Theatre

Image: Luke Brady as Moses in The Prince of Egypt, credit Tristram Kenton ©DWA LLC

The Prince of Egypt at the Dominion Theatre This much-anticipated adaptation of the 1998 Dreamworks animated film, The Prince of Egypt, tells the timeless story of the Book of Exodus, from Moses being discovered in the bulrushes up to his freeing the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt (spoiler alert!). The film has a devoted following for its beautiful artwork, stunning songs and fine voice acting from Ralph Fiennes, Val Kilmer and Patrick Stewart, amongst other luminaries. Not to mention a cracking plot that has it all: an adopted boy who must give up his birth right, brothers torn apart by familial duty, and loyalty versus obligation to what is morally right.

For anyone who doesn’t know the story, Yocheved, a young Hebrew woman, puts her baby Moses in a basket and sends him off down the Nile to escape the slaughter of her people by Egyptian soldiers. Her two older children are taken into slavery but baby Moses is discovered by Queen Tuya who brings him up as her own son. He has a happy childhood, with his rambunctious older adopted brother Ramses, blissfully unaware of his background and well-loved by his father, the pharaoh Seti. After allowing a beautiful Midianite slave, Tzipporah, to escape, he has a chance encounter with his real siblings Miriam and Aaron, who reveal to him his identity. At first enraged, he then demands his parents tell him the truth. Seti tells him he had to kill the Hebrews as they might have risen up against Egypt. Moses begins to notice how the slaves are treated as they build great temples to the Egyptian Gods. He intervenes when Miriam is being beaten and accidentally

kills a guard. Wracked with guilt, he runs off into the desert, is weakened by hunger and thirst and eventually comes upon the sisters of Tzipporah, defending them against desert bandits. He is taken in by the nomadic Midianites, reluctantly by Tzipporah, who thinks he is still the arrogant, spoiled Egyptian prince. Romance develops between them, Moses becomes a humble shepherd, finds the burning bush, God tells him to free the Hebrews and the rest is history.

It’s a fantastic story, aside from being part of the Bible and much revered by three religions. The writer, Philip Lazebnik, tries to give Moses and Ramses real depth of character, focusing the plot very much on the two brothers and their love for each other. With the song One Weak Link, Seti makes clear his expectations for his eldest, heir to a Royal line that must be respected above all else, not too dissimilar to plot lines in The Crown. Moses is resigned to always being the second son with little power and no dreams of greatness in his song Footprints in the Sand, again with echoes of Princes Andrew and Harry. Ramses sincerely sees nothing wrong with taking slaves to build the glorious monuments of Egypt as it is something that has always been done. Would Moses have ever had a change of heart if he hadn’t discovered his origins? The dialogue is missing some of the humour of the film but conveys the conflicted emotions of the two brothers well.

The songs from the film are perhaps the strongest, the opening number Deliver Us, the joyful Through Heaven’s Eyes, led by high priest of the Midianites Jethro and the finale When You Believe. The cast is chock full of talent from the British theatre world. The wonderful Alexia Khadime is underused as Miriam after star turns in Wicked and Book of Mormon, but it is a delight to hear her voice soar in beautiful harmonies with Christine Allado in When You Believe. As Tzipporah, Ms Allado does well in giving a rather stereotypical character, the alluring, strong woman who is a bit “difficult”, a very contemporary feistiness, much like her characters in Hamilton and In the Heights. The wonderful Joe Dixon is always a pleasure to watch and plays an imposing, but beautifully voiced Seti. Adam Pearce’s gorgeous bass hits some astonishingly low notes as the evil high priest Hotep. It was also a nice surprise to see Gary Wilmot, if briefly, as Jethro; he is a big actor who deserves a bigger role. Luke Brady was a perfect fit for cheeky young Moses in the first half but seemed to struggle to find the weightiness of the more mature man as the play went on. Having said that, he has real stage presence and a lovely singing voice, capably holding his own at the centre of the action. Liam Tamne as Ramses was a real revelation, creating a complicated character who despite everything elicits our sympathy. Not to mention he has an astonishing voice; despite starring in West End musicals, he found fame in 2013 on the second season of reality show The Voice UK, with a rendition of Kate Bush’s This Woman’s Work. Adapting any film for stage is no mean feat and is doubly difficult with an animated film which can create magic through visual storytelling, leaping from one location to the next. For me, this production’s weakest points were the costume design, which dressed the dancers in skimpy clothing no matter if they were playing Hebrew slaves or writhing around as the Burning Bush, and the choreography. With hints of ballet, the movement seemed to have no reflection of the style of the music which has lovely undertones of traditional Jewish music. The dancers, whether rolling around on the floor as the River Nile carrying the baby Moses or being painfully whipped by slave drivers tended to look showy and attractive throughout.

This production will attract fans of the animated film but probably also those who like their musicals epic. The audience loved The Prince of Egypt, offering uproarious applause after each number. Although not a stand out production for me in terms of originality or music, it will no doubt develop a devoted following and deserves attention for its outstanding cast.