London’s Aladdin Closes Today

“I never thought this day would come. Now I’m afraid that it has come all too soon.”

Disney’s Aladdin closes in the West End this evening. It’s going to be emotional and magical. I’m not ready and I can’t wait all at the same time. Thanks for all the high adventures. Now let’s  make some magic and bring this party home.

Final West End Wishes

So here we are. Tomorrow, Disney's Aladdin will take its final magic carpet ride in the West End. And what a carpet ride it has been. Even though we've known this was coming for almost a year, it's only really hit me this week. Preparing to see the show one last time and seeing the outpouring of love between the cast across social media, I'm reminded of just how special this show really is.

From first preview to closing night this has been an incredible journey. I won't say too much now. I know I'll have plenty to post after tomorrow's closing performance, but I just wanted to take a moment to reflect and be thankful for everything this show has given me over the years, the friends we have made, the experiences we've shared. It truly has been a wish come true.

If you count the shows in wishes then we have 3 left. 3 wishes. I can't help but think that's fitting. Part of me wishes I could freeze time tomorrow, keep the show just as it is. But part of the beauty of live theatre is that it exists in the moment. I'm so glad to have shared in this one. And now it's time to say goodbye, or salaam, enjoy the magic once more, and look to the future. Because for each and every talented performer on that stage the future is bright and I'm excited to see what it has in store.

And for Aladdin in the UK? I'm sure this isn't the last we've seen of our favourite street rat and his friends. It may be a while but I'm optimistic we'll see a tour or revival one day. It's too good not to. The show says it best; "Salaam worthy friend, come back soon, that's the end. Till another Arabian Night."

Irvine Iqbal to Star in The Boy in the Dress

All good things must end, but in theatre every ending is a new beginning and today the Royal Shakespeare Company announced that our beloved Sultan Irvine Iqbal will star in the brand new musical The Boy in the Dress when it premieres at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in November.

Based on the children's book by David Walliams, The Boy in the Dress tells the story of 12 year old Dennis, a football striker who wants to wear a dress to school. The new musical will be directed by Gregory Doran with a book by Mark Ravenhill and featuring music by Robbie Williams and Guy Chambers. Production design is by Robert Jones and choreography by Aletta Collins.

The principal adult cast was announced today, featuring Rufus Hound as Dennis' dad, Irvine Iqbal as Raj the shopkeeper, Natasha Lewis as Dennis' best friend Darvesh's mum, and Forbes Masson as Mr. Hawtrey, Dennis' headmaster.

"It is tremendous  to welcome such a talented cast of new and established RSC company members to our new musical productions of The Boy in the Dress, particularly one with such a strong background of excellent musical theatre performances and first-class comic talent. The cast join an already impressive line-up of UK and international creatives, including comic writer, performer and beloved children's book author David Walliams and chart-topping song writers Robbie Williams and Guy Chambers. I am excited to work together with them over the coming weeks to bring this life-affirming, funny story to the RST stage." Said RSC Artistic Director Gregory Doran.

The Boy in the Dress will be Irvine's RSC debut, and will run from November 8th through to March 8th 2020. The show officially opens on November 27th. Looking forward to seeing this at the end of the year!

Broadway Princess Party This Week! Courtney Returns in September!

Feels like it's been forever since I did a Broadway Princess Party post but Broadway's royalty have a packed schedule from now right through to next year as the Princesses travel the US to bring magic and joy to everyone.

This week Laura Osnes (Broadway's original Cinderella), Susan Egan (Broadway's original Belle), Christy Altomare (Broadway's original Anastasia), and Ariel Jacobs (Broadway's current Jasmine) are in Utah and California with their Fairy Godfairy Benjamin Rauhala.

Next month sees the return of Broadway's original Jasmine, Courtney Reed (and I have to say, thanks for letting Aladdin London borrow her, we've loved having her here these last few months!). And the Princesses return to New York in October for an extra special performance at 54 Below featuring Laura, Susan, and Courtney alongside Jodi Benson (the original Ariel), Aisha Jackson (standby Anna in Broadway's Frozen), and Krysta Rodriguez (Broadway's original Meg).

There's plenty more dates on their tour page, culminating in what's sure to be an extra special Disney Magic Cruise!

I'm going to keep wishing and maybe one day the Fairy Godfairy will bring the Princesses to the UK. I think London might have a spare magic lamp I can borrow after this weekend...

New and Returning Cast Announced for Aladdin on Broadway and on Tour

Clinton Greenspan as Aladdin, Photo by Deen Van Meer

Clinton Greenspan has headlined the US Tour of Aladdin since taking over the title role from Adam Jacobs last April. Now, he's taking Prince Ali to New York and making his Broadway debut as Broadway's new Aladdin, taking over the role from Jacob Dickey on September 13th.

