The Lion King premiered in Disney's New Amsterdam Theatre, located on Broadway and 42nd St. in New York City, Nov. 13, 1997. Initially, shows were scheduled to end March 26, 1998; however, due to its enormous success, shows have now been scheduled until January 3, 1999. Tickets range in price from $25-$75, but if you are going to spend the time to go and watch the show, your best bet is to splurge the extra money and get good seats; it is definitely worth it.

Unlike Disney's Beauty and the Beast (Broadway version), The Lion King is not an exact translation of its animated feature film counterpart. Julie Taymor, director, costume designer, and mask & puppet designer, wrote in her forthcoming book from Hyperion entitled The Lion King: Pride Rock on Broadway, "The limited, 75-minute running time of the [animated] film just didn't allow time for [character growth]." Not only did she use most of the scenes from the movie, but she also added several new scenes that furthered the characters' growth. Two examples are: Scar desired the adult Nala, and the adult Simba became reckless and endangered the life of Timon in a poignant scene in the jungle.

The Lion King's most obvious characteristic is its use of costumes for its extensive list of characters. The following excerpt from Julie Taymor's book describes her thought process in designing the costumes:

One of the most powerful elements of the film is the rich humanity of the animal characters. Their voices, speech patterns, and emotionally wrought facial expression convey the work's humor and pathos. In considering this ironic duality - they're both human and animal - it became critical in the design concept not to hide the actor behind a whole mask or inside an animal bodysuit. I wanted the human being to be an essential part of the stylization, creating a double event where the audience can watch both the actor and the animal simultaneously.

The pictures speak for themselves. It would be impossible to describe the various costumes and visual eye-candy from this musical.

One of the highlights is the opening scene, corresponding to the movie where all the animals come to Pride Rock to pay homage to the future king Simba. This is by far the best scene and the most dramatic in this Broadway version. Music is playing, voices are wailing, animals are coming from all directions (and I do mean all directions)! From the first few minutes, you just want to jump out of your seat and join in the chorus; this feeling continues throughout. Another added bonus was musician Lebo M's creation of lyrics to several of the instrumental tracks from The Lion King Original Soundtrack and Rhythms of the Pride Land; the best two were "He Lives in You" and "Endless Night."

In terms of highlights of actors, unless you are familiar with the theatre world, most of the performers' names will sound unfamiliar. Nonetheless, I tip my hat to John Vickery (Scar), Max Casella (Timon), and Jason Raize (adult Simba). Scar portrayed his villainous role with an acuity seldom seen in many actors. Since Max Casella was painted green and stood behind the life-size puppet of Timon, it was hard to distinguish him as the character Vinny from the 1980's TV series Doogie Howser M.D. If you recall, Vinny was Doogie's best friend. Other notable information about the performers is: Samuel E. Wright (Mufasa) played the role of Sebastian in Disney's The Little Mermaid, where his song "Under the Sea" won an Oscar.

If you live anywhere near the Big Apple or plan on vacationing there, make an effort to see The Lion King. Tickets are becoming scarce, so get yours soon! (Visit Disney's homepage to get further information on where to acquire tickets.) In keeping with Disney, it is a show the entire family will love, and it is no surprise that Disney Theatricals is already working on future productions once The Lion King leaves the New Amsterdam Theatre. I would personally love to see The Hunchback of Notre Dame be turned into a Broadway Musical, but that's just me. Only time will tell what is in store next from Disney, but one thing is certain, if Disney's involved, it's going to be great!