Aladdin star Jade Ewen: 'Playing Jasmine was my dream as a little princess'

Wish fulfilled: Jade Ewen at the after-party for Aladdin
Dave Benett
The Weekender

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Former Sugababe Jade Ewen said playing her childhood heroine in Aladdin in the West End is the fulfillment of a dream.

Ewen, 28, won rave press night reviews for her turn as sassy Princess Jasmine in the screen-to-stage adaptation of the 1992 Disney classic.

After the curtain fell to a standing ovation at the Prince Edward Theatre last night, she told the Standard: “I watched Aladdin on video as a kid and I just wanted to be her so much.

"I loved A Whole New World and I’d practise it in front of a mirror.

“I related to her on a physical level because she was the first Disney princess that remotely resembled me.

“I wanted to be her at every fancy dress party. She was definitely my favourite princess. My childhood friends can’t believe it — even my 30-year-old guy friends say they can’t believe I’m playing Jasmine.”

She said the character is a far cry from the traditional Disney princess, and a role model for girls: “Jasmine has this sass and she’s independent.

“She doesn’t actually want a man, she wants to be on her own. In the end she goes for the street rat, which shows her heart and it goes to show it’s not about the bells and whistles.

On stage: Jade Ewen with Dean John-Wilson, who plays Aladdin, at curtain call 
Dave Benett

"I think she is a strong role model for girls everywhere.”

Among the stars at the show and the National Gallery after-party was Cynthia Erivo, who is the toast of Broadway after winning a Tony Award on Sunday.

The south Londoner, 29, was named best actress in a musical for her role in The Color Purple.

Aladdin the musical opening night

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Ewen grew up in Plaistow with her Jamaican mother Carol and Scottish-Sicilian father Trevor. She described her role in Aladdin as the highlight of a career that has taken her from Eurovision to the Sugababes and an appearance on Tom Daley’s diving reality show Splash!

“In the Sugababes we were all princesses. I have no plans to go back into the studio with them but we’re still close and I’d never say never to a reunion.

“Aladdin is the biggest challenge so far, but the biggest highlight. I’m in front of a live audience and anything can go wrong even if you’re on top of your performance.

"There could be mech-anical faults, wardrobe malfunctions, the magic carpet could fall out of the sky, so you’re constantly on edge. I’m just going to ride this wave, I don’t know where I’m going to be next.”

Tony award-winning director Casey Nicholaw, who moved the show to London after three years on Broadway, said casting Ewen was “one of the easiest decisions of my life. She is so beautiful.

“When she walked in at the audition she had the air of a princess. I’m not from the UK so didn’t know she was in the Sugababes. It wasn’t a conscious thing to get this big pop star in to sell tickets — she just blew me away.”

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