Archive for February, 2012
Lion King to Go on UK Tour
One of London’s best-loved musicals will embark on its first ever UK tour. The Lion King has been seen in London by 10 million people during its run at the Lyceum Theatre in London.
For the first time audiences outside the capital will be able to see the show, which uses a mixture of puppets and actors to tell the story of the Disney film released in 1994.
The production will open at the Bristol Hippodrome on August 31 for eleven weeks. It will then go on tour to the Palace Theatre in Manchester and will visit 10 cities in the UK and Ireland over two and a half years. The tour has been four years in the planning.
The musical first opened in 1999 in the West End, where it has continued to attract audiences. 2011 was its best financial year so far with the production breaking the industry record for the highest annual gross box office in West End history.
Thomas Schumacher, President of Disney Theatrical Productions said: “We continue to be thrilled by how UK audiences have enjoyed The Lion King in London, and have long wished to also share this production with audiences nationally.”
Read the complete story {Via Telegraph.co.uk}
Lion King Tour Will Play at Sarofim Hall Hobby Center July 10 – August 12
The Disney sensation, Lion King will take stage at the Sarofim Hall Hobby Center this summer July 10, 2012. Lion King Musical national tour will make a stop at Houston, TX for a limited engagement of five weeks. The musical will perform at Sarofim Hall – Hobby Center from July 10 through August 12.
Lion King Tour Sarofim Hall Hobby Center Performance Schedule:
Tuesdays to Thursdays – 7:30 PM
Fridays – 8:00 PM
Saturdays – 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM
Sundays – 1:00 PM and 6:30 PM
The North American touring production of “The Lion King” has been seen by more than 13.5 million theatergoers and grossed more than $875 million to date. The Lion King won six 1998 Tony Awards, including Best New Musical. For more than 15 years, The Lion King has continued as one of Broadway’s greatest legends, where it still plays at the Minskoff Theatre. It has currenly played over 5,300 performances, making it Broadway’s seventh-longest running musical.
Lion King play at Sarofim Hall Hobby Center through August 12, 2012. Buy Lion King Houston TX Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350!
Lion King Broadway Box Office Update Week 2/26/2012
Lion King Broadway grossed $1,732,972 and had a 100% attendance rate. The 26 shows on the boards grossed $20,315,215, around 1.2% more that of the previous week’s totals.
Below are the Top 10 Grosses from BroadwayWorld.com for the week ending February 26, 2012.
1. Wicked – (GERSHWIN) $1,872,679
2. The Lion King – (MINSKOFF) $1,732,972
3. Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark – (FOXWOODS) $1,643,155
4. The Book Of Mormon – (EUGENE O’NEILL) $1,468,595
5. Jersey Boys – (AUGUST WILSON) $1,018,596
6. The Phantom Of The Opera – (MAJESTIC) $985,906
7. Mary Poppins – (NEW AMSTERDAM) $957,197
8. War Horse – (VIVIAN BEAUMONT) $955,542
9. Porgy And Bess – (RICHARD RODGERS) $881,225
10. Mamma Mia! – (WINTER GARDEN) $825,341
{Via BroadwayWorld.com}
The Lion King Landmark Theater VA Review
Lion King is currently performing on tour at Landmark Theatre VA in Richmond, VA.
The Lion King is one of the most profitable, longest running Broadway musicals around. But if you want an experience that is its own theater entity, that takes inspiration from the movie and then runs with it to wild, unexpected places, you’re not going to consistently find it here. The first 10 minutes of Disney’s Broadway musical, “The Lion King,” are the stuff of theater transcendence.
A perfectly formed giraffe crosses the stage of the Landmark Theater, and you have to work backwards to realize it’s actually a human in costume. An elephant ambles down the aisle, and it is somehow rooted in the earth and simultaneously the stuff of pure, weird imagination.
But every time one of these moments happens and you feel like you’re watching the story of “The Lion King” in a completely new way, the next moment the musical grows timid and hurries back to an exact replica of the source material.
