“The Prince of Egypt” is a nostalgic cult classic. The animated 1998 DreamWorks film, a hipster cousin to the more mainstream Disney hits, retells parts of the Book of Exodus, appealing to both religious and secular audiences. And with songs by “Wicked” and “Godspell” composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz, it’s not surprising that this movie would be adapted to the stage — just that it took so long.
The show was first staged in California in 2017, with later productions premiering in Denmark and on the West End. After years of developmental rewrites, the show is available for regional productions, with OFC Creations getting in early with a regional premiere directed by Executive Director Eric Vaughn Johnson, now onstage through Dec 29.
OFC Creations’s Broadway in Brighton series brings equity actors from across the country to star in shows alongside local casts. But it’s a nice reminder of the talent in Rochester to see familiar actors like Thomas Warfield (as the charismatic Midian leader Jethro) and J. Simmons (the domineering Pharaoh Seti) hold their own beside Broadway performers.
The show opens with shirtless men carrying boxes and women being tortured, their pain expressed through dance as they sing “Deliver Us.” The Pharaoh has decreed the killing of firstborn Hebrew sons, hoping to reduce the Hebrew population in fear they’ll find solidarity with the Midianites and resist enslavement. To spare her son, one mother sends her baby away in a basket on the river. The Pharaoh’s wife adopts the baby Moses and raises him as royalty. When, as an adult, he learns he comes from Hebrew blood, he sees the humanity in those enslaved for the first time, and commits to their liberation.
Jacob Dickey (who played Aladdin in Broadway’s “Aladdin”) as Moses starts as a smiling jokester and matures into a solemn leader with sacred duties. Dickey is convincing as both extremes, though his transformation from one to the other is muddled. Like a brother version of “Frozen,” the show is most focused on the relationship between Moses and the Pharaoh’s biological son, Ramses, played by Koray Tarhan (formerly Daniel Radcliffe’s understudy in Broadway’s “Merrily We Roll Along”) with “nerd who wants revenge” energy. In that dynamic, Moses’s iconic “let my people go” becomes not a roaring declaration, but a personal plea to his brother.
Both leads have smooth Broadway belts and charismatic presence, though a standout performance comes from Francois Bessing as Hotep, whose deep bass-baritone singing and impeccable comedic instinct makes him a delightfully villainous high priest.
The show expands on the film with many additional songs by Schwartz. They’re enjoyable enough, but none surpass the songs originally from the movie, such as “When You Believe,” made famous as a hit single by Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.
The book by Philip LaZebnik expands the roles of the female characters, including Queen Tuya (Noa Elimelech Ferguson), though not by much. Moses’s wife, Tzipporah, is particularly disappointing (played by Senzel Ahmady with strong residues of Princess Jasmine, who she played in the national tour of “Aladdin”). She first appears when presented to Ramses on his wedding day as a dancing slave, slinking seductively while singing about how even though she’s trapped in a cage performing for her enslaver, don’t worry, she’s really dancing for herself. After falling for the man who once tried to keep her from escaping slavery, she spends the rest of the show as little more than Moses’s devoted wife.
Sandra Keerthi as Ramses’s deliciously snobby wife Nefertari has slightly more to work with, and makes the most of the ballad “Heartless,” revealing surprising emotional depth for an otherwise cartoonish character.
Much of the production’s design is inspired by the movie, including Minah Tucker’s costume design featuring bare chests, white skirts, and gold bands; and Vaughn Johnson’s scenic design, including a hieroglyphic wall and a backdrop of desert dunes.
The strongest moments lean into the magic of what theatre can do that animation cannot, such as using ensemble members to depict a burning bush, or a shaken cloth to signify a deceased baby. Choreography by Jenny Laroche is rhythmic and evocative, including impressive acts of physicality like flips and rousing dance numbers such as “Through Heaven’s Eyes.” The use of movement and flashing lights (designed by Johnson and Hunter Ekberg, also the music director and production stage manager) in “The Plague” make a compelling case for why this film should be staged.
Though the production features strong vocals and smart theatricality, the story is ultimately lacking. For those who haven’t seen the movie or brushed up on the Book of Exodus lately, the specific plot points are confusing to follow. The show never fully reconciles its jarring amount of human rights violations, like slavery and infanticide, maintaining instead an uplifting, family-friendly tone. “The Prince of Egypt” has entertaining moments, but there’s something intangible missing — perhaps one needs to return to the animated film to find it.
Katherine Varga is contributor to CITY.
This article appears in Dec 1-31, 2024.
