ALADDIN, ALREADY AMONG THE BIGGEST HITS IN BROADWAY HISTORY CELEBRATES ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY MARCH 20, 2024
In the decade since Aladdin opened, only the mega-hits The Lion King, Wicked and Hamilton have grossed more at the box office
Aladdin, already among the biggest hits in Broadway history, celebrates its 10th anniversary at the New Amsterdam Theatre on March 20, 2024. As it plays performance 3,513 on that milestone date, Aladdin will have welcomed nearly 6M guests to the New Amsterdam Theatre and rank #15 on the list of all-time Broadway long runs. It has appeared on the Top 10 list of highest-grossing Broadway shows virtually every week of its run.
In the decade since Aladdin opened, only the mega-hits The Lion King, Wicked and Hamilton have grossed more at the box office.
A special celebratory performance commemorating the anniversary will be held the following week. On Thursday, March 28, director-choreographer Casey Nicholaw is staging a slate of hidden Easter eggs and an epic surprise in the show’s signature production number “Friend Like Me.”
Globally, Aladdin has achieved reach and enduring popularity rare among Broadway musicals. There have been 11 productions on four continents showcasing the spectacle created by Nicholaw and his extraordinary creative team, winners of a collective 24 career Tony® Awards.
As of Aladdin’s milestone anniversary on March 20, Broadway audiences have been treated to a staggering number of special effects:
- Aladdin and Jasmine have flown over 115 miles on the magic carpet while singing the Oscar-winning “A Whole New World”
- The Genie has set off more than 131,000 pyrotechnics in the showstopping “Friend Like Me”
- In the Act Two opener “Prince Ali,” the cast and wardrobe team have made nearly a quarter million lightning-fast costume quick changes
- 850 pounds of custom-mixed glitter have been used to create the Genie’s signature sparkle
ABOUT ALADDIN
Aladdin, the hit musical based on the Academy Award®-winning animated film, opened on Broadway at the New Amsterdam Theatre to critical acclaim on March 20, 2014 and quickly established itself as one of the biggest new blockbusters in recent years.
Hailed by The New York Times as “fabulous and extravagant,” the Broadway production has broken 17 New Amsterdam Theatre house records and spawned 11 productions on four continents. Worldwide it has welcomed nearly 20 million people and can be seen currently on Broadway, on tour across North America and the U.K. and Ireland, as well as in Japan and Spain, with a new production in Seoul, South Korea opening this fall.
The current cast of Aladdin stars Michael Maliakel making his Broadway debut in the title role, Michael James Scott as Genie, Sonya Balsara as Jasmine and Dennis Stowe as Jafar. The show also features Milo Alosi, Zach Bencal and Brad Weinstock as Aladdin’s sidekicks Kassim, Babkak and Omar, JC Montgomery as Sultan and Don Darryl Rivera as Iago. Caleb Barnett, Jeremy Gaston and Wes Hart stand by for several principals.
Produced by Disney Theatrical Group, under the direction of Andrew Flatt, Anne Quart and Thomas Schumacher, Aladdin 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 six-time Tony Award nominee Chad Beguelin (The Wedding Singer), with a book by Beguelin, and is directed and choreographed by two-time Tony Award winner Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon).
Aladdin, adapted from the animated 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 exciting 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.
The animated film Aladdin was released by Disney in 1992 and was a critical and box office smash, becoming the highest-grossing film of the year.
The film won the Oscar for Best Original Score and introduced the hit song “A Whole New World,” which won the second of the film’s two Academy Awards as Best Original Song. The Peabo Bryson/Regina Belle recording of the tune soared to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Michele also contributes theme park news for Fox 35 Orlando 11pm news and on the radio on WDBO.
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