Disney Aladdin Playhouse Theatre 2nd November 2023 Review
Disney Aladdin is at the Playhouse Theatre Edinburgh until the 18th November, and if you want a large scale musical for all the family then this is probably one to go for as you know there will be no unpleasant surprises in any production from this company.
Aladdin is always a bit of an odd story so full of contradictions and that started from the very beginning of this story as, despite being so well associated with The Book of One Thousand and One Arabian Nights (The Arabian Nights), the story of Aladdin was actually based on a Syrian folk tale and added into the stories by Antoine Gallard when he published his translation of stories in 1704. Despite this, Aladdin has remained firmly a part of Arabian Nights lore since then.
What Aladdin story are we getting here though? A Disney re-write of course, and like so many contemporary stories we only meet the genie of the lamp and not the less powerful genie of the magic ring. This is Disney doing what it does best, taking folk lore and turning it into their own fantasy world, with of course a princess.
The one thing that you can count on any Disney stage production to do is spend what it takes to being a spectacular stage show to an audience and to ensure that, whenever and wherever you see that show, production standards will never falter, that everyone will always see the same show, and Aladdin is no exception to this rule. The sheer amount of costumes that this show has, often just for one musical number or scene, must run into hundreds and require a small army of back stage dressers making sure everything is ready for the cast in very quick costume changes. Sometimes the costumes just look too bright and new though, particularly on Aladdin and his fellow street urchins.
Aladdin is of course a musical and there are familiar songs here, new songs, and a lot of homage paid to the look and feel of classic Hollywood musicals with big production song and dance numbers.
The very format of a Disney stage show does not leave much room for stand out performances from any one person on stage as that very polished corporate image is everything and to achieve this Disney make no mistakes. If you are in a Disney production you are there because you are very good at what you do. Here in this fantasy world the villains are over the top bad and the good guys and girls are over the top sugary sweet, and maybe this is why so many people across the world love them so much.
Everything of course centres around Aladdin (Gavin Adams), the genie of the lamp (Yeukayi Ushe) and Princess Jasmine (Desmonda Cathabel). We get some comedy routines added in with Aladdin’s three friends, Babkak (Nelson Bettencourt), Omar (Adam Taylor)and Kassim (Nay-Nay) plus the arch villain Jafar (Adam Strong) and comedy sidekick Iago (Angelo Paragoso), and of course the Sultan (Jo Servi). Oddly though, the Genie really is the star of this show and Yeukayi Ushe is so obviously enjoying every moment of this at times over the top performance and in so many scenes Aladdin is simply not strong enough as a character for Gavin Adams to come out of the shadows and into the limelight.
This is a Disney production and it is full of moral and political correctness. We are rightly told that it is wrong to bully someone else or to steal, but oddly having a big sword in your hand and slashing your way through the palace guards to rescue Aladdin is apparently alright, even if it is done in an almost comedy routine style.
There is very much a feel that this production is classic British pantomime on steroids, but a very American language script is often at odds with that impression. We are all heading into pantomime theatre time at the moment but I am not sure how well this production of Aladdin would resonate in, say, summertime.
One thing Aladdin gives its audiences is a large scale production that blasts the stage full of primary colours to give a fantasy world full of songs, dance, humour, and of course true love always winning out despite everything. Some of the stage sets are very good and some of the special effects in this show are a visual treat. I have no intention of telling you when or where they take place though as that would spoil the surprise.
Review by Tom King © 2023
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
Aladdin is always a bit of an odd story so full of contradictions and that started from the very beginning of this story as, despite being so well associated with The Book of One Thousand and One Arabian Nights (The Arabian Nights), the story of Aladdin was actually based on a Syrian folk tale and added into the stories by Antoine Gallard when he published his translation of stories in 1704. Despite this, Aladdin has remained firmly a part of Arabian Nights lore since then.
What Aladdin story are we getting here though? A Disney re-write of course, and like so many contemporary stories we only meet the genie of the lamp and not the less powerful genie of the magic ring. This is Disney doing what it does best, taking folk lore and turning it into their own fantasy world, with of course a princess.
The one thing that you can count on any Disney stage production to do is spend what it takes to being a spectacular stage show to an audience and to ensure that, whenever and wherever you see that show, production standards will never falter, that everyone will always see the same show, and Aladdin is no exception to this rule. The sheer amount of costumes that this show has, often just for one musical number or scene, must run into hundreds and require a small army of back stage dressers making sure everything is ready for the cast in very quick costume changes. Sometimes the costumes just look too bright and new though, particularly on Aladdin and his fellow street urchins.
Aladdin is of course a musical and there are familiar songs here, new songs, and a lot of homage paid to the look and feel of classic Hollywood musicals with big production song and dance numbers.
The very format of a Disney stage show does not leave much room for stand out performances from any one person on stage as that very polished corporate image is everything and to achieve this Disney make no mistakes. If you are in a Disney production you are there because you are very good at what you do. Here in this fantasy world the villains are over the top bad and the good guys and girls are over the top sugary sweet, and maybe this is why so many people across the world love them so much.
Everything of course centres around Aladdin (Gavin Adams), the genie of the lamp (Yeukayi Ushe) and Princess Jasmine (Desmonda Cathabel). We get some comedy routines added in with Aladdin’s three friends, Babkak (Nelson Bettencourt), Omar (Adam Taylor)and Kassim (Nay-Nay) plus the arch villain Jafar (Adam Strong) and comedy sidekick Iago (Angelo Paragoso), and of course the Sultan (Jo Servi). Oddly though, the Genie really is the star of this show and Yeukayi Ushe is so obviously enjoying every moment of this at times over the top performance and in so many scenes Aladdin is simply not strong enough as a character for Gavin Adams to come out of the shadows and into the limelight.
This is a Disney production and it is full of moral and political correctness. We are rightly told that it is wrong to bully someone else or to steal, but oddly having a big sword in your hand and slashing your way through the palace guards to rescue Aladdin is apparently alright, even if it is done in an almost comedy routine style.
There is very much a feel that this production is classic British pantomime on steroids, but a very American language script is often at odds with that impression. We are all heading into pantomime theatre time at the moment but I am not sure how well this production of Aladdin would resonate in, say, summertime.
One thing Aladdin gives its audiences is a large scale production that blasts the stage full of primary colours to give a fantasy world full of songs, dance, humour, and of course true love always winning out despite everything. Some of the stage sets are very good and some of the special effects in this show are a visual treat. I have no intention of telling you when or where they take place though as that would spoil the surprise.
Review by Tom King © 2023
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com