Tucked in Room 300 at Disney's headquarters on 42nd St and Broadway in New York City during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown was Felipe Gamba and his crew, plotting and creating a theatrical show that combines all the best Disney movies into one.
As part of the creative process, they would lock themselves in that room for days and line the walls with Post-it notes of song names and movie moments from the 1920s till today.
After 10 years of spending more time on planes than on ground to ensure the shows produced worldwide by Disney Theatrical Group ran smoothly, Gamba got over his “10-year jet-lag” while confined to that room as he planned his own version of a theatrical experience. But there were also fears that live theatre would never return.
“When doors started to reopen, it was very clear that we were really craving to be together and that the experience of theatre, which is so collective, cannot be replaced,” he tells The National.
Gamba grew up in Colombia before moving to New York, so with Disney The Magic Box, he wanted to have the show in places where people have come to love musical theatre but have little access to it. “We should be originating content not just centrally in New York, right? We should be letting content be born out of these territories to begin with.”
Finding your inner-child
With songs from almost 80 Disney productions combined into one show, Gamba and his team drew up an original storyline of the protagonist Mara, a woman in her twenties, who lost touch with her inner-child. In the pursuit of finding that part of herself, Mara takes the audience through a non-literal representation of “100 years of Disney movies into a blender.”
“I really wanted to think of this less as a retelling of the movies and more as a reconnecting with the emotions that those movies sparked in you as a viewer when you first saw them,” says Gamba, who left his role at Disney after 15 years as an executive to pursue being a creative producer.
The takeaway from the show for him is to have every person in the audience connect with their inner-child so fiercely, as he had when creating this show.
I never realised as I was writing the show with the ideas about reconnecting with the inner child that the writing of it would make me do the same thing
Felipe Gamba
What makes the story special to the audience is not just the element of relatability, but also one of familiarity. He describes it as “going into familiar content through an original length,” where Mara lives a new story through scenarios we have come to know.
Mara is a member of the audience, says Gamba. “She's any of us. She's all of us. The principle character in the show is the audience, and that was a very intentional choice.”
Actress Ashely Scott, 23, who plays Mara says her character is someone anyone can relate to.
"The spirit of Mara is that on a fundamental level. Mara is someone in everyone, and the box symbolises her overcoming her fears and all her anxieties and stresses in the world," she says.
"She comes out having connected with her inner child and understanding that to progress in life, you can't leave your past person behind. You have to hold their hand and continue forward with them."
Through their three previous shows in Buenos Aires, Cape Town and Johannesburg, Gamba experienced what it is like for audience members to connect with their childhood. As he sat behind families from grandparents to children, he could see them responding to different things since the show jumps back and forth from the 1920s all through to the latest Disney movie.
He describes it as a tap on the shoulder, a moment of recognition, bringing together the eldest and the youngest of them. “But what's funny and beautifully endearing is grown-ups behaving like children, because we've given them license to feel like children. That is what the show does. It allows you to feel like a child again,” he says.
Nostalgia makes for the best stories
As a child, Gamba had a vast collection of Disney books. The first he ever read was Walt Disney's biography. His collection and deep knowledge of everything Disney-related comes from a place of obsession and appreciation, or as he describes it “between nerdy and creepy”.
One of his fondest memories from the early 80s is visiting his local video rental store with his parents in Colombia. He remembers going into the store every time, wondering what the next Disney movie will be, until they brought in Mary Poppins (1964).
“I remember sitting in my mother's tiny car heading back home with that tape in my hand with a sense of excitement over what was going to be inside because I had the books and I was obsessed with them,” he says, smiling. “My own relationship with those tapes in that video rental place in Colombia is the driver for what The Magic Box became. You know, I just wanted the audience to feel for 90 minutes what I felt in that car holding that tape,” he adds.
Gamba believes in bringing joy through nostalgia. “We all feel nostalgic regardless of age,” he says, adding that while multigenerational audiences will feel nostalgia for a time that has passed, it will be a joyful reconnection.
By introducing physical puppets of Mickey Mouse and friends, the core characters of Disney on stage, Gamba and his team also bring whimsy and humour that the original characters brought when they were created. “We are playing with that style of almost silly comedy from the cartoons,” he says. “We didn't want the show to be pensive.”
Looking ahead, Gamba hopes to take the show around the world and is always thinking of ways to make it even better. “Shows are living things, right? That's the other beautiful thing that movies cannot quite do,” he says. “Movies, when they're done … they're done. Shows are always alive.”
Disney The Magic Box will run at Etihad Arena from February 6 to 15
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SPECS
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It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
Voy!%20Voy!%20Voy!
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
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The specs: 2017 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn
Price, base / as tested: Dhxxx
Engine: 5.7L V8
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 395hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 556Nm @ 3,950rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
The five pillars of Islam
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The years Ramadan fell in May
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPHONE%2014
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
MATCH INFO
Tottenham Hotspur 3 (Son 1', Kane 8' & 16') West Ham United 3 (Balbuena 82', Sanchez og 85', Lanzini 90' 4)
Man of the match Harry Kane
Scorecard
Scotland 220
K Coetzer 95, J Siddique 3-49, R Mustafa 3-35
UAE 224-3 in 43,5 overs
C Suri 67, B Hameed 63 not out
Read more about the coronavirus
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
SWEET%20TOOTH
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UAE Team Emirates
Valerio Conti (ITA)
Alessandro Covi (ITA)
Joe Dombrowski (USA)
Davide Formolo (ITA)
Fernando Gaviria (COL)
Sebastian Molano (COL)
Maximiliano Richeze (ARG)
Diego Ulissi (ITAS)
Stage 3 results
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 4:42:33
2 Tadej Pocagar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:03
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana 0:01:30
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
5 Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
6 Diego Ulissi (ITA) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:56
General Classification after Stage 3:
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 12:30:02
2 Tadej Pocagar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:07
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana 0:01:35
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:01:40
5 Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
6 Wilco Kelderman (NED) Team Sunweb) 0:02:06
The specs: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
Torque: 1,130Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
Price: From Dh412,500
On sale: Deliveries start in October
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
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Jordan cabinet changes
In
- Raed Mozafar Abu Al Saoud, Minister of Water and Irrigation
- Dr Bassam Samir Al Talhouni, Minister of Justice
- Majd Mohamed Shoueikeh, State Minister of Development of Foundation Performance
- Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research
- Falah Abdalla Al Ammoush, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Basma Moussa Ishakat, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Ghazi Monawar Al Zein, Minister of Health
- Ibrahim Sobhi Alshahahede, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Environment
- Dr Mohamed Suleiman Aburamman, Minister of Culture and Minister of Youth
Out
- Dr Adel Issa Al Tawissi, Minister of High Education and Scientific Research
- Hala Noaman “Basiso Lattouf”, Minister of Social Development
- Dr Mahmud Yassin Al Sheyab, Minister of Health
- Yahya Moussa Kasbi, Minister of Public Works and Housing
- Nayef Hamidi Al Fayez, Minister of Environment
- Majd Mohamed Shoueika, Minister of Public Sector Development
- Khalid Moussa Al Huneifat, Minister of Agriculture
- Dr Awad Abu Jarad Al Mushakiba, Minister of Justice
- Mounir Moussa Ouwais, Minister of Water and Agriculture
- Dr Azmi Mahmud Mohafaza, Minister of Education
- Mokarram Mustafa Al Kaysi, Minister of Youth
- Basma Mohamed Al Nousour, Minister of Culture
FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
