By Samantha Brant ’19, News Editor

As a kid, I was obsessed with Aladdin. It was my favorite Disney movie. I loved the songs, the dancing, the characters, the story. Needless to say, when I heard the Broadway musical version was coming to Cincinnati this year I was excited, and I had very high expectations.

The first things I noticed when I arrived at the theater were the sets and scenery. The first curtain was bright yellow and had an intricate pattern and changed colors with the lights – from yellow, to orange, to pink, to purple, to blue. But the was the least eye-catching of any scenery in the whole show. The glittering gold Cave of Wonders where Aladdin first meets the Genie was incredible. All of the metallic props reflected the literal fireworks going off during the scene and created a fun and wild atmosphere. My favorite scene was the “A Whole New World” scene. Jasmine and Aladdin were suspended on their flying carpet against a black backdrop speckled with sparkling stars. It truly looked as if they were flying through the midnight sky.

The costumes for this musical were nothing less than extraordinary. Full of bright colors and sequins – and when I say sequins I mean there could not possibly have been more sequins on stage – these costumes stole the show without becoming an eyesore. The white costumes in “Prince Ali” were the epitome of elegance and Jasmine’s teal costume was everything I remembered from my childhood.

One of the best things about the show was how hilarious the characters were. The audience, instead of sitting in silence, spent the majority of the evening laughing on the edges of their seats. The Genie continuously cracked everyone up with joke upon joke about current events or by singing reprises of songs from other Disney movies. I did not expect Aladdin – The Musical to be as funny as it was, but I left the theater with a huge smile on my face.

One large inconsistency between the movie and the musical are the animals that have such a large presence in the movie Aladdin. Abu, the adorable monkey who plays the part of Aladdin’s best friend in the movie, did not exist in the musical, and while I missed his cuteness, I understood the difficulties that would be involved with putting a monkey on stage. The same goes for Jasmine’s tiger, Rajah, who also did not have a part in the musical. Jafar’s parrot Iago, was a human sidekick named Iago in the musical who was quite hilarious and entertaining as he annoying Jafar to no end as they attempted to carry out their evil scheme.

Overall, I enjoyed Aladdin – The Musical, and although they are only preforming in Cincinnati for a few more days I would recommend that anyone who wants to see a lighthearted, fun, and sparkly version of Aladdin, buy a ticket!