Archive for March, 2012
Lion King Musical at the Mahalia Jackson Theater – Review
Lion King is currently playing on tour in New Orleans, LA at the Mahalia Jackson Theater and continue through Sunday April 15, 2012.
Many Broadway musicals are film adaptations, but the transition from movie to stage can be tricky when the source work is animated. But The Lion King works because it offers an inspired interpretation of the 1994 Disney film’s animal kingdom.
Elements that made The Lion King so popular — it’s the sixth longest-running show on Broadway — include costumes, puppetry and other mechanics used to animate the film’s environs and characters for the stage. Audiences get the extent of director Julie Taymor’s original vision. The show opener “The Circle of Life” introduces the full array of animals — lions, elephants, zebras and others — which emerges from the stage wings and walks in procession down the theater’s aisles (audiences should take their seats early: latecomers are held in the lobby until after that number). Cast members demonstrate exceptional grace, control and athleticism in operating these animals, especially the giraffes portrayed by actors on stilts, a life-sized cheetah puppet and birds whose operators mimic flight by darting down the aisles and around the stage.
Even the cast members whose roles don’t require as much apparatus are captivating. Rafiki (Buyi Zama), who is a monkey in the film but human in the stage version, functions as an enigmatic mystic figure. She commands attention from the beginning with that piercing Zulu verse that begins “Circle of Life.” She’s got a singing voice that can be simultaneously big and restrained, and she’s effective at both humorous and emotional moments. The child actors portraying young Simba (Adante Power) and Nala (Sade Phillip-Demorcy) have refreshingly childlike singing voices that they don’t push to sound more mature. J. Anthony Crane is perfectly diabolical as Scar, who has designs on his brother Mufasa’s (played powerfully by Dionne Randolph) position as king. Syndee Winters embodies the strength and beauty of the adult Nala.
The Lion King retains enough of its original elements to satisfy nostalgic viewers, but it strays enough from the source material to make it fresh and exciting.
Read the complete review by Lauren LaBorde – {Via BestOfNewOrleans.com}
Lion King musical will run through April 15, 2012 at The Mahalia Jackson Theater. Buy Lion King New Orleans LA Tickets Online, Use Code #SpringSavings at Checkout to Get $10 OFF on Orders of $350 or more!
Lion King Puppeteers and Actor Michael Reilly Visit Bethune Elementary Literary and Technology School
Lion King is currently running at the Mahalia Jackson Theater through April 15, 2012. Actor Mark David Kaplan, who provides the voice and movement for the Zazu puppet character in The Musical The Lion King, came to Bethune Elementary Literary and Technology School to give a demonstration of his character and talk about being an actor and the development of characters on Thursday, March 22, 2012. The show’s master puppeteer Michael Reilly was also on hand to answer questions.
Photo {Via Times-Picayune – NOLA.com}
Lion King Runs at Mahalia Jackson Theater through April 15, 2012. Get $10 OFF on Lion King New Orleans LA Tickets Orders of $350or more by using code #SpringSavings at Checkout.
Lion King Broadway Box Office – Update for Week March 18, 2012
Lion King Broadway grossed $1,760,703 and had a 98.7% attendance rate, about 4.6% more than the previous week. The 29 shows on the boards grossed $22,236,274, about 16.42% more that of the previous week’s totals.
Below are the Top 12 Grosses from BroadwayWorld.com for the week ending March 18, 2012.
1. Wicked – (GERSHWIN) $1,942,288
2. The Lion King – (MINSKOFF) $1,760,703
3. Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark – (FOXWOODS) $1,578,215
4. The Book Of Mormon – (EUGENE O’NEILL) $1,494,024
5. Evita – (MARQUIS) $1,167,685
6. The Phantom Of The Opera – (MAJESTIC) $1,012,149
7. Jersey Boys – (AUGUST WILSON) $913,217
8. War Horse – (VIVIAN BEAUMONT) $886,640
9. Mary Poppins – (NEW AMSTERDAM) $881,144
10. How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying – (AL HIRSCHFELD) $812,618
11. Newsies – (NEDERLANDER) $735,991
12. Mamma Mia! – (WINTER GARDEN) $685,129
{Via BroadwayWorld.com}
Lion King Performance at the Mahalia Jackson Theater in New Orleans – Video
Lion King roars into New Orleans, LA for one month run. The Tony Award-winning musical has moved in to the Mahalia Jackson Theatre for the Performing Arts with all the spectacle and theatrical magic that has made it one of Broadway’s biggest hits.
Lion King musical performances at Mahalia Jackson Theater continues through April 15. Though the musical version of “The Lion King” has appeared in more than 60 North American cities, this is its first stop in New Orleans LA. Get a video peek at an athletic dance performance that helps set the tone for Disney’s musical ‘The Lion King,’ now showing at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts.
Lion King New Orleans LA Tickets are selling fast. Get $10 OFF on Lion King Mahalia Jackson Theater Tickets Orders of $350or more by using code #SpringSavings at Checkout.
Lion King coming to Fox Cities Performing Arts Center April 09, 2013
The Fox Cities Performing Arts Center is celebrating its 10th anniversary season with a lineup that showcases some past successes, the touring industry’s latest big-name shows and new community collaborations.
The Lion King Musical will be part of the 2012-13 Fox Cities Performing Arts Center lineup, is scheduled for April 9 to May 5, 2013 in Appleton WI.
