The Lion King (musical)

The Lion King is a Tony Award-winning Broadway and West End stage musical based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name and is directed by Julie Taymor, portraying actors in animal costumes as well as giant, hollow puppets. The show is produced by Disney Theatrical.

The stage show debuted July 31, 1997, in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the Orpheum Theatre, and was an instant and tremendous success before moving permanently to the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway in New York, New York, that October. The show debuted in London's Lyceum Theatre in 1999 and is still running, and another production opened in Toronto, playing there until January 2004. On June 13 2006, the Broadway production moved to the Minskoff Theatre to make way for the musical version of Mary Poppins.

U.S. and international productions
After the success of the Broadway show, the show was produced in the United Kingdom by Harrison Lochtenberg, and continues to play at the Lyceum Theatre in London. Taymor led the British production of the show, with Peter Schneider as the producer. A Canadian production of the show was staged in Toronto and ran for nearly four years at the Princess of Wales Theatre.

The show played at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney, Australia, from 19 October, 2003, until 26 June, 2005. The production then ran at the Regent Theatre in Melbourne from 28 July 2005 until 4 June 2006.

Beginning in June 2007, The Lion King Musical debuted its first ever performance on the African continent in Johannesburg. Its tenth year anniversary was celebrated in the new Teatro Theatre at Monte Casino in Fourways. The Lion King is the first production to take place in the new theatre. The opening night in Johannesburg, South Africa was celebrated with key persons involving the creation of the Lion King Musical, and American talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who had recently opened an educational academy for girls in Johannesburg.

The Lion King Musical debuted in Paris on 22 September 2007 in the Théâtre_Mogador.

There are currently two U.S. touring productions. The tour version is very similar to the original Broadway production; however, certain scenic elements which rise out of the stage floor (such as Pride Rock, the stampede, and the grasslands) were converted to less costly configurations for the touring productions. The sun during the opening is reduced in size for the shorter-lasting tours. Stage sizes are also smaller, and the volume of music as well as the amount of instruments, is decreased.

Act I
As sun rises, Rafiki calls the animals to Pride Rock to witness the presentation of Simba. She greets King Mufasa and Queen Sarabi before lifting baby Simba high above the gathered animals. ("Circle of Life") Elsewhere, Scar laments on his lost chance at becoming king, and is about to attack the hornbill majordomo Zazu. Before he can do so, Mufasa arrives and confronts him. Back at her baobab tree, Rafiki asks the spirits to conjure the new prince's name: Simba. She paints an image of cub Simba onto her tree.

Time passes and Simba grows into a lively young cub. ("Grasslands Chant") His father Mufasa shows him the Pride Lands from the top of Pride Rock, and then leads his son down into the grasslands. Mufasa explains to Simba that everything exists in a delicate balance known as the Circle of Life. Mufasa warns Simba not to stray beyond the boundaries of the Pride Lands. Zazu arrives and delivers a report on the goings-on in the Pride Lands, and Simba takes this opportunity to practice his pouncing. ("The Morning Report") After being pounced on, Zazu relays the information that spotted hyenas have been sighted in the Pride Lands. Mufasa leaves to deal with them and Simba is left to his own devices.

Simba goes to see his uncle Scar. The scheming lion piques the cub's curiosity by mentioning the elephant graveyard, a place where Simba is forbidden to go. Scar knows that Simba will be unable to resist the temptation and go there.

The lionesses go out hunting ("The Lioness Hunt"). (This scene replaces the scene in the film where the lionesses are snoozing on the rocks, and Nala and Simba are bathed by their mothers.) Simba arrives and asks his best friend Nala to come with him to the elephant graveyard, although he does not mention their intended location to his mother. Sarafina (Nala's mother) and Sarabi agree to let the cubs go, but only if Zazu accompanies them. Simba and Nala formulate a plan and manage to lose Zazu. ("I Just Can't Wait to Be King") The cubs journey to the graveyard and begin to explore until Zazu stops them. They are about to leave when they are confronted by the three hyenas Shenzi, Banzai and Ed. The hyenas begin to gloat over their prey. ("Chow Down") Mufasa appears, frightens off the hyenas and saves the two cubs. They return to the Pride Lands.

