a b "Broadway's Lion King Now Nine Minutes Shorter". Playbill. June 26, 2010 . Retrieved July 22, 2017. Phindile Mkhize and Ntsepa Ptjeng are the only actresses who performed as leads in the three languages the musical's been performed in. Phindile performed in English (American tour and Las Vegas, 2002–2010), Spanish (from 2012 to 2013) and Portuguese (2013); while Ntsepa was leading in Brazil (2014, as a substitute to Phindile), Basel (2015) and Shanghai (2016). Sheila Gibbs was the first actress to move from a standby into a leading role. She was a Rafiki understudy for Tsidi Le Loka from 1997 to 1998 and was selected as leading from 2001 to 2002. This was followed by Gugwana Dlamini, who was a standby (1999–2002) and a leading (2002–2005) in the show's London production and Buyisile Zama, who was a standby for Gugwana in London (2002–2003) and leading actress for the show's first Australian tour (2003–2006). As a result of the 2019-20 coronavirus outbreak and subsequent evacuation of the city, the show's originally planned March 2020 Chinese run, which would have taken place in both Wuhan and Beijing, was ultimately cancelled, with performances to be rescheduled. [64] A return to South Africa was also postponed indefinitely. The musical had a Mexican limited run (in English) between January 3 and January 27, 2008, in Mexico City, as part of the U.S. national tour. [34]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sourcesin this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( March 2016) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) In Basel, Switzerland, the musical was performed for the first time from March 12, 2015, until October 11, 2015. [52] Africa Balungile Gumede and Marvette Williams are the actresses who have played Sarabi for the longest timespan in the show. Balungile as of February 2018 is a cover Sarabi, however she started in the German production of the show in 2010 taking over Marvette playing Sarabi until 2017 when she was replaced by Kerry Jean. They are followed by Tryphena Wade, who's also performing as the lioness since 2010. Rafiki's chants in "Rafiki Mourns" were written by Tsidii Le Loka, who originated the role on Broadway.The Lion King is a stage musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Tim Rice, and a book by Roger Allers and Irene Mecchi, with additional music and lyrics by Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Julie Taymor, and Hans Zimmer. It is based on the 1994 Walt Disney Animation Studios' film of the same name. [1] Directed by Taymor, the musical features actors in animal costumes as well as giant, hollow puppets. The show is produced by Disney Theatrical Productions. [2]

Of all the show's productions (counting the English ones), only the Brazilian and the Korean ones didn't have cast recordings released. Simba goes to see his Uncle Scar. The scheming lion piques the cub's curiosity by mentioning the elephant graveyard, where Simba is forbidden to go. Meanwhile, the lionesses go hunting ("The Lioness Hunt"). Simba arrives and asks his best friend, a female cub named Nala, to come with him to the elephant graveyard. He lies to the lionesses about where they are going, and Sarafina (Nala's mother) and Sarabi allow the cubs to go, escorted by Zazu. Simba and Nala formulate a plan and manage to lose Zazu, while Simba brags about his future position (" I Just Can't Wait to Be King"). Productions United States First Lady Michelle Obama joins the cast of the U.S. touring company onstage after their performance at the Kids' State Dinner in the East Room of the White House Note: A recording entitled The Lion King, by the London Theatre Orchestra and Singers, was released on November 14, 2000 (D-3 Entertainment, ASIN: B00004ZDR6). This is not the London original cast recording. [80] Robert Elhai, David Metzger and Bruce Fowler orchestrated the original Broadway production for 23 players, including: [82] 1 wood flute soloist/flute/piccolo, 1 concertmistress, 2 violin, 1 violin/viola, 2 celli, 1 flute/clarinet/bass clarinet, 3 French horns, 1 trombone, 1 bass trombone/tuba, 1 bass player (playing both contrabass and electric bass), 1 drum player, 1 guitar, 2 mallets/percussion players, 2 percussion players (both of them at the sides of the stage) and 3 keyboard synthesizers.Nomvula Dlamini was the first, and so far the only, actress who moved from Broadway into a production performed in a different language, being the leading Rafiki on Broadway (2002–2004) and Holland (2004–2006). Staff, Playbill (March 12, 2020). "Broadway Goes Dark Amid Coronavirus Concerns" . Retrieved January 5, 2023. JAPAN'S PERFORMING/VISUAL ARTS SECTOR: MARKET OVERVIEW, PERCEPTIONS AND PRACTICAL MARKET ENTRY" (PDF). EU Business in Japan. EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation. March 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 June 2019 . Retrieved 23 June 2019.