As the nighttime backdrop gives way to a brilliant orange morning and the chant segues into the hit “Circle of Life,” the show begins in earnest with a stunning coup de theatre: Two parades (one in either aisle) of giraffes, leopards, antelope, rhinos, elephants and other jungle creatures march from the back of the auditorium to the stage, an entrance that is unquestionably the most pulse-quickening on Broadway in years.Īs it will later do with “Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” the show transforms “Circle of Life” from the treacly single version recorded by Elton John into a sweeping choral number that, like much else to come, recalls the lush harmonies and complex percussion of South Africa’s Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Against a midnight-blue sky, Rafiki (Tsidii Le Loka), the baboon (here presented as more shaman than simian, and, unlike the movie, made female), begins a call-and-response African chant song with singers perched high up in the New Amsterdam Theater’s opera seats. The first seconds of the show are as simple as they are stirring. Richard Hudson’s exquisitely streamlined sets and Donald Holder’s deep, rich lighting contribute to a production that wears every penny of its $15 million-plus cost.
Disney and Broadway have found a box office bonanza that in every likelihood will run for years.Įmploying her trademark mix of various puppet, mask and costume techniques, Taymor presents a “Lion King” that is true to the look of Disney’s animation while incorporating a stronger African design, somehow blending her influences into a style that is uniquely her own (in addition to directing, she designed the costumes and shares a credit with Michael Curry on the masks and puppets). No such chilliness here: Playful and warm, funny and exciting, “The Lion King” will enchant children and adults in equal measure. A MacArthur Foundation “genius,” Taymor has long been known in New York theater circles for her eye-popping puppetry and visual effects, yet her previous work, including last season’s “Juan Darien,” seemed more than a bit taken with its own cerebral heft. And “ The Lion King” is a victory for Taymor as well (or perhaps above all).
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