Mufasa is disappointed that Simba disobeyed him. Simba explains that he was only trying to be brave like his father. Mufasa explains that bravery doesn't mean you go looking for trouble. Simba asks if he and his father will always be together, causing Mufasa to look up to the night sky and tell Simba about the great kings of the past and how they guide and watch over everything. ("They Live in You") Mufasa says that he will always be there for his son.

Back at the elephant graveyard, the three hyenas lick their wounds until Scar arrives. Scar explains that he will soon be king if the hyenas assist him, and that the hyenas will never be hungry again if they agree. ("Be Prepared") At Pride Rock, Zazu apologizes to Mufasa for Simba's behavior. Mufasa jokes with Zazu but admits that he is worried about Simba. Zazu tells Mufasa that Simba resembles Mufasa when he was a cub.

Later, Scar takes Simba to the gorge and tells him to wait there. Scar leaves and signals the hyenas, who start a wildebeest stampede down into the gorge ("The Stampede"). Scar tells Mufasa that Simba is trapped in the gorge and Mufasa races to his son's aid. Mufasa leaps into the stampede and manages to save his son, but as he climbs a cliff, Scar betrays him and throws him back into the stampede where he is killed. Scar causes Simba to believe that his father's death was his fault, and that he should flee the Pride Lands. Simba does so. As Simba runs, Scar orders Shenzi, Banzai and Ed to chase and kill Simba, but Simba escapes and the hyenas decide to leave him and make Scar believe that Simba is dead. Back at Pride Rock the lionesses and Rafiki mourn the death of Mufasa and Simba (Scar tells them that Simba died also.) ("Rafiki Mourns") Scar climbs to the promontory of Pride Rock, claims the throne for himself, and lets the hyenas into the Pride Lands as his executive staff. ("Be Prepared (Reprise)") Rafiki returns to her tree and smears the drawing of Simba, while Sarabi and Nala mourn for the ones they have loved and lost.

Out in the desert Simba collapses from heat exhaustion. Vultures begin to circle, but are scared away by Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog. The duo take the cub back to their jungle home and introduce him to their laid-back way of life. ("Hakuna Matata") Simba stays in the jungle with his new friends and grows into an adult lion.

Act 2
The chorus, dressed in colorful clothes with ornate bird puppets and kites, begin the act ("One by One"). But as the song ends, the beautiful birds are replaced by vultures and gazelle skeletons. A drought has hit the Pride Lands under Scar's tyrannical rule.

Zazu, now a prisoner of Scar, listens to the king's woes. Scar laments that he is not loved, and arrives on the idea of finding a queen and having cubs. Nala arrives to to inform Scar that there is no food and no water and Scar attempts to flirt with her. Nala slashes Scar's face and escapes. ("The Madness of King Scar") Utterly frustrated and upset at current events, Nala decides to leave the Pride Lands and find help, vowing that she will never forget her pride. The lionesses and Rafiki offer a blessing. ("Shadowland")

Back in the jungle Simba leads Timon and Pumbaa to find a resting place. ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight") Timon and Pumbaa want to sleep, but the restless Simba can't stop moving. He leaps across a fast-moving river and challenges Timon to do the same. Timon falls into the water and is swept downstream by the current until he reaches a waterfall, where he grabs onto a branch. Simba wants to save Timon but is sent into a flashback of Mufasa's death. Timon falls from the branch and Simba snaps out of the flashback, rescuing his friend. Simba is ashamed that Timon nearly died because of his recklessness.

That night the three friends look up at the stars, wondering what they are. Simba recalls Mufasa's words regarding the great kings of the past, but Timon and Pumbaa dismiss it and laugh at the notion. Simba leaves, looking up at the sky and bitterly remembering his father's promise that he would always be there for Simba. ("Endless Night") In the Pride Lands, Rafiki hears Simba's song on the wind and comes to the joyous conclusion that Simba is alive. She draws a mane onto the drawing of Simba on her tree.

