Aida
Reviewed by Kenneth Lyen
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CREATIVE TEAMS
Music by Elton John, Lyrics by Tim Rice, Book by Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, David Henry Hwang
LaSalle Producer: Dayal Gian Singh; Director and choreographer: Joe Barros; Musical Director: Joanne Ho
Performed by graduating students of LaSalle College of the Arts
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PYRAMIDS
No, I did not buy tickets for LaSalle’s Elton John’s Aida because of their pyramid scheme. Rather, thanks to Dayal Singh, who sits on top of the production pyramid, he persuaded me to watch, er, because he gave me free tickets!
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BLOWN AWAY!
I was totally blown away! The show was of such a high professional standard that I often forgot that it was a student performance. It ranks as one of the best musical performances I have ever seen. It had everything. From the triple threat performances of singing, acting, dancing, all the way to the sets, costumes, orchestral accompaniment, and to actors performing right in front of the audience. The show touched me, literally.
PLOT
The plot is based on a true story found in the ancient papyrus unearthed during the 1890s excavation of the pyramids. It was translated by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette. Set in Egypt 3000 years ago, the tale is about the capture of Aida, a Nubian princess, by the invading Egyptian forces. The commander was Egyptian general, Radames, who falls in love with her. However he is unable to marry Aida because he has already been bethrothed to the pharaoh’s daughter Amneris. The marriage will enable Radames to become the next pharaoh. However, Aida and Radames develop a forbidden love affair, thus creating a love triangle, or pyramid.
In the meantime, the captured Nubian slaves ask Aida to help them escape from prison and return to their homeland. This creates an emotional conflict, where Aida wants to remain with her illicit lover Radames, while the latter is willing to forgo his approaching wedding to Amneris, in order to be with Aida. In the meantime, Radames has a captured male Nubian slave, Mereb, who also falls in love with Aida adding another complication to the love pyramid.
ADDING CREATIVITY
LaSalle creative team seem to have added tons of creativity, transforming the Elton John musical into an updated anachronistically satirical farce yet giving space to romantic love with an underlayer of political seriousness. The original Elton John musical starts off in a modern day museum where the actors are in an art museum looking at ancient Egyptian artefacts, and are then suddenly transported back in time.
LaSalle has done something quite radical. Even before the show started, the actors mingled in the audience, rallying us to join their revolution and overthrow the government. The police, carrying machine guns, patrolled the aisles to maintain law and order. This certainly raised our adrenaline and dragged us into this unstable society and instigated us to become emotionally involved in the show.
INTERMIXING MODERN AND ANCIENT
The intermixing of present-day Egypt during the protests and eventual overthrow of President Mubarak in 2011, with that of ancient Egypt, is absolutely brilliant. Reporters with movie cameras were filming and projecting the characters, both modern and ancient, onto the back of the stage. All this is original in contrast to most major international productions of Aida which starts off more benignly in an art museum with visitors admiring ancient artefacts.
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STAGING
The staging was also wonderful. The first thing you saw on the left of the stage was a giant sign of Pop 2000 Internet Café, which was unexpected because I had kept an image of ancient Egypt in my mind. On the right was a sign Bussy Cat Caffe and Bar. Near the centre, initially I thought it was a classical Coca Cola sign, but on closer inspection, the sign read Cosa Calo. On both sides of the stage were columns resembling those found in ancient Egyptian temples, but these were covered with decrepit frayed advertisements. Later scenes of Nubian slaves clutching the wire fence which imprisoned them, reminded me of the desperate asylum seekers during the final moments of the American downfall in Vietnam.
CAST
Vanessa Kee played the title role of Aida. She had the authoritative self-assured personality befitting a royal princess, always challenging authority, even those of her subjugators. Yet when she sung the songs "Elaborate Lives" and "Written in the Stars", she conveyed such powerful emotions that I could see tears in the eyes of the audience. She has a beautiful voice, ranging from the powerful all the way to gentle tenderness. She is indeed the star of the show.
Joash Tang played the role of Radames, the Egyptian general who invaded Nubia, and he showed great versatility in singing, acting and dancing. He had the strong personality, voice and physique, suitable for this role. His duets with Aida were especially compelling. He delivered his only solo song "Radames' Letter" with delicate poignancy tinged with sadness.
I was also drawn to Morgane Madeleine who played the role of Amneris, the pharaoh’s daughter, who was to marry Radames. She also displayed a multifaceted elegant singing voice, and she also acted like a confident princess. The show started with her in the role of a television reporter narrating the unfolding live events. The start and end of the musical is bracketed by her beautiful singing of "Every Story is a Love Story".
Jax Leow who played the role of Mereb, the slave to Radames and who also fell in love with Aida, gave a very convincing performance of a Nubian patriot willing to sacrifice his life for this cause. Overall singing and acting of the entire cast was excellent.
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DANCE, COSTUMES, LIGHTING, SOUND
The dance was energetic and well-synchronized. The choreography was remarkably original, managing to combine many styles including modern dance, ballet, and what we think ancient Egyptian dance might look like. To reflect Princess Amneris eclectic unconventional tastes in fashion, the costume designers' creativity was unleashed and we had some of the most imaginative costumes. Even the lit-up shoes added to the mood of the scenes. The lighting was very effective: by shining lights onto the individual actor while simultaneously videoing them, it focused the audience's attention upon the performer. The sound engineers were spot on, and one could clearly hear every word articulated.
SONG VARIATIONS
Elton John’s musical score is eclectic, featuring reggae, ballad, Elton John’s trademark pop style, Motown, African and Middle-Eastern, and gospel style songs. We were never bored by the music and it added to the mood of each scene as well as enhancing the character of the singer. Tim Rice’s lyrics are funny, layered, and profound. The accompaniment was just right and the orchestra should be congratulated for their sensitive balanced support.
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CONCLUSIONS
LaSalle’s performance of Aida was bedazzling. It was humorous, romantic, inspiring, philosophical, and the pathos brought tears to the eyes. As I walked out at the end of the performance, I could hear people voicing their “wow’s” and “fantastic’s”. I totally agree. This is a production worth watching.
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AFTERTHOUGHT: OPERA EXTRAVAGANZA
While writing this review, I learnt that opera composer Giuseppe Verdi was commissioned by Isma'il Pasha, Khedive of Egypt, to write an opera for the opening of the Khedeivial Opera House. He was paid 150,000 francs and the opera premiered in Cairo in 1871. Since then it galvanised opera companies to create breathtakingly extravagant stagings. There were even performances of Aida using live elephants. Maybe in future we can use technology, like holograms to recreate elephants and ancient objects, to enhance the production.
Written by Kenneth Lyen
19 April 2019
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