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The show must go on: 'Disney Live!' returns to Egypt after hiatus

After a four-year break, performances of 'Disney Live!' are returning to the land of the pharaohs with a show celebrating Mickey Mouse’s 90th birthday.

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The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism is working to develop new program of entertainment options for visitors and residents. Illustration by Ed Woodhouse/Al-Monitor

Mickey Mouse will celebrate his 90th birthday in Egypt this year, and other Walt Disney characters, including Aladdin, Rapunzel from “Tangled” and Sheriff Woody from “Toy Story,” will be busy entertaining Egyptian fans in Cairo Sept. 26-Oct. 6.

After shows in Egypt in 2014, “Disney Live!” is returning to the land of the pharaohs, where the multitudes are fond of the performances by Disney characters. The Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation are co-sponsoring the shows.

“Disney, in particular, is a commercial brand known to everyone,” Minister of Tourism Rania el-Mashat remarked Aug. 28 at a news conference in Cairo to announce the revue's run in the Egyptian capital. “The decision by Walt Disney to revive its shows in Egypt represents a certificate of confidence in Egypt and evidence that the country enjoys the security necessary to attract tourists.” 

Mashat added that her ministry plans to create an entertainment agenda that generates a variety of options for tourists and will present it in 2019. “One of the themes of the promotional campaign that will soon be launched by the ministry is ‘People for People,’ as others are interested in knowing what Egyptian culture offers humanity and how Egypt and its culture is open to the world,” Mashat said at the conference.

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