And Clinton's not the only one making the trip from Tour to Broadway. After playing the Genie in every English speaking production around the world, Michael James Scott will take his final bow at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Sunday, September 22nd, bringing his historic run to a close. And on September 23rd, Major Attaway will make his triumphant return to Broadway after spending the last seven months on the road.

Major Attaway as Genie

Of course, you can't have Aladdin without Aladdin and Genie! So the US Tour will be welcoming Jonah Ho'okano as Aladdin and Korie Lee Blossey as Genie when the Tour hits North Carolina on September 10th! Korie has been with the tour since the beginning as standby Genie and Sultan, we saw Korie as Sultan when the tour was in LA and he was fantastic so the lamp is in great hands.

Can't wait to see you all making magic!!

Korie Lee Blossey as Genie

See the Sultan's Costume at The Royal Academy of Music

Celebrating 25 years of the Royal Academy of Music's Musical Theatre Program, What a Song and Dance is a brand new exhibition dedicated to musical theatre. From it's vaudeville and operetta roots to today's modern showstoppers, and even looking to the future of the art form in today's technological world.

The free exhibition in the RAM's ground floor museum plays host to programmes, set designs, and costumes from all eras of musical theatre and Aladdin's own Irvine Iqbal, an alum of RAM, is representing the show with his Sultan costume on display!

We were delighted to welcome Musical Theatre #alum @IrvineIqbal back to the Academy last week for a preview of our new #museum exhibition, What a Song and Dance: Celebrating Musical Theatre!

The exhibition is now open to the public and completely free, see you there soon! pic.twitter.com/KuqPmzF4tc

— Royal Academy of Music (@RoyalAcadMusic) 8 July 2019

An honour to be representing @AladdinLondon for the #WhataSongandDanceRAM exhibition @RoyalAcadMusic - The exhibition is open till February 2020 and is open to the public. Please go and visit to see this rare curation of musical theatre props, programmes, sets and costumes pic.twitter.com/qd66YXx4dO

— The Sultan 👳🏾 (@IrvineIqbal) 4 July 2019

The exhibition opened earlier this summer and is running through to February 2020, so don't miss this opportunity to see musical theatre history, and one of Aladdin's exquisite costumes, up close and in person.

Freestyle Love Supreme to Open on Broadway Next Month

Before Hamilton. Before In The Heights. There was Freestyle Love Supreme, a freestyle, improvisational hip-hop comedy show created by Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Anthony Veneziale. And part of the talented crew that makes up FLS is Aladdin's original Genie, James Monroe Iglehart!

After an off Broadway run earlier this year, the group are taking their show to the heart of New York for a 16 week run at the Booth Theatre from September 13th.

The core company is made up of Andrew Bancroft, Arthur Lewis, Bill Sherman, Chris Sullivan, Anthony Veneziale, and Utkarsh Ambudkar. Every show will be different and feature different special - and spontaneous - guests stars including James Monroe Iglehart, Lin-Manuel Miranda (who hopes to drop in "a couple of times a week"), Christopher Jackson, Wayne Brady, Daveed Diggs, and many more as the crew takes audiences on a freestyle comedy ride.

Tickets are on sale now.

Between Hamilton, Hercules, Freestyle Love Supreme, singing new songs on Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure, writing for Spider-Man and Marvel Comics #1000, and NARRATING A STAR WARS BOOK (!!!!) JMI is having an absolutely epic year!

A Musical Celebration of Aladdin Comes to D23

Disney's D23 Expo takes over the Anaheim Convention Center this weekend, and there's two events that Aladdin fans won't want to miss!

On Saturday afternoon, stars of stage and screen gather for A Musical Celebration of Aladdin ahead of the home release of both the live action adaptation and the Walt Disney Signature Collection release of the original animated classic. Hosted by Scott Weigner and Linda Larkin, the original Aladdin and Jasmine, the panel will take fans on a musical carpet ride through all your favourite songs from both stage and screen. Special guests at the panel will include Brad Kane (Aladdin's singing voice), Deedee Magno Hall (Jasmine from Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular), Jamal Sims (choreographer from this year's live action film), Clinton Greenspan (current star of Broadway's Aladdin), Lillias White (Calliope in Hercules) and Norm Lewis (Triton in Broadway's The Little Mermaid). And D23 teases that "you never know what surprises the Genie may conjure up". I really hope they live stream this!

Also on Saturday, D23 will play host to a very special Disney on Broadway in Concert - A 25th Anniversary Celebration! Hosted by Gavin Lee (Mary Poppins, Beauty and the Beast) and starring Heidi Blickenstaff (Freaky Friday, The Little Mermaid), Kissy Simmons (The Lion King), and of course Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins, Beauty and the Beast, On The Record), Josh Strickland (Tarzan), and Alton Fitzgerald White (The Lion King), the 75 minute concert will feature music from Beauty and the Beast to Frozen in a celebration of Disney Theatrical's first 25 years on Broadway. I hope they stream this one as well!

