Great question! Thanks. I asked it myself. Queen Esther the Musical is a broadway-style musical. It is based on the story of Esther, a young Jewish woman who becomes queen to the very rich, very generous, very drunk, and very temperamental King Achashverosh in Ancient Persia. Along comes wicked, wicked Haman, a man so evil, we blot out his name with the rasp of groggers. Haman is promoted to the king’s Grand Vizier, then plots to kill the Jews. Esther must risk her own life to save her Jewish people.
In the Jewish culture, we celebrate Queen Esther with a carnival on the holiday of Purim. We wear costumes and masks, read the megillah (scroll) of Esther and tell her story in a Purimshpiel – a short play written and performed by the Jewish congregation. Queen Esther the Musical is not a Purimshpiel. It’s a broadway-style full length musical with song, dance, and a healthy balance of comedy teetering on tragedy.