The Lion King
From Theatre Breaks
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Disney's The Lion King
Disney’s The Lion King with a score by Elton John
The Lion King musical celebrated a tenth anniversary last year in London’s West End. It’s a great family show.
Show Available and booking to Sunday 24th July 2011
Disney's musical The Lion King celebrates its eleventh anniversary at the Lyceum Theatre in October 2010 with over 8.5 million people going to see the production since it opened in the West End in 1999.
The show is now the ninth longest-running musical in West End history playing over 4,600 performances.
The Lion King, London cast
The current London company of 46 performers is led by George Asprey as Scar, Shaun Escoffery as Mufasa, Stephen Matthews as Zazu, Brown Lindiwe Mkhize as Rafiki, Nick Mercer as Timon, Keith Bookman as Pumbaa, Andile Gumbi as Simba, Narran McLean as Nala, Gary Forbes as Banzai, Allyson Addo as Shenzi and Mark Sangster as Ed.
The Lion King Theatre Breaks
| musical: The Lion King | 
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| starring: Score by Elton John | |
| Book Now: The Lion King theatre breaks | |
| opening night:1999 booking until Sunday September 9th 2012 |
Disney’s marvellous musical about the young Prince Simba, his father King Musafa and evil Uncle Scar. An award-winning score with fantastic choreography continue to make The Lion King one of London’s favourite shows. Lion King London Video
Lion King
Disney’s THE LION KING had a 10th birthday party at London’s Lyceum Theatre on Sunday 18th October 2009. Over 250 cast members new and old celebrated along with famous faces from the world of theatre, music, film and fashion.
Since its opening in1999 THE LION KING has been seen by over 8 million people in London at over 4200 performances. This is an average attendance of 93%! The show ranks among the top ten longest-running shows in West End history and is still of the most sought-after tickets in the West End. Tickets are almost never reduced in price and it can be tricky to get weekend tickets, especially during the run up to Christmas. One of the best ways to get the dates you want for Lion King is to book a Lion King Theatre Break. THE LION KING – Times
Evenings – Tuesday to Saturday 7.30pm
Matinees – Wednesday and Saturday 2.00pm and Sunday at 3.00pm.
THE LION KING and Children
Did you know?
- 400,000 school children have seen the show as part of THE LION KING education programme
- Lion King has a great education website with free resources
- 64 children have played the roles of Young Simba and Young Nala and many of them have gone on to successful musical or theatrical careers
- THE LION KING ‘Cub School’ was started this year (2009) to train young performers for the show. The first graduates from the programme joined the production in September 2009
Lion King Theatre Breaks with the Family
All of this makes The Lion King an ideal choice for a family theatre break.
Your children should be over 5 and need to be old enough to sit comfortably for the length of the show (running time is 2 hours 40 minutes with only a 15 minute interval) . Surprisingly this is often not a problem as the spectacular staging entrances children and pins them to their seats.
London hotels are in the main very family friendly and some offer family rooms at quite reasonable prices. Try to choose a fairly central hotel and then it’s easy to do a bit of sightseeing during the day.
Lots of attractions can be booked at the same time as your theatre break and usually with good discounts. It’s worth having a look at what’s on offer when you book.
The Lion King – perfect for birthday treats
We think The Lion King is a great musical to take the kids to and Michelle Obama seems to agree. Cast and audience alike were delighted on Tuesday night when they realised there was a very special birthday girl in the audience! It was Malia’s 8th’s birthday and like many parents the Obama’s decided an evening at the Lyceum to see The Lion King was the perfect way to celebrate. They’d been for a pre-theatre supper of fish and chips first and arrived at the side entrance just before the performance. Unlike most little girls, of course, they had a huge security team with them but they were careful not to spoil other members of the audience’s evening. The Obama party sat in one of the private boxes, just above the stage. Sadly this meant the girls didn’t get the best view but I’m sure they had a great time anyway! One of the cast members (Craig Williams – giraffe) said:
“We looked out of the window and saw all their cars so we knew it was true. All the actors were incredibly excited and there was a massive buzz.
“A lot of us were sneaking glances up at their box during the performance. They all looked like they were really enjoying it though, especially the two girls…..