In the jungle, Pumbaa is being hunted and chased by a lioness. Simba confronts the lioness and saves his friend. The lioness flips Simba, causing Simba to recognize that the lioness is his childhood friend Nala. Nala is shocked and overjoyed to find Simba alive, knowing that he is the rightful king. Timon and Pumbaa are confused by this and Simba tells the two to leave so that he and Nala can be alone. Timon realizes what is happening and laments that he and Pumbaa's Hakuna Matata lifestyle has come to an end. ("Can You Feel the Love Tonight") Nala tells Simba about the state of the devastated Pride Lands, trying to encourage him to return and take his rightful place as king. Simba is still guilty about his father's death and leaves.

On his own, Simba meets Rafiki. Rafiki explains to Simba that his father is still alive. ("He Lives in You (Reprise)") As Simba looks towards the sky his father appears as a heavenly vision. Mufasa demands that Simba remember who he is - the rightful king - and that Simba must return home. Simba realizes what he must do.

Simba returns to Pride Rock with Nala, Timon and Pumbaa, where Simba witnesses the ruin that his home has fallen into. Timon and Pumbaa lure some hyenas away: Timon doing the hula, Pumbaa as the stuffed pig. Simba tells Nala to go find his mother while he goes look for Scar.

Scar calls for Sarabi and demands to know why the lionesses aren't hunting. Sarabi tells him that there is no food or water and that they need to leave Pride Rock to survive. Scar refuses and when Sarabi snaps at him about not being half the king Mufasa was, Scar strikes his sister-in-law. At this, an enraged Simba leaps down, startling Scar who believes his nephew to be dead. Scar forces a confession of murder from Simba and attacks him, forcing him over the edge of Pride Rock. Believing that he has won, Scar whispers to Simba that he was the one who killed Mufasa. Simba, infuriated, leaps up and grabs Scar by the throat, causing Scar to reveal the truth. A fierce battle rages between the lionesses, Timon, Pumbaa, Rafiki and the hyenas. ("Simba Confronts Scar")

Simba corners Scar on the top of Pride Rock, where Scar begs for his life and blames everything on the hyenas. In a repetition of Scar's words to cub Simba, Simba tells Scar to run away and never return. Scar appears to follow this request, but turns quickly and attacks Simba again. Simba flips his uncle over the cliff where the hyenas are waiting below. They surround their former leader and he was the main course.

The battle finally at an end, Simba's friends come forward and acknowledge Simba as the new and rightful king. Rafiki arrives and places the king's mantle on Simba. Simba climbs to the top of Pride Rock and roars out across the kingdom.

The animals gather at the call of their new king and celebrate. ("King of Pride Rock") Rafiki, Nala and Simba ascend Pride Rock where Rafiki lifts Simba and Nala's newborn cub high into the air, thus continuing the Circle of Life and ushering in a new golden age. ("Circle of Life (Reprise)")

Musical adaptation
The musical incorporates several changes and additions to the storyline as compared to the film. The mandrill Rafiki's gender was changed to a female role, as Taymor believed there was generally no leading female character in the film. Rafiki was portrayed by Tsidii Le Loka in the original Broadway musical, and by Josette Bushell-Mingo in the original London production.



Several new scenes are present, including a conversation between Mufasa and Zazu about whether Mufasa is raising Simba correctly, and a perilous scene where Timon finds himself nearly drowning in a waterfall while Simba feels powerless to help him. A major narrative addition is the depiction of Nala's departure in the scene "The Madness of King Scar", where the mentally deteriorating villain tries to make Nala his mate. Nala refuses, and later announces her intention to depart the Pride Lands and find help. She receives the blessings of the lionesses and Rafiki during the new song "Shadowland."

