‘Aladdin’ star talks faith ahead of special christmas performance
‘Aladdin’ Broadway star talks faith ahead of special Christmas performance
Broadway performer Michael Maliakel is stating that his Catholic faith is integral to his career as he prepares for his role in a PBS-televised Christmas program.
“It has played a significant role in my life,” the acclaimed Indian American actor and singer shared with Our Sunday Visitor during a virtual media Q&A session on Monday. “To me, those aspects are simply interconnected.”
Maliakel, renowned for his role in Disney’s “Aladdin” on Broadway, shared his thoughts prior to the airing of “Joy: Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir,” where he features as a guest performer. The 21st yearly Christmas event, organized by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, is scheduled to broadcast on Dec. 17 at 8 p.m. ET and Dec. 19 at 9:30 p.m. ET on PBS, PBS.org, and the PBS Video app.
The 90-minute feature is currently accessible for online streaming until Jan. 1.
The show will additionally be broadcast on BYUtv, a program from Brigham Young University located in Provo, Utah, on Dec. 19 at 9 p.m. ET, with additional airings leading up to Christmas day. Audiences can also watch it at BYUtv.org and via the BYUtv app.
A special tradition
The recorded concert showcases Maliakel alongside British actress Lesley Nicol (“Downton Abbey”). This production fuses classic Christmas tunes, ranging from “Joy to the World” to “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas,” with a narrative centered around an author. Victor Hugo, the author of renowned works such as “Les Misérables.”
Maliakel performs a unique rendition of “God Help the Outcasts” from the musical and movie “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” which is inspired by another of Hugo’s works. Nicol, aided by performers and dancers, recreates the genuine tale of Hugo and his spouse, Adèle, welcoming local children in need to a festive Christmas meal.
A completely volunteer ensemble of over 500 individuals, which includes the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square and the Orchestra at Temple Square, presented the program before three live audiences last year at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, which is linked to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Alongside Maliakel, previous performances have featured artists who identify as or were brought up Catholic, such as Disney star Lea Solanga in 2023 and actor Neal McDonough in 2022.
A Broadway performer’s belief
Maliakel, when addressing a query from OSV during the Q&A session, discussed how his beliefs have impacted his music career.
“I believe I owe a great deal to the Catholic Church for the reasons behind my actions today,” he stated.
As he revealed to the South Asian Stories Podcast in 2022, Maliakel hails from a Christian-Catholic heritage and has a tradition of going to church each Sunday. Maliakel was born and brought up in New Jersey, he stated, following his parents’ migration from Kerala, India.
“I hail from a small yet historically significant community of South Indian Christians,” he stated in 2022.
In his forthcoming Christmas show, he shares with the audience that his journey in music started at church.
“I was raised performing in the church choir; that’s where my passion for music blossomed,” he remarks. “My mother enrolled me when I was 8 years old, and I haven’t turned back since.”
To OSV, he remarked: “I doubt, at that time, my mom ever realized that placing her son in the church choir would result in this path. Yet, in many respects, those experiences were crucial to the reasons I pursue this today.”
His initial position was as the cantor at his church, where he performed at weddings, baptisms and Christmas gatherings, he mentions while at the concert. In the virtual Q&A, he revealed additional recollections of his holiday experiences.
“During my childhood, Christmas revolved around attending the midnight Mass and enjoying a lovely meal beforehand and the following day,” he shared with OSV. “As I aged, I found myself cantoring at times four, five, or even six services throughout that week, on Christmas Day and Christmas Eve.”
A Christmas message
Maliakel, residing in Connecticut with his spouse and 2-year-old daughter, mentioned that during his childhood, he viewed the PBS presentations of “Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir.”
“Being able to finally take part in it was truly astonishing, and it seemed like a genuine full circle moment,” he remarked. “I’m incredibly thankful to have it captured so beautifully so that I can share [it] with my children in the future.”
If audiences grasp one key idea regarding Christmas after viewing the program, he wished that it was compassion for others.
“I believe that simply having empathy for individuals who may not resemble you, for those who possess fewer resources than you, for those who … are facing difficulties,” he replied to OSV. “I think the essence of Christmas, and this initiative in particular, revolves around extending compassion to those individuals — and being as giving as possible, particularly during this season but throughout the entire year.”
Additionally, during the virtual Q&A, Nicol, portraying Mrs. Patmore in the “Downton Abbey“Television programs and films, expressed that she wished audiences would keep in mind Hugo’s message of “Aimer, c’est agir,” or “to love is to act.”
“Words are fine,” she stated, “but performing actions, demonstrating kindness through deeds, that’s what truly matters.”