And stepping off the concert stage, Disney on Broadway are premiering a new virtual reality experience that put you centre stage alongside Telly Leung and Major Attaway (Aladdin), Tshidi Manye (The Lion King), and Caissie Levy (Frozen) in some of Broadway's biggest production numbers!

Every year I say I wish I could be there (and one day I hopefully will be), but this year I'm going to be right where I belong. Giving all my love and support to the fabulous cast and crew of Aladdin London as they bring it home one last time. There's no where I'd rather be, even D23.

Broadway in Bryant Park 2019

Disney on Broadway at Broadway in Bryant Park 2019, Photo by Broadway World

Last month Disney Theatrical put on quite a show at the 20th annual Broadway in Bryant Park as the casts of Aladdin (Arielle Jacobs, Michael James Scott, Brian Gonzales, Brad Weinstock, Mike Longo, and Jacob Gutierrez), The Lion King (Bradley Gibson, Tshidi Manye, Grant Braddock, John Benthal, and Pearl Khwenzi) and Frozen (Ryann Redmond, Aisha Jackson, Alyssa Fox, Jacob Smith, Jake David Smith, Lauren Nicole Chapman, Nicholas Ward, and Nina Lafarga) came together for a musical tour de force celebrating 25 years of Disney on Broadway!

And you can enjoy the full half hour performance right here!

From Beauty and the Beast to Frozen, that 25th anniversary finale is epic!!

Desert Moon

"My mother taught me that song."

Literally just this morning I was wondering why they didn't use Proud of Your Boy's melody there. Now I know as Disney VEVO officially released the deleted song Desert Moon this afternoon.

Taking the melody introduced when Aladdin and Jasmine discuss the song their mothers taught them, this gorgeous new duet sung by Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott would have come as Aladdin crossed the desert with Jafar whilst Jasmine waited to meet him in the courtyard, as the moon rises above the minaret.

Whilst the song doesn't necessarily drive the story forwards (perhaps the reason it was ultimately cut?), it is a beautiful moment between the two characters and I love how the melody was seeded into the score during that first meeting between the two. I've said it before, but Alan Menken is a genius and I love his score for this movie. And I love Pasek and Paul's lyrics here. They have a real lullaby quality which is fitting for a song Aladdin and Jasmine learnt from their mothers as children.

I'm just glad that Disney have officially released this (it is available to purchase and download from all the usual places) and that the full scene will be available on next month's Blu-Ray release of the film. I can't wait to see how it looks.

Michael James Scott - Life In The Lamp

Michael James Scott as Genie, Photo by Deen Van Meer

After traveling with Genie around the world, Michael James Scott is back home on Broadway. And this summer Broadway's Genie took fans behind the scenes at the New Amsterdam Theatre as he hosted Life in the Lamp for Broadway.com.

And now you can relive all of the behind the scenes action from Broadway's most magical musical with every episode;

Episode 1 - Welcome

Episode 2 - Happy Pride

Episode 3 - Holiday Week

Episode 4 - B'Way Friends

Episode 5 - Disney Love!

I love this series! Thank you Michael for sharing part of your Genie life with us all!

See Aladdin and More at Disney's West End Pop Up This Summer

If you've been near London's Covent Garden this summer then you've probably noticed that Disney's West End Summer Pop Up is back!

So come on down, come on in, and let the magic begin with Disney's current and upcoming West End productions.

Costumes from The Lion King line the entrance way, with Aladdin's magic lamp sitting proudly in the centre of the room as the show plays it's final summer in the West End. Next year Frozen will make it's West End debut and a special photo experience allows you to "Let It Go".

But if you grew up in the 90s then you'd be more rewarded to consider, this;

Yes! The original Sega game is free to play on these special arcade machines! And yes, I still totally suck at it.

The Pop Up is open seven days a week until Sunday, 1st September, and features live performances from the casts of The Lion King and Aladdin at 4pm on Thursdays and Fridays respectively (please note there is no Aladdin performance on Friday 30th August). You can find more details and a full schedule of activities at Disney on Stage. And yes, the bear in the Aladdin cast jacket can be bought at the Pop Up along with a Lion King version.

Next time I go, I will beat that game!!

Go Behind the Scenes of London's Aladdin

Have you ever wanted to go behind the scenes at the Prince Edward Theatre? With Aladdin ending it's West End run, the Evening Standard got the chance to go behind the scenes with Matthew Croke, Courtney Reed, and Trevor Dion Nicholas to show you how they make theatrical magic every night!

You can check out the video right here, where you'll see the stage, the wardrobe, the beads, the wigs, the bunker (specially made for Aladdin when the show arrived in London), and Matt's dressing room.

What about the magic carpet? Well, that one really is Disney magic and you'll have to see the show for that before it ends this weekend!