The musical, like the film, follows the arc of the young lion, Simba, whose wise, ruling father, Mufasa is killed by the nefarious Uncle Scar. Scar and his band of hyena followers take over the lands of Pride Rock. Simba is exiled to the jungle where he finds zany friends, Timon and Pumba, and ultimately the courage to return and fight. The rest is Disney history.
The biggest challenge of transitioning this story to stage is the fact that all of the characters are African animals. It could so easily be laughable. But this is where “The Lion King” musical is at its most inspired. Costume designer, Julie Taymor, along with her mask and puppet design partner, Michael Curry, will go down in Broadway legend for what they’ve done.
I’ve never seen a faster standing ovation than I did at the Landmark at the end of “The Lion King.” And it’s well deserved, because this musical is unlike anything you’ve probably ever seen. Its story is solid, because the film’s story is such a classic, well-constructed arc. Elton John and Tim Rice’s music and lyrics, including all of the film’s songs, are also solid and familiar. All of that makes for a very good musical.
Read the complete review {Via Richmond.com}
The Lion King runs through March 11 at the Landmark Theater. Buy Lion King Richmond VA Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350!
The Lion King Greenville SC Tickets Sales Breaks Box Office Records
Tickets for Disney’s The Lion King went on sale in Greenville, SC on Saturday, February 11 and set a new Peace Center Box Office record by selling 5,276 tickets. Greenville’s most eagerly awaited stage production will begin performances at The Peace Center on Tuesday, June 12 for a limited engagement of four weeks through Sunday, July 8. The opening night is Thursday, June 14 at 7:30pm.
“We are very proud of this new milestone and appreciate everyone that either came to the box office, went on-line to peacecenter.org or called the box office. Even with these record-breaking sales, there are plenty of good seats remaining,” said Megan Riegel, President of the Peace Center.
The first ticket buyer arrived at 4am on Saturday. Mr. Bruce Spurlin from Gaffney, SC drove 40 miles in order to purchase tickets for his wife and mother as Valentine’s Day gifts. On-site festivities included the awarding of CD’s of The Lion King Original Broadway cast recording to the first 100 ticket buyers. The first 500 ticket buyers received a Lion King T-shirt. WMYI-102.5 and WSSL-100 provided prizes, food and fun throughout the three-hour event.
The Lion King at The Peace Center – SC will play Tuesday through Thursday evenings at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:00pm, Sunday evenings at 6:30pm, Saturday matinees at 2:00pm and Sunday matinees at 1:00pm. There will be a 2:00pm matinee performance on Thursday, July 5.
There will not be a performance on Wednesday, July 4. Ticket prices start as low as $32.50. Premium Ticket Packages, which include prime seat locations, a commemorative souvenir program and an exclusive merchandise item, are also available.
Read the complete story {Via southcarolina.broadwayworld.com}
Lion King performances at The Peace Center – SC will run from June 12 and continue through July 08, 2012. Buy Lion King Greenville SC Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350!
Lion King Broadway Box Office Update Feb 05, 2012
Lion King Broadway slided to the fourth rank grossing $1,226,681. Lion King had 87.4% attendance rate. The 23 shows on the boards grossed $15,024,833, dropping slightly over 7% from the previous week’s totals.
Below are the Top 14 Grosses from BroadwayWorld.com for the week ending February 05, 2012.
1. The Book Of Mormon – (EUGENE O’NEILL) $1,455,329
2. Wicked – (GERSHWIN) $1,349,433
3. Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark – (FOXWOODS) $1,268,002
4. The Lion King – (MINSKOFF) $1,226,681
5. Porgy And Bess – (RICHARD RODGERS) $905,134
6. War Horse – (VIVIAN BEAUMONT) $860,311
7. Jersey Boys – (AUGUST WILSON) $816,388
8. The Phantom Of The Opera – (MAJESTIC) $638,467
9. Mary Poppins – (NEW AMSTERDAM) $600,499
10. Priscilla Queen Of The Desert – (PALACE) $582,932
11. Anything Goes – (STEPHEN SONDHEIM) $575,400
12. How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying – (AL HIRSCHFELD) $573,887
13. Mamma Mia! – (WINTER GARDEN) $551,069
14. Memphis – (SHUBERT) $540,866
The Lion King Musical Preview – Premiering Feb. 15 at the Landmark Theater
The nation Tour of The Lion King premiering Feb. 15 at the Landmark Theater. Lion King will play at Landmark Theater through March 11, 2012 in Richmond, VA.
