Aladdin, Disney’s Tony Award®-winning new musical comedy, broke the house record at the New Amsterdam Theatre for the second time last week (w/e 10/12/14) with a gross of $1,614,428.00. The previous record of $1,602,785.00 was set by Aladdin just two months ago for the week ending August 10, 2014. Since beginning performances on February 26, 2014, Aladdin has consistently numbered in the top 10 highest-grossing Broadway shows each week and has established itself as the most successful show of the busy 2014 spring season.
Aladdin opened to critical acclaim on March 20th, 2014 and went on to receive 24 major theatrical award nominations. Entertainment Weekly has deemed Aladdin “Broadway’s biggest new hit!” USA Today raves, “Pure GENIE-US! Aladdin delivers a rush that will surprise you.” New York Magazine calls it “Musical comedy wish-fulfillment!” while The New York Times hails the show as “Fabulous… Extravagant! It defies expectations.” Huffington Post says Aladdin is “the surprise hit of the season!” and the Daily News declares, “Seriously, it’s amazing!”
Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, the show features music by Tony Award and eight-time Oscar® winner Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Newsies, Sister Act), lyrics by two-time Oscar winner Howard Ashman (Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid), three-time Tony Award and three-time Oscar winner Tim Rice (Evita, Aida) and four-time Tony Award nominee Chad Beguelin (The Wedding Singer), with a book by Beguelin, and is directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon).
Aladdin stars Adam Jacobs (Les Miserables, The Lion King) in the title role, Courtney Reed (In the Heights, Mamma Mia) as Jasmine, James Monroe Iglehart (Memphis, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee) in his Tony Award-winning role as Genie, and, as Jafar, Tony Award nominee Jonathan Freeman (Mary Poppins, The Producers, She Loves Me) brings to the stage the role he indelibly created in the animated film. The show also stars Brian Gonzales, Brandon O’Neill and Jonathan Schwartz as Aladdin’s sidekicks Babkak, Kassim and Omar, Clifton Davis as Sultan and Don Darryl Rivera as Iago. Merwin Foard and Michael James Scott stand by for several principals.
In a cast of 34, Aladdin also features Tia Altinay, Mike Cannon, Andrew Cao, Lauryn Ciardullo, Joshua Dela Cruz, Yurel Echezarreta, Daisy Hobbs, Donald Jones, Jr., Adam Kaokept, Nikki Long, Stanley Martin, Brandt Martinez, Michael Mindlin, Amber Owens, Bobby Pestka, Khori Michelle Petinaud, Ariel Reid, Jennifer Rias, Trent Saunders, Jaz Sealey, Dennis Stowe, Marisha Wallace, Travis Ward-Osborne and Bud Weber.
Aladdin, adapted from the Disney film and centuries-old folktales including “One Thousand and One Nights,” is brought to fresh theatrical life in this bold new musical. Aladdin’s journey sweeps audiences into an exotic world of daring adventure, classic comedy and timeless romance. This new production features a full score, including the five cherished songs from the Academy Award-winning soundtrack and more written especially for the stage.