ON STAGE
COURTESY DHT
Vida Mae Fernandez is Jasmine and Chris Villasenor stars as Aladdin in "Aladdin Jr.," opening at Diamond Head Theatre on Dec. 2.
|
|
More performances added to DHT’s ‘Aladdin Jr.’
It looks like another merry Christmas for Diamond Head Theatre.
DHT's new seasonal production, "Aladdin Jr.," opens this weekend, and more performances have already been added to the schedule, pushing the closing night to Dec. 22.
Disney's "Aladdin Jr."
» Place: Diamond Head Theatre, 520 Makapuu Ave.
» Time: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 4 p.m. Sunday, through Dec. 18, with additional 3 p.m. shows Dec. 10 and 17, and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 19 to 22
» Tickets: $12 to $42
» Call: 733-0274 or online at diamondheadtheatre.com
|
Chris Villasenor stars as the young street-smart thief and Vida Mae Fernandez is the sultan's daughter Jasmine in the community theater's staging of the popular Disney fantasy.
The original "Aladdin" was, in 1992, the top grossing animated film at the time. The theme song "A Whole New World" won a handful of awards, a Golden Globe, Grammy, and Oscar for Song of the Year.
The success of "Aladdin" was followed by two made-for-video sequels, a Disney stage version that included a new song for Jasmine, a Disney "Special Edition" DVD with Clay Aiken singing a song for Aladdin's mother, a special-edition soundtrack featuring another song that was not included in the original movie, and now "Aladdin Jr."
COURTESY DHT
Kyle Malis, above, is Genie.
|
|
This variation of the story has been abridged and adapted for young performers. Everyone in the DHT cast is 18 years old or younger, and some have been performing almost that long. The main cast is rounded out by Kyle Malis as the Genie, Devin Elting is Jafar, TX Tario is Iago, and Arlin Busano is the Magic Carpet.
Miles Wesley and Adealani Malia are bringing firsthand knowledge of Disney's stage production, "Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular," to the DHT production as co-director/choreographers. Wesley played Aladdin in the alternate cast of the production and Malia played the Magic Carpet.