The Lion King tickets Providence

An absolutely incredible theater experience!

We had the absolute JOY of seeing "The Lion King" at Centennial Hall in Tucson. It was simply amazing. The costuming and puppetry were some of the best things I have ever seen. Beautiful, bright colors combined with...well, I guess you'd say prosthetics, to make the humans truly represent the animals they played. The very first number, "The Circle of Life" could have just as easily have been the finale. Players came from all over the theater and the audience burst into spontaneous applause when the Elephant made its way down the aisle (though it was hard to tear our eyes away from the Giraffes already on stage). The music was of course sumptuous - though almost overpowering at times (less amplification and more natural sound would have been welcome) and that first song brought tears to my eyes and a lump to my throat. There were several additional songs throughout. My personal favorites were the choral numbers. I have NO expertise whatsoever in the many traditions of music from the African continent, but most of these reminded me greatly of Ladysmith Black Mombazo (a group I enjoy greatly). I should add that Mufasa (and later grown Simba) had what amounted to a lion-with-a mane-shaped-crown as a head, making him look very much like an African King. Much of what occurs throughout the play was designed to appear ceremonial and the effect was mesmerizing. Rather than some sort of generic jungle or savannah backdrop the "sets" were often highly stylized and suggested rather than explicit. This was brilliantly done because while they added to the action, they never distracted from it. Zazu was pure puppetry (as, for the most part, were the Hyenas). The second act was a little slow in place for me (but I never really cared much for the second part of "Lion King" either). If not for Timon and Pumba it might actually have been boring. Simba and Nala were played by two different performers (children and adults). While the adult players were very good indeed, the children were spectacular. Young Simba was WONDERFUL - such a character and so full of life! Young Nala wasn't quite as magnetic, but that young girl has the voice of an angel - actually better than the adult. All of the actors were played by black men and women from many parts of the globe with the possible exceptions of Timon and Pumba - Timon being painted green (as he worked the large puppet in front of him) and Pumba blending into a huge warthog costume that totally obscured WHAT his race might be. Frankly that is exactly the way a story set in Africa SHOULD be performed. The play was so much more than the movie was it's hard to describe. It's almost like this was transformed from a fairly straightforward story (reminiscent of Hamlet and many others) into something archetypal - mythical if you will. I cannot express how beautiful this is to watch. There are times even the leaves, trees, and bush are played by humans - which is amazingly effective. I should add that I couldn't even imagine how Scar's solo "Be Prepared" or the Wildebeest stampede could be translated to the stage. I can't really tell you here, but trust me - it was done perfectly. I haven't mentioned Scar, but he was brilliant throughout. I also loved that he walked with a cane, not as a support but as an affectation. There is only one character I have any any criticism for and that's Rafiki. I have no problem with a female Rafiki (I mean, what difference does it make?), but I could NOT understand a thing she said. THAT is a problem. If I hadn't seen the movie a gazillion times I probably might have missed a lot of what was going on. Her performance was fine otherwise - just difficult to understand. If you have the opportunity to see this production (it's traveling across the country right now) do yourself a HUGE favor and GO SEE IT. It's not cheap, of course, but this is a large cast with elaborate costumes, advanced lighting and effects, and a live orchestra. I can't even guess how much it must cost to produce. The fact that it's even being done on the road is a miracle. It is worth every penny and more.