When you come right down to it, Aida, Disney's latest Broadway extravaganza, demonstrates the potent appeal of princess power.
Two formidable women of royal descent provide much of what's right in this lavish retelling of an ancient Egyptian love triangle that also was the basis for Verdi's famous opera.
Not that this version, which opened Thursday at the Palace Theater, is in the same league. But, on its own musical and dramatic terms, Disney's show succeeds as a shrewdly packaged piece of pop entertainment that showcases the Elton John-Tim Rice score effectively.
The ladies in question are portrayed by Heather Headley, in the title role, and Sherie Rene Scott, her competition for the heart of the handsome Egyptian soldier, Radames. Both performers are superb, demonstrating that a new generation of musical theater talent has arrived.
As the object of their affection, Adam Pascal gets shortchanged with less interesting material, even though his boyish Radames is a crucial part of this ill-fated romance.
You know the story: Defiant Nubian princess Aida is captured by Radames, a much decorated warrior who leads the campaign against Egypt's enemies. They fall in love, although Radames already is engaged to the Pharaoh's daughter, Amneris (Scott). The affair is discovered, and Aida and her lover are entombed. If, in the end, Amneris doesn't get the man, she does get the kingdom, and in the process changes from flighty princess to compassionate ruler.
Headley, last seen on Broadway as Nala in The Lion King, possesses a formidable stage presence, not to mention a powerhouse voice. She has an intense, almost regal presence, qualities that serve her well as a princess forced into slavery.
Scott is terrific too, with a comic touch that reminds one of Judy Holliday, looks that rival Marilyn Monroe and a voice that harks back to Janis Joplin.
It helps that the women get the best songs. The score manages to successfully bridge the gap between the concert stage and theater. John's music is eclectic, ranging from rock to bubble-gum pop to gospel to ballads, including a fine Act 2 opening number for the three leads called A Step Too Far. Rice's lyrics sometimes get lost, undone by the overwhelming amplification, but, when heard, they are serviceable.
Director Robert Falls, with an assist from playwright David Henry Hwang, has done a savvy job condensing the tale that originally was scripted by Linda Woolverton.
Falls has framed the show beautifully, placing its opening and closing moments in the present. The scene is a museum's Egyptian wing and it is the first in a parade of stunning -- and expensive-looking -- sets that designer Bob Crowley has created for the show.
Crowley's imaginative backdrops include a Nile riverbank that puts not only the shadows of palm trees on stage but their reflection in the water too. One other astonishing backdrop is a vertical swimming pool that has Amneris' handmaidens floating gracefully across the light-dappled pool.
Crowley also designed the costumes, clothes that reach the height of outlandishness in a colorful Egyptian fashion show that, intentionally or not, pays homage to Cecil Beaton's famous black-and-white outfits from the Ascot scene in the movie My Fair Lady.
Lighting designer Natasha Katz makes her presence known too, often throwing shafts of light across the stage in crisscross patterns. These effects often showcase the leading performers as they belt out their solo numbers, and they're dazzling.
Wayne Cilento's choreography lets Aida down, collapsing into camp during what are the musical's more sober moments. Radames' conniving father -- a strong-voiced John Hickok -- is the show's nominal villain. He and his sinister cohorts cavort in a mock-Michael Jackson dance number that produces giggles.
Crowley's scenery moves far more artfully, especially in the musical's climactic moments as the show swirls back into the present. The message, of course, is the strength of everlasting love, a love that transcends the centuries. Yet what most audiences will take away from Aida is the strength of the two women whose lives were changed forever by that love -- and the stage presence of the actresses who play them.
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