Review: Aida

A Review of Aida

Jan Claire Coros

photo credits to: wikimedia

Aida is all about a timeless love story of a Nubian Princess and the Captain of the Egyptian army. The story stars when a statue of Amneris, a female Pharaoh, comes to life in a museum wherein she transports the audience to Ancient Egypt, where Radames, captain of the Egyptian army returns from his expedition in Nubia. They came across a river where Nubian women were and they captured those women to become slaves in Egypt. One of those women was Aida, the Nubian Princess. He gave Aida as a handmaiden to his betrothed, Princess Amneris, while unknown to them that their slave was a princess.

As Amneris and Aida bonded, Amneris recognized that Aida could understand her so they became friends. As Aida spends more time in the palace and with Radames, she and Radames later realized that they were in love with each other. Radames later suggests that he will cancel his engagement with Amneris so that he and Aida can be together. But Aida rejects his offer as she feels that she is betraying her country in order to be with a man who belongs to their rival country who is also next in line to the Egyptian throne and she must also lead her people, the Nubians, as it is her duty as their Princess. Both of them agreed to let Radames go through the wedding and for Aida to escape Egypt. But Amneris has overheard their entire conversation and tries to face the fact that her upcoming marriage is a fake.

During the wedding the news was relayed that the Nubians are escaping. Radames helped the Nubians escape but both Radames and Aida are then arrested for treason. The Pharaoh then sentences Aida and Radames to be buried alive. But Amneris convinced her father to let the Aida and Radames die in the same tomb, as an act ofmercy. Facing death, Radames swears he will search through a hundred lifetimes to find her again if he has to. Then the scene goes back to the museum where it is seen that the reincarnations of both Aida and Radames meet each other again.

                I chose this play because this is a play we portrayed during my 4^th year high school and I played the role of Nehebka, a friend of Aida. I didn’t choose this out favoritism but I selected this because it was very meaningful to me. At first this play did not pique my interest because I was set on getting Les Miserables as the play that we will portray. But when we got Aida I was very intrigued by the fact as to why this is an award winning play which won 4 out 5 nominations in the Tony Awards. And as I’ve read the script I realized why. This play focuses on loyalty, love, selflessness and happiness. During the part where they sang Written in the Stars brought me to tears, because the emotions portrayed by the song was just so real that I felt the pain they were going through. This play is a classic star-crossed lover’s story comparable to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet because both plays end in tragedies where both of the leads die, but Aida ended in a happier note because of the reincarnations. This is a literary piece in which loyalty and emotions are being put to the test in which both of the main characters experienced this turmoil within themselves. I admired their bravery to just choose where their loyalty lies but their love is just so strong that they even died together. This is a play that will turn your emotional buttons on, a play that will give you Goosebumps and a play that will show you the value of loyalty and love.