Adam Jacobs and Courtney Reed Will Co-Star in Disney's Aladdin; Complete Cast Announced | Playbill

News Adam Jacobs and Courtney Reed Will Co-Star in Disney's Aladdin; Complete Cast Announced Adam Jacobs and Courtney Reed, who co-starred as Aladdin and Jasmine in the Seattle premiere of Disney's Aladdin, will reprise their performances in Toronto and on Broadway. Producers announced the complete cast for the musical Sept. 16 — the first day of the production's rehearsals.

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Adam Jacobs Photo by Heidi Gutman

As previously reported, Aladdin will premiere Nov. 1, prior to an official opening Nov. 21, at Toronto's Mirvish Theatre for a run through Jan. 5, 2014. Broadway previews will begin Feb. 26, 2014, at the New Amsterdam Theatre towards an official opening March 20, 2014.

James Monroe Iglehart, of Broadway's Memphis, will also reprise his performance as the Genie, and Jonathan Freeman, who voiced the nefarious villain Jafar in the 1992 animated Disney film and reprised his performance on stage, will again play Jafar.

Brian Gonzales, Brandon O'Neill, Jonathan Schwartz will play Aladdin's sidekicks Babkak, Kassim and Omar, respectively, and Tony nominee Clifton Davis will play the Sultan with Don Darryl Rivera as Iago. Merwin Foard and Michael James Scott will standby for several principals.

Jacobs has appeared on Broadway as Marius in Les Miserables and Simba in The Lion King. Reed has appeared in the Broadway productions of In the Heights and Mamma Mia!

Rounding out the cast are 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, Rhea Patterson, Bobby Pestka, Khori Petinaud, Ariel Reid, Jennifer Rias, Trent Saunders, Jaz Sealey, Dennis Stowe, Marisha Wallace and Bud Weber. "We have an extraordinarily diverse and quite beautiful company of actors and dancers and singers who also happen to be blessed with vaudeville chops," said director-choreographer Casey Nicholaw in a statement. "I think that will surprise people who expect they're just going to see the film onstage."

"Partnering with Casey to gather this remarkable cast of Aladdin has been exhilarating," added Thomas Schumacher, president and producer of Disney Theatrical Productions. "The first day of rehearsal always represents the excitement of what's to come and I've rarely felt that more than with this group. I fell in love with some of them when we worked on the show in Seattle; others are just joining us, but collectively they are the perfect company to bring our new musical comedy to life."

Courtney Reed
photo by Heidi Gutman
The stage production, which expands the 90-minute film into a two-act format, has music by Alan Menken, lyrics by the late Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and book and additional lyrics by Chad Beguelin. Nicholaw directs and choreographs.

Menken previously told Playbill.com that the stage production incorporates many ideas he and Ashman conceived for the 1992 film that never made it to the screen. Among them are a trio of Aladdin's friends, Omar, Babkak and Kassim, as well as a handful of early songs including "Proud of Your Boy."

Tickets are on sale for the Toronto engagement at Mirvish.com or by calling (416) 872-1212 or (800) 461-3333.

Here's how the new musical is billed: "Aladdin, adapted from the Disney film and centuries-old folktales including 'One Thousand and One Nights' is brought to fresh theatrical life in this exuberant new musical. Aladdin's journey will sweep 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."

Aladdin will be designed by six-time Tony-winning scenic designer Bob Crowley, three-time Tony-winning lighting designer Natasha Katz, two-time Tony-winning costume designer Gregg Barnes and sound designer Ken Travis.

The production team also includes illusion designer Jim Steinmeyer and hair designer Josh Marquette. The music team is headed by music supervisor and music director Michael Kosarin, who will also create the vocal and incidental music arrangements, joined by orchestrator Danny Troob and dance music arranger Glen Kelly.

Visit AladdinBroadway.com.

 
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