Like its predecessor, the Beauty and the Beast musical, the show adds more songs to its stage production including Morning Report sung by Zazu the hornbill (a song which was later added to the film for the Platinum Edition DVD release). "Shadowland", originally featured on the CD Rhythm of the Pride Lands with Swahili lyrics as "Lea Halelela", was adapted for the musical with new English lyrics. It is sung by Nala, the lionesses and Rafiki. "One By One", also from the Rhythm of the Pride Lands CD, was adapted as the rousing African-styled Entre Act sung by the chorus at the opening of the second act.

Many of the animals portrayed in the production are actors in costume using extra tools to move their costumes. For example, the giraffes are portrayed by actors carefully walking on stilts. For principal characters such as Mufasa and Scar, the costumes feature mechanical headpieces that can be raised and lowered to foster the illusion of a cat "lunging" at another. Other characters, such as the hyenas, Zazu, Timon and Pumbaa are portrayed by actors in life-sized puppets or costumes. The Timon character is described by Taymor as one of the hardest roles to master, as the movement of the puppet's head and arms puts a strain on the actor's arms, back and neck.

Composer Lebo M led the original Broadway chorus. The chorus members are usually visible in the production, rather than being hidden in the shadows as with some other musical shows.

A new section of the production, the Lioness Hunt, features a particularly complicated dance sequence for the actresses, and the dance is made even more difficult by the large headpieces worn during the scene.

During the show's run in China, Chinese elements were included in the musical. One of the songs was adapted to a well-known Chinese pop song, "Laoshu ai dami" or "Mice Love Rice". The cast even cracked jokes and attempted conversations with the audience in Chinese.

Recordings
Various international cast recordings are available on CD, including: 1997 Original Broadway Cast 1999 Japanese Cast 2002 Hamburg Cast 2004 Netherlands Cast

A cast recording for the Original London Cast was never made, probably due to the fact that the London production is almost identical, in both set, costumes and music, to the Broadway show.

Tony Awards
The Lion King'' was nominated for the following Tony Awards in 1998

1998 Drama Desk Awards

 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Musical - Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions (nominees)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical - Max Casella, Geoff Hoyle (nominees)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical - Tsidii Le Loka (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography - Garth Fagan (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Direction of a Musical - Julie Taymor (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations - Robert Elhai, David Metzger, and Bruce Fowler (nominees)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design of a Musical - Scenic Design by Richard Hudson (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design - Costume Design by Julie Taymor (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design - Lighting Design by Donald Holder (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Sound Design - Sound Design by Tony Meola (WINNER)
 * Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Puppet Design - Puppet Design by Julie Taymor, Michael Curry (WINNER)

1998 Theatre World Award

 * Max Casella (WINNER)

Trivia

 * A modern urban legend assesses that part of a scene was removed from the American version of The Lion King stage musical. When Mufasa dies, the lionesses cry over his dead body: this is enacted using a Japanese bunraku puppet mourning technique in which ribbons flow out of the eyes to symbolize tears. Some further back in the theatre may have mistakenly thought the lionesses were crying toilet paper, and laughed at an inappropriate moment.  However, although the scene can provoke laughter and confusion, the scene was not actually removed.
 * In an episode of The Simpsons, Girls Just Want To Have Sums, The Itchy and Scratchy Musical is a parody of The Lion King Stage musical. There is also a banner in this scene that reads "The Lion King Musical".
 * Tom Alan Robbins is the only member of the original Broadway cast of the musical to continue to play his role as Pumbaa. Danny Rutigliano was also a member of the original cast, but he was not the original lead for Timon. He was an understudy for not only Timon, but for also Pumbaa and Zazu.
 * Samuel E. Wright, who originally played Mufasa, is also known for playing the reggae singing crab Sebastian in Disney's The Little Mermaid.
 * In the 2006 film, The Pink Panther starring Steve Martin and Jean Reno, in the scene where Inspector Clouseu is enjoying his hamburger in New York City, a billboard for The Lion King can be seen in the background.