The Prince of Egypt (musical)

The Prince of Egypt is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and a book by Philip LaZebnik. Based on the 1998 Biblical animated film of the same name, the musical follows the life of Moses from being a prince of Egypt to his ultimate destiny of leading the Children of Israel out of Egypt.

The Prince of Egypt
Official London artwork
MusicStephen Schwartz
LyricsStephen Schwartz
BookPhilip LaZebnik
BasisThe Prince of Egypt
by Philip LaZebnik
PremiereOctober 6, 2017: TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Mountain View, California
Productions2015 Workshop
2017 Mountain View
2020 West End

Plot

The Prince of Egypt is an adaptation of the biblical story of Moses, who grows from a Hebrew baby set adrift on the Nile by his mother Yocheved to escape genocide, to an adopted Egyptian prince, and finally into God's deliverer of the Hebrews from the oppression of his brother, Ramses.

Productions

Mountain View

The Prince of Egypt made its debut at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts in Mountain View, California on October 6, 2017, choreographed by Sean Cheesman and directed by Scott Schwartz.[1]

Copenhagen

The musical had its international premiere in a Danish production on April 6, 2018 at the Fredericia Teater in Fredericia, then followed by a Summer season at the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen 2019.[2] Fredericia Theater believed that for a larger, older and more visited stage, something new and grander was more fitting, and so they reinvented the visual design and created new dance choreographies.[3][4] The song "The Plagues" omit the lyrics pertaining to Moses and Rameses' relationship. The song "Playing with the Big Boys" was omitted, as was the role of Huy, however the song's melody and lyrics mentioning the names of the Ancient Egyptian gods remain having been folded into the scene of the Ten Plagues instead.

Utah

The Tuacahn Amphitheatre in Ivins, Utah also staged a production of the musical from July 13 through October 20, 2018.[5]

West End

A significantly revised new version opened at the Dominion Theatre in London's West End for a limited 39-week engagement from 5 February to 31 October 2020, with an opening night on February 25, 2020, directed by Scott Schwartz and choreographed by Sean Cheesman.[6][7] The West End version features new costume, set, projection, illusion and sound designs as well as a world premiere song. A cast of 38 is headed by Luke Brady (Moses), Liam Tamne (Ramses), Christine Allado (Tzipporah), Alexia Khadime (Miriam), Joe Dixon (Seti), Debbie Kurup (Queen Tuya), Gary Wilmot (Jethro), Mercedesz Csampai (Yocheved), Adam Pearce (Hotep), Tanisha Spring (Nefertari) and Silas Wyatt-Barke (Aaron). The production was forced to take a lengthy hiatus starting 17 March after just 6 weeks. This was due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom mandating the closure of all theatres.

The show has since been extended to September 4, 2021.[8]

Musical numbers

Titles of songs which appeared in the original 1998 animated film are in bold.

Cast recording

On March 15, 2020, Playbill announced that a cast recording of the West End production would be released by Ghostlight Records.[9] It was released on April 3, 2020.[10] The album has been nominated for a 2021 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.[11]

Casts
Character Sag Harbor
(2015)[12]		 Mountain View
(2017) [13]		 West End
(2020)
Moses Matthew James Thomas Diluckshan Jeyaratnam Luke Brady
Ramses Aaron Lazar Jason Gotay Liam Tamne
Tzipporah Patina Miller Brennyn Lark Christine Allado
Miriam Julia Motyka Alexia Khadime
Aaron Kyle Barisich David Crane Silas Wyatt-Barke
Pharaoh Seti Stephen Bogardus Tom Nelis Joe Dixon
Jethro Norm Lewis Paul-Jordan Jansen Gary Wilmot
Queen Tuya Julia Murney Christina Sajous Debbie Kurup
High Priest Hotep Ryan Knowles Will Mann Adam Pearce
Nefertari Joanna Howard Jamila Sabrares-Klemm Tanisha Spring
Yocheved Desi Oakley Ayelet Firstenberg Mercedesz Csampai

References
  1. "THE PRINCE OF EGYPT Will Take World Premiere Bow in Bay Area, then Play Denmark". Broadway World. Retrieved 2017-09-20.
  2. http://www.musicalschwartz.com/the-prince-of-egypt.htm
  3. "Review of new version of The Prince of Egypt, Royal Theater Copenhagen by Ungt Teaterblod (Danish".
  4. "The cast and crew of The Prince of Egypt musical talks about new visual design and new dances created for the Danish Royal Theater (Danish)".
  5. BWW Review: THE PRINCE OF EGPYT at Tuacahn is a Breathtaking Gift BWW, Retrieved September 7, 2018
  6. "The Prince of Egypt musical extends West End run | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  7. "The Prince of Egypt Opens February 25 in London's West End, Releases Production Photos". playbill.com. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  8. "The Prince of Egypt extends West End run until autumn 2021 | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. Retrieved 2020-06-22.
  9. "Upcoming Cast Recordings". Playbill. March 15, 2020. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  10. "The Prince of Egypt (Original Cast Recording)". Ghostlight Records. April 3, 2020. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  11. "2021 GRAMMYs: Complete Nominees List". November 24, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  12. "ART SEEN: Bay Street Theater's 24th Annual Summer Gala". hamptonsarthub.com. I Hamptons Art Hub. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  13. "Jason Gotay to Star as Ramses in PRINCE OF EGYPT Musical; Full Casting Announced!". broadwayworld.com. Wisdom Digital Media. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
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