“We wanted to make sure that obviously we were reflecting on some great memorable moments that have really brought the performing arts center audiences together and built that loyalty that we’re so lucky to have from our community,” said Maria Van Laanen, the PAC’s executive vice president. “But then also, we wanted to continue to challenge them and continue to excite them because the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center’s audiences have been so supportive of seeing different types of art forms from different areas. That’s what you’ll see when you look at this 10th anniversary season.”
Disney’s “The Lion King,” which runs April 9 to May 5, 2013, played at the PAC in 2007. That was a “pinnacle moment” for the center, Van Laanen said.
“It was the longest-running show we had brought to the community up to that point,” she said. “This show, it changed the landscape on Broadway and I think it really was the sign that the Performing Arts Center had truly arrived in the touring industry.”
“We are one of very few cities that are presenting this on its first year of its national tour,” Van Laanen said. “Like ‘The Lion King’ did, this play caused such a ripple on Broadway because it is some of the most powerful storytelling that has been seen on Broadway in a very long time. And the way they tell this story, which takes place in World War I, through the eyes of the horse, is just magnificent. Because you’re seeing it through Joey’s eyes, you get a glimpse at all sides of the war.”
Lion King musical will run from April 09, 2013 and continue through May 05, 2013 at Fox Cities PAC. Buy Lion King Appleton WI Tickets online. Get $10 OFF on Lion King Fox Cities Performing Arts Center Tickets Orders of $350 or more by using code #SpringSavings at Checkout.
Lion King Musical Became Sixth Longest Running Show in Broadway
Disney’s smash hit musical The Lion King will become the sixth longest-running Broadway show in history on March 14. The company will celebrate the milestone after the matinee performance at the Minskoff Theatre, when it will have played 5,960 performances.
Based on the popular Disney film, The Lion King first opened on Broadway on November 13, 1997 at the New Amsterdam Theater, before transferring to the Minskoff in 2006. Now in its 15th year, the show has spawned 19 productions around the world and has been translated into seven different languages. The Lion King won six Tony Awards in 1998 including Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical. Director Julie Taymor became the first woman in history to win the award for Best Direction of a Musical.
The Lion King currently stars Adam Jacobs as Simba, Alton Fitzgerald White as Mufasa, Patrick R. Brown as Scar, Tshidi Manye as Rafiki, Jeff Binder as Zazu, Ben Jeffrey as Pumbaa, Fred Berman as Timon and Chauntee Schuler as Nala.
Read the complete news {Via Broadway.com}
Lion King Minskoff Theatre Tickets are so popular and selling fast online. Get $10 OFF on Lion King New York NY Tickets Orders over $350! Use Code #SpringSavings at Checkout.
The Lion King becomes Highest Grossing Show at the Landmark Theatre VA
The show has grossed more than $5.5 million in ticket sales, according to officials with Broadway in Richmond. The four-week run of Disney’s The Lion King has broken the Landmark Theater box office record for a Broadway engagement. When the show ends this Sunday, it will have grossed over $5.5 million and performed for over 93,000 people. In comparison, the three-week run of the Broadway hit “Wicked” at the Landmark in 2010 brought in about $4.8 million.
Organizers estimate that the show has produced a $19.5 million economic impact on the Richmond region. including hotels, restaurants, parking, and businesses patronized by audience members and production staff.
“We are so proud to share the experience of this groundbreaking production with audiences in Richmond, and to entertain so many first-time and regular theatergoers,” said Jack Eldon, Vice President, Domestic, Disney Theatrical Productions in a statement. “We are overwhelmed by the enduring response to the show and thank all of Central Virginia for an incredible engagement.”
“The Lion King brought us incredibly talented creative artists and actors, and a team that worked hard to maintain the highest theatrical standards,” says Steve Traxler, President, Chicago-based Jam Theatricals, the presenting company for Broadway In Richmond, “and the patrons and our loyal Broadway In Richmond subscribers showed their thanks by supporting this blockbuster engagement and making it a success.”
The Lion King, seventh longest-running musical in Broadway history won six 1998 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Costume Design, and Best Choreography.
The Lion King closes at Landmark Theatre VA on Sunday, March 11, 2012 and Moves to New Orleans LA. Lion King performances start at Mahalia Jackson Theatre March 14, 2012 and continue through April 15, 2012. Buy Lion King New Orleans LA Tickets and Get $10 OFF on Orders over $350! Use Code #SpringSavings at Checkout.
Lion King Coming to Detroit Opera House February 14, 2013
Lion King Musical Tour will make a stop at Detroit MI February 14, 2013. Lion King will begin performances at Detroit Opera House on February 14, 2013 for a limited engagement of four weeks through March 10, 2013.
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.
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Lion King Musical to Arrive in New Orleans LA March 14, 2012
Lion King Musical will Arrive in New Orleans LA March 14, 2012. Lion King will begin performances at Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts on Wednesday, March 14 for a limited engagement of five weeks through Sunday, April 15.
“The Lion King” is a universal tale with a Disney treatment. A jealous uncle tricks a young cub into believing he’s killed his father. The cub flees into exile, abandoning his identity as the future king. Meanwhile, the uncle temporarily conquers the Pride Lands, ravaging the land in the process. Ultimately, the cub finds his rightful place.
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