You can still get tickets from Disney Tickets!

Hercules Lottery is Open!

Are you ready to go the distance? Because the lottery for FREE tickets to the Public Works' production of Hercules is now open!

And here's Krysta Rodriguez to tell you how you can enter;

The Advance Digital Lottery is now open! You can enter once per show for any or all of the seven performances from now until noon (ET) on Wednesday 28th August. Winners will be randomly selected between midday and 4pm on Wednesday 28th August.

There will also be Advance Digital Lotteries for ADA Accessible and Senior Accessible seating following the same guidelines.

Each winner will receive 2 tickets to their chosen performance. These must be claimed in person from the Delacorte Theater Box Office between 4pm and 7:30pm on the day of your chosen performance. Seating allocations will be assigned randomly on the day of the show, not based on the order the tickets are collected.

But don't lose hope if you don't win the advance lottery because there will also be a Daily In-Person Standby Lottery for every show. These tickets are very limited in number and "may become available to winners of the standby lottery." Winning the Standby Lottery only grants you access to the show if tickets become available and does not guarantee that you'll get in to the show and pairs may be split up. Make sure you follow the link and read all the details as Public Theater Patron ID is needed to enter the Standby Lottery.

Public Theater staff will be available at the box office from 4pm each day to answer questions and assist guests in setting up Patron IDs if they have not already done so. Lottery entry cards will be distributed from 5pm to 7pm, and at 7:30pm (approx.) names will be draw and any standby tickets will be released to the winners.

So, who was the Greek God of luck? Best get worshipping!

Original Broadway Stars Reunite for Broadway in the West End

It's a Broadway cast reunion! Aladdin's original Broadway cast members Courtney Reed, Marisha Wallace, and Brandon O'Neill (!!) are joining together with Danny Becker, Greg Canestrari, Haley Catherine, Francesca Fenech, Ayanna Coleman Potempa, and more for the Broadway on the West End Benefit Cabaret!  It's a show hosted and created Johnson Brock and Brock Harris with all proceeds from the event going to MAD Trust, Industry Minds, and JDRF!

Courtney is, of course, Broadway's original Jasmine and is currently back on the magic carpet and bringing Disney royalty to life in the West End production until it closes next weekend. I've still not come to terms with the show closing here, but Courtney being here for that end fills me with joy.

Marisha is Aladdin's original Fortune Teller and Royal Attendant turned West End super star where she's currently starring in Waitress. And yes, that was totally her reprising her "Still I think he's rather tasty" line on the big screen in Aladdin!

And Brandon is the original Kassim! I guess that makes this his West End debut!

The special cabaret event takes place at the Pianoworks next Wednesday evening, August 21st, and right now you can get £30 tickets for just £10 using the code ALLAMERICAN at TicketSource!

This is going to be an amazing night, so don't miss out! If it wasn't in the middle of the week (or if I lived closer) I'd be there in heart beat! Have an amazing time everyone!

This is Home - Matt Croke's Solo Debut!

Here's some exciting news! Aladdin may be closing in London next weekend (and I'm still not ready to deal with that), but Matt Croke is just getting started! The star of the West End show has just announced his first ever solo show will take place next month!

This is Home, Matt's solo concert, will take place at the Rotherham Civic Theatre on Saturday, September 14th, where he will perform songs from his incredible debut album Only Dreaming, including some of his favourite songs from Aladdin!

The show will have special guest appearances by Joseph Connor, Luke Bayer, Simon Hance, and, of course, Matt's students from the RMC Academy of Theatre Performance!

Tickets are on sale now so don't miss your chance to see Matt's first solo show!

Raymond Lee to Play Iago on Broadway

Please give a warm Agrabah welcome to Raymond Lee!

Jafar has a new evil sidekick for the next few weeks as Raymond will be taking over the role of Iago from August 16th to September 8th.

Words cannot even describe how excited I am to visit Agrabah!!! This #DisneyDad gets to make his @Disney #Broadway debut next weekend as “Iago.” Come see me August 16 - September 8 (minus a few matinees) at @aladdin. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/RaHumLpRt0

— Raymond J Lee (@raymondjlee) August 6, 2019

Raymond, I hope you have a fantastic time in Agrabah and love every minute of bringing Disney's greatest evil sidekick to life over the next few weeks!

Arielle Jacobs Will Leave You Speechless

Let's be honest, we've all been waiting to hear this since the film came out. Arielle Jacobs has just released her single of Speechless and it's just as incredible as you'd expect from Broadway's very own Princess Jasmine!


I need to get to Broadway whilst Arielle is in the show because this was amazing. And whilst Speechless may not be in Broadway's Aladdin it's definitely a potential candidate for the Broadway Princess Party which Arielle is touring with later this month!


Anyway, what are you still reading this for?! Go get the song!!