He went on to explain that the girls didn’t see the last few minutes of the show:
They had to leave so they wouldn’t be mobbed at the end and they missed a few minutes of the show as well as the bows.
Songs in The Lion King
The Lion King features 15 songs, including the five from the film and new songs by Elton John and Tim Rice, with additional numbers by South African-born Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Hans Zimmer and Julie Taymor. The book is by Roger Allers and Irene Mecchi.
The Lion King UK Tour
Disney’s long-running West End musical The Lion King embarks on a UK tour in 2012.
Launching from Bristol Hippodrome, The Lion King will play an 11-week season from 6 September (previews from 31 August) to 17 November, travelling to the Palace Theatre, Manchester for Christmas, opening 6 December (previews from 1 December) and run through until 31 March 2013.
The show will tour with a company of 52 to ten cities in the UK and Ireland over the next two and a half years.
Dates and locations for engagements past Manchester into 2013 have still to be announced.
Theatre Breaks in London with the kids – top 5 shows this summer
A theatre break in London with the kids sounds like a great idea, doesn’t it? There’s so much to do and see in London, even in a British summer. The hotels aren’t too expensive and you can book the whole thing, show tickets, 2 or 3 nights hotel, extras as an all in one package, you can even include the return rail fare. If your children are over the age of 3 you should be able to find a show to suit your family. So which shows do you go to see?
It really depends on the age of the children and their interests. Don’t be put off by worries that the shows will all be sold out, companies that sell packages often have good, reasonably priced tickets for hit shows when no one else does. The Lion King
The Lion King is pure Disney and one of the best shows for mixed ages. The Lion King is so much more than the cartoon. The story is simple and familiar but the spectacle and the power of the live music makes it really something special. Ideal for boys, girls, and just about anyone who likes animals!It is long though and that partly explains the age restrictions (see below).
- Running Time: 2 hours 45 minutes including the interval
- Matinees: Sunday – 3:pm Weds – 2:30pm and Sat 2:00
- Evenings: Shows start at 7:30 except Mondays (no show)
- Recommended age limit
Ideal for 7 plus, below 7 use your discretion but be realistic. Under 4s will not be admitted to the theatre. They are quite strict about this.
There will be a new cast soon in Disney’s Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre. Changes will include thirteen new cast members Shaun Escoffery (Mufasa), George Asprey (Scar), Gloria Onitiri (Nala), Andile Gumbi (Simba), Cameron Pow (Zazu), Vincent Bugg, Sheila Kerr, Sakhumzi Mbele, Nqobile Nbanjwa, Yael Alano Pineda, Jermaine Rowe, Craig Williams, Wei Wei Zhang.
Shawn Escoffery – Olivier-nominated for Parade, at the Donmar Warehouse 2007, previous West End credits: Les Miserables, The Who’s Tommy and Smokey Joe’s Cafe.
George Asprey – Billy Flynn in the UK tour of Chicago.
Gloria Onitiri – returns to the show after several years. Other West End credits include Avenue Q.
Andile Gumbi – played ‘Simba’ in Melbourne, Shanghai and Johannesburg
Cameron Pow – a West End debut for Pow, he’s from Wales but has spent most of his career in the States where he’s played Zazu for the last 5 years in a touring production.
Tony Schumacher, producer of the Lion King and Disney also have have an interest in High School Musical, currently touring and with a second production coming to the Hammersmith Apollo.
The Mail points out that Schumacher written a book aimed at the young audiences these shows attract called How Does The Show Go On? – An Introduction To The Theatre
He added: “We constantly complain about our youth and if your kid is not in a band, a choir, on a sports team, in a play or a dance concert, where are they?”
He argued that learning about the theatre can help teach you about real life.
“We don’t promote the arts in the same way we do sports,” he said.
The Lion King, currently at the Lyceum Theatre, is coming up to its 10th year in the West End in October. During that time it has grossed £244million, according to today’s Daily Mail.
I don’t think there’s much problem with young people’s interest in the musical theatre in the UK :-) Particularly if the crowds streaming into Lion King, Wicked and soon into High School Musical no doubt are anything to go by! I’d just like to see more funding and support for kids in the inner cities beyond London to access after school stage clubs. Maybe we could get ‘competing on reality TV shows for parts in musicals’ elevated to an Olympic sport and grab some of that juicy sports funding :-)
