Although promoted by J. C. Williamson's as "J. Hickory Wood's smart, cleaver and up-to-date pantomime," Aladdin nevertheless included many localisations and Australian settings and references, as well as some new music by Andrew McCunn. The 14 scenes painted by scenic artists Coleman and Upward included, for example Flinders Street railway station, along with views of the Pyramids and Sphinx, Tokyo and several jewel caves. In its review of the opening night the Argus theatre critic also notes:
Australia's beautiful birds was another most carefully thought out, built up, and arranged ballet, wherein black swans, native companions, emus, magpies, laughing jack- asses, parakeets, galahs, sulphur-crested cockatoos, and king parrots, in all the glorious colouring of nature, were most fas- cinating to the eye. Still another ballet of beautiful colouring was the wistaria, the delicate tones of the lovely flower blending in scenery and in the dresses of the grace- ful dancers. The living flag of Australia, pieced together by scouts, who climb ladders and unfold squares of the banner, which were subsequently lit by lamps that repeated the colouring of the flag, the while Miss Lily Iris sings 'Dear Motherland'… England, Japan, Egypt, Australia, and China [also] contribute models for the dresses" (20 December 1909, p.9).
