Music
The Lion King Review: 5 Stars!
From the very first note, The Lion King has you hooked. When Rafiki (Buyi Zama) steps on stage and effortlessly hits the opening lines of Circle of Life, you know you are about to witness something epic.
As a child of the 90s The Lion King holds a special place for me. I was given the soundtrack on tape as a kid and played it over and over again, even joining up with a school friend to perform for our class. The songs are etched into my brain so it is safe to say I had very high expectations for The Lion King.
It is also safe to say The Lion King hit my expectations out of the park. The polished performers do justice to the already very high reputation of the musical, which has been seen by more than 75 million people around the world.
The costumes, set design and puppetry are quite simply breathtaking. If you cannot imagine you could see life-sized giraffes, elephants, cheetahs and zebras on stage at the Regent Theatre, you will be delighted to see the incredible ingenuity of The Lion King’s creative designers who bring the Serengeti plains to life with ease.
The performances are faultless with powerful acting and singing the highlight of the event. The cast is world-class with Simba (Nick Afoa), Mufasa (Rob Collins) and Scar (Josh Quong Tart) providing fantastic representations of the fierce lions. The hyenas and Timon (Jamie McGregor) and Pumbaa (Russell Dykstra) are hilarious while many of the best lines are reserved for the officious hornbill, Zazu (Cameron Goodall) who will have you laughing in the aisles with his witty quips.
But my biggest applause was reserved for the irrepressible Rafiki, who steals the show without even speaking a legible word. Her voice goes through you; it is inspiring and emotional to hear Circle of Life and much of that is due to the unsurpassed ability of Buyi Zama. She is a pleasure to watch.
The creativity required to fulfil many of the scenes is a credit to the production team and is something that needs to be seen to be believed.
The Lion King features new songs, alongside the original songs that are so well known and loved by all the kids of the 90s. The classic tunes are just as fantastic as I remembered and after 20 years the songs by Elton John and Tim Rice are just as fun to listen to today as they were all those years ago.
My journey to the Pridelands – and back to my childhood – was an overwhelmingly happy experience. It is easy to see why The Lion King has become a worldwide smash hit and one of the longest running Broadway musicals of all time. If you haven’t seen the musical yet – and even if you have – you must get along to the Regent Theatre to see the incredible show.
Click here to purchase tickets to The Lion King at the Regent Theatre.
