THIS IS LONDON SUMMER ISSUE 2025 - Flipbook - Page 48
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The Lion King © Disney
DISNEY’S THE LION KING
CELEBRATES 25 YEARS IN LONDON
‘THERE IS SIMPLY NOTHING ELSE
LIKE IT’ – New York Times
Disney’s award-winning musical, The
Lion King, explodes with glorious
colours, stunning effects and enchanting
music. It follows the powerful story of
Simba, as he journeys from wide-eyed
cub to his destined role as King of the
Pridelands. Now in its 26th year at
London's Lyceum Theatre, director Julie
Taymor’s acclaimed reimagining of
Disney's beloved film continues to
redefine a generation’s expectation of
theatre. The Lion King is famous for the
use of puppetry, with the animals even
entering the audience at some points in
the show. There are more than 232
puppets, including rod puppets, shadow
puppets and full-sized puppets. It took
director Julie Taymor and her team
37,000 hours to build the original
puppets and masks.
There are 25 kinds of animal species
represented in the production, with the
longest animal being the elephant at 4
metres long by 3.5 metres high and 2.75
metres wide. The tallest animals are the
5.5 metre giraffes in the song ‘I Just
Can’t Wait to be King’ and the smallest
animal in the show is the 13 cm trick
mouse at the end of Scar’s cane.
Disney made theatrical history with
the opening of The Lion King in 1997,
which received six 1998 Tony Awards
including Best Musical and Best
Director, Julie Taymor, who became the
first woman in Broadway history to win
the award.
For tickets, visit the website at
www.thelionking.co.uk or telephone the
Box Office on 0844 871 3000.
ONLY 167 DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS
– MISCHIEF NEW FESTIVE FIASCO
With only 167 days until Christmas,
Mischief, the multi award-winning
company with two hugely successful
shows running concurrently in the West
End – The Play That Goes Wrong (now
in its 11th year at London’s Duchess
Theatre) and The Comedy About Spies
(at the Noel Coward Theatre until
5 September) – are to present their new
festive fiasco, Christmas Carol Goes
Wrong. West End performances begin at
the Apollo Theatre in the West End on
6 December following a UK tour.
This brand-new Goes Wrong comedy
brings the chaos and humour of the
Cornley Amateur Drama Society back to
the stage. Written by original Mischief
members Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer
and Henry Shields, the production also
marks the return of director Matt
DiCarlo, following critical claim for his
West End directorial debut with The
Comedy about Spies.
The Cornley crew battle
miscommunication, delays to their set,
actors missing in action and a growing
feud over who will play the lead. It’s sure
to be a disastrous take on the muchloved classic Christmas story of
Ebeneezer Scrooge. Will Cornley finally
change their ways, or will their
misfortunes wreak havoc yet again?
Christmas Carol Goes Wrong is
produced by Kenny Wax and Stage
Presence. Tickets available from
www.ChristmasCarolGoesWrong.com
PERSPECTIVES: BALANCHINE,
MARSTON AND PECK
Serenade was one of the first ballets
created by George Balanchine, a defining
figure of 20th-century ballet. A radiant
work of pure beauty, the ethereal ballet is
set to Tchaikovsky’s soaring Serenade
for Strings. Following her awardwinning success with The Cellist, Cathy
Marston’s new work takes as its
inspiration Benjamin Britten’s Violin
Concerto, a turbulent yet intimate piece
written as Europe teetered on the brink
of World War II. Justin Peck’s uplifting
Everywhere We Go concludes the mixed
programme. Its cinematic score by
musician Sufjan Stevens was
commissioned exclusively for this ballet.
Everywhere We Go is the first of the
American choreographer’s works to be
performed by The Royal Ballet.
This new production will be
performed at the Royal Opera House
from 14 November to 2 December.
T H I S I S L O N D O N M A G A Z I N E • T H I S I S L O N D O N O N L I N E • w w w. t i l . c o m • @ t h i s i s l o n d o n m a g
