very flirtatious, a bit of a rebel and
thief but enjoying life. Dean had great comic timing and there are always
certain lines in the show that I always have a giggle to myself at, but I won’t
give too much away. All Aladdin wants to do is become a better person and make
his mum proud. This leads onto a song that Dean sings called Proud of your boy
which I adore and every time I hear Dean sing it my heart melts it’s such a
beautiful song and Dean sings it with passion. I love Dean as Aladdin certainly
does the part justice and you won’t be disappointed.
Thank you, Dean and Trevor for making my 10th
visit so amazing and memorable.
It’s such an amazing Disney production and is not one to be
missed, if I was rating the show I would give it six stars. A lot of people ask
me The Lion King or Aladdin, can you guess which one I recommend? In case you
hadn’t guessed, yes, I recommend Aladdin. So, don’t hesitate to get tickets,
just go ahead and book, as you will not be disappointed.
Even though I have seen the show 10 times I am still
counting because I will still be going to see the show.
Now playing at the Prince Edward Theatre in London’s West
End.
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