Lion King Musical Preview Video:
“I defy anyone to watch the opening scene and not get goose bumps,” said Michael Reilly, who has spent nine years with versions of “The Lion King” and is the puppet supervisor for the national tour. If anyone should be inured to the musical’s alchemy, it’s Reilly: As the guy in charge of maintenance on the show’s 230 or so puppets, he sculpts, paints, troubleshoots electric and mechanical systems, and more.
Zazu, a bird puppet, has gears so tiny that Reilly and his two assistants use miniature tools to work on the costume. The attributes of Scar, a lion character, involve microcircuitry. And no matter how complex and delicate, the masks and puppets are heavily used. “They’re like museum pieces that are being used as jackhammers,” Reilly said, speaking by phone from Minneapolis, where “The Lion King” was performing in mid-January.
The wear and tear is unavoidable because masks and puppets are pivotal to the aesthetics of the 1997 Broadway musical directed by theatrical innovator Julie Taymor.
“We sort of dabbled with a new approach to theater that allowed the characters to be done in a very magical way” without diminishing “the importance of the human actor,” said Michael Curry, who collaborated with Taymor on the show’s mask and puppet designs.
“The Lion King” also has been a milestone event for puppetry, said Vincent Anthony, executive director of the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta. He points out that “The Lion King” proved to producers that live puppetry could be successful on a big scale, opening the doors for subsequent Broadway shows such as “Avenue Q” and “War Horse.”
Read the complete story {Via Richmond Times-Dispatch}
Lion King will play at Landmark Theater VA through March 11, 2012. Buy Lion King Richmond VA Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350!
Lion King Albuquerque NM Tickets in Full Demand – Watch Video
Lion King performances at Popejoy Hall will begin on October 02, 2012 and continue through October 28, 2012. People in Albuquerque went wild Saturday morning to get their hands on Lion King Albuquerque tickets for Disney’s popular show – Watch the Video below:
Hundreds lined up before the sun even rose. Hundreds filled Popejoy Hall’s lobby early Saturday morning, all looking to score the best tickets available. When the sales counter finally opened at 7 a.m., fans were ready. Zach Lascari waited 12 hours for his seats. With a blanket and pillows, he parked himself in Popejoy Hall at 7 p.m. Friday night. “Yeah, I tried to sleep but I wasn’t successful,” he said. Turns out though, his patience paid off. Not only was he the first one in line, he also got a memento. A staff member handed him a Lion King book and said, “We do have a present for you from The Lion King. I think you’ll enjoy this. It’s a great book about the show and thanks for being the first in line.” Others were just happy to get their hands on the coveted seats.
Lion King Popejoy Hall Performance Schedule:
Tuesdays to Thrusdays – 7:30 p.m.
Fridays – 8:00 p.m.
Saturdays – 2:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.
Sunday – 1:00 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.
Lion King Musical will run for 32 performances in Albuquerque from Oct. 2 through Oct. 28. Buy Lion King Popejoy Hall Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350!
Lion King Ziff Opera House At The Adrienne Arsht Center Performance Schedule
Lion King coming to Miami, Florida. Lion King performances at Ziff Opera House At The Adrienne Arsht Center will begin on Tuesday May 15, 2012 for a limited engagement of four weeks through Monday June 11, 2012. Lion King will close on May 13, 2012 at Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre, Orlando FL before moving to Miami FL.
Lion King Ziff Opera House At The Adrienne Arsht Center Performance Schedule:
Tuesdays to Fridays – 8:00 p.m.
Saturdays – 2:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.
Sunday – 1:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.
Special Matinee on Firday, June 8 – 2:00 p.m.
Lion King will play at Ziff Opera House At The Adrienne Arsht Center through June 11, 2012. Buy Lion King Miami FL Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350!
