The Lion King Broadway musical would have to be one of the best shows that I have ever seen. At first I was quite apprehensive of the conversion of a Disney animation into a Broadway musical. It has already drawn rave reviews for its dazzling special effects, staging, and the inspired music by Tim Rice, Elton John & Hans Zimmer. Its magical performance by a cast that used masks and puppetry combined with live acting conveyed the atmosphere of The Lion King flawlessly.

This production broke new ground in theatrical technology, attempting to bring to the stage such vast and sweeping elements as the rolling African savannah and the famous wildebeest stampede in which Mufasa is killed by his brother Scar. Far from shrinking from the challenge or toning down the scale of the film, the director Julie Taymor succeeded in reproducing the film’s vastness through ingenious staging techniques and experimental methods.

The Lion King truly is a theatrical spectacle of vibrant colour, powerful vocals with sprinkles of humour. I managed to get tickets to the final show in Australia, but Ticketek was sold out early January so I purchased our tickets on Ebay. The demand for tickets to the show was so high that people were paying as much as $450 per ticket in some auctions! (RRP$99)  

Being the final show in Australia, we were given Lion King show bags and the performance was definitely one to remember. The Final song of the musical (Circle Of Life) ended with an explosion of confetti that rained over the capacity theatre and the crowd applauded and cheered until the final curtains were drawn… As the curtains fell the crew prepared themselves for the next port of call… China…

If you ever get the chance to check out The Lion King you won’t be disappointed…

… Hakuna Ma Ta Ta!