Michelle Williams Thanks God for 'Blessing' of Reprising Role in 'Aida'
Michelle Williams is glorifying God for her latest role in the musical "Aida" after a successful opening night.
Williams, the 36-year-old gospel singer and actress formerly of the R&B group Destiny's Child, is now starring in the Elton John and Tim Rice adaptation of the musical "Aida."
The musical opened on Aug. 8 at St. Louis' The Muny, the largest outdoor theatre in the country. After seeing a sea of faces in the crowd, Williams gave God the glory for allowing her to do what she loves.
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"What a beautiful opening night last night of #AIDA! I didn't even wanna look at sea of 10,000 people until we did the final bow," Williams wrote on Instagram. "It's a blessing to do what you love! I'm in a great place! Thank you, Lord!"
The musical tells the story of forbidden love between a Nubian princess named Aida and an Egyptian soldier named Radames who captured Aida's people. Williams said a dream she had just before being offered the project influenced her to take the job.
"Before the Muny production, Williams had recurring dreams of revisiting a theater role, but those dreams were actually of 'Chicago,'" The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported before quoting Williams, "I pay attention to stuff like that. I knew I was about to do something. When they offered me 'Aida,' I didn't hesitate."
In 2003, Williams was both new to the role and Broadway. Even though she felt the pressure to take on the part after fellow singers like Toni Braxton and Heather Headley, she explained the appeal of playing Aida.
"She is such a strong young lady," Williams told MTV back in 2003. "She's not afraid to stand up and say what she has to say and yet be sweet about it. She knows the game [and how] to play it."
Since then she has starred and appeared in "The Color Purple," "Chicago" and "Fela!" on Broadway. Still, the entertainer remained humble when reprising her role as Aida.
"I didn't want to come in like 'I've done this already.' I wanted to come in fresh," she told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "But it did help that I did it before. Some natural blocking came back to me, and that helped the director."
