Sorry that this pictorial is a day late.
I was invited to a special 7:55 p.m. (delayed to 8:15 p.m) Friend and Family viewing of Aladdin A Musical Spectacular because a great friend of mine was performing for the last time in the show.
Let's go back to yesterday when I visited ...
New Disney California Adventure Guide Map
I feel like there are more possibilities for a Guide Map cover than just Mater
This should be the final week for Christmas before it gets put away for 10 months
Soarin' Over California closed for refurbishment
Earlier in the week, the Disney Parks Blog accidentally slipped out the date for Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters being Jan 19, 2016.
But the attraction has run into a bit of unforeseen technical delays.
Also the rain that hit Southern California on Tuesday and Wednesday didn't help with things either.
My ticket for this evening's special friends and family event
Disneyland
Chewbacca is shown on the cover of the Disneyland Guide Map, presumably to promote Season of the Force
Disneyland Season of the Force offerings
Come monday, most of the attractions on this side of the park will be closed temporarily
Riding the Mark Twain
Toot Toot
Sad, not because no fish have been caught, but because they may be evicted from their land to make room for Star Wars Land
Just wandering the trails on Tom Sawyer Island.
Forgot it lead this far back, behind the Fort
Back on the main land
Walking back behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Rushing back to Disney California Adventure.
Why?
Because I have to make the 12:40 p.m. performance of the show
Abu's only appearance in the show
One day I'll be Sultan and rule over everyone in Agrabah
That will conclude Friday's pictorial
Thanks for stopping by and checking it out.
Feel free to leave a comment.
Until Next Time...
I was fortunate to have been selected as one of 500 Disney Parks Blog readers to attend a special presentation of Aladdin on Thursday evening, December 10th. I was thinking about asking if you would be interested in attending with me, but I had a family member who really wanted to go. It was the only Disney Parks Blog event I've been selected for, but I was thinking that I could have possibly signed you up with your name and contact information. Maybe next time...
ReplyDeleteAfterwards, there was a panel discussion with several of the actors and a creative director who played a large role in the development of the show. Here are a few interesting facts about the development of the show from that panel discussion (previously posted by me elsewhere):
It was difficult to cut the original 100 minute movie to (originally) a 20 or 30 min stage show. Non-talking animal characters like Apu and Rajah needed to be cut for timing's sake.
The Iago character was necessary because so much of Jafar's dialog with other characters was false. Iago was needed to show Jafar's true motivations through their dialogue.
There are lots of elements to the movie, but the decision was made to focus on the "buddy" aspect between Aladdin and the Genie, as the most accessible for the audience. The script was designed to bring Aladdin and Genie together in the story as quickly as possible.
It was decided to have the Carpet played by a female actor largely to balance an otherwise male-dominated cast, except for Jasmine, who serves as the romantic love interest.
Jasmine originally had a larger role in the story. Although her part was cut down, she did gain a new original song ("To Be Free") written by composer Alan Menken. Menken based the song on part of the melody of the film score where Jasmine appears. The creators felt the song was necessary to help audience sympathize with Jasmine's situation/ character.
It takes about one hour to apply the blue Genie makeup. Jafar cracks up during Genie joke sessions "more often than you would think."
Originally there was much less ad-libbing by the Genie character. As the Genie’s role became larger during the show's development, the length of the show was extended.
Adding the flying carpet prop was a last-minute decision after the creative team saw something similar in a show in Las Vegas. The creative team had to ask Disney corporate for additional $1 million to make flying carpet a reality.
That special presentation of Aladdin sounds like it was a lot of fun. I don't read the Disney Parks Blog regularly, so I do tend to miss some of their special offerings they have for their readers.
DeleteInteresting to hear the behind the scenes of the musical. Cause sometimes it fills in unanswered questions that people may have while watching the show.
I think they chose to right scenes to tell the story of Aladdin, and for a theme park stage show, the amount of time is just about right.
Even though Aladdin has been playing at the Hyperion since 2003, I never gave it much thought about it. I'd see a show here and there. But because it always started after noon, I didn't really care to stay that late in the Parks.
But that all changed when I met someone (who became a great friend) from the show. Because he typically played the second half of the scheduled shows, after work I would try and catch the last performance of the day when he was performing. Over time, I began to appreciate and enjoy watching the musical.
I meant to reply earlier, but I just read your comments again.
DeleteIt looks like mostly the same cast (at least the main characters) was at the Disney Parks Blog performance and the performances the final weekend. It's too bad they didn't bring out more actors for the panel discussion back in December. The questions from the moderator were good, but the actors didn't have enough time to really tell interesting stories. If they had let each actor have five or ten minutes to give some recollections from their time with the show, it would have been more meaningful. I think someone (the moderator) who doesn't have acting experience can think more along the lines of creative development of a show, as opposed to what an actor is experiencing on stage and off.
Your interview with your friend David Aldrete from Jan. 20th was a great look inside the actor's experience.