"There's no mountain too great Hear the words and have faith" THE LION KING Rafiki tour review

Yesterday, I saw THE LION KING for the first time! I can't believe I had never seen it!?  I am a huge Disney fan (obviously) and I love musical theatre, and I legitimately cannot believe I have never seen it before now! It was amazing, and I understand now why it IS The World's #1 Musical. I know that I am way late to the party on this one, but I am not officially converted.

THE LION KING is playing at the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco, where I have seen a lot of shows over the years. It holds a lot of bittersweet memories for me, but I am glad that I get to make new memories with my niece and nephew who are budding theatre goers.

Took my photo in the bathroom for Dressember.

(I don't have a lion purse, but I do have Ludo from Labyrinth, does that count? hahaha)

Look at that incredible cast board.

The Buns arrived!

Kiri drew me a turtle.

We all got settled into our seats, with Callan sitting right in front of me.

Callan during intermission making an announcement that this is what he wants to do with his life (i.e., be in this show).

Some thoughts on the show itself:

• The show itself is stunning. That's the only way to describe it. It is visually and emotionally spectacular. But it's also more than just spectacle, the visuals aren't there to be flashy, they are integral to the storytelling.

The absolutely brilliant Gerald Ramsey(who plays Mufasa) talks about the Indigenous, ancestral connections that the cast has with the storytelling, and why that is an imperative piece of the production. I think that's what works about THE LION KING in a way that other Disney Theatricals haven't been able to do, is that they're strictly commercial, whereas LION KING is rooted in Indigenous storytelling (imperfectly, and not without some commercial influence, obviously, but that's still a lot more than  the others can say).

• The costumes and the puppetry are brilliantly utilized. They are so smart in they way they don't even try to hide the actor (which causes the audience to completely ignore them and forget they are even there. I love how the masks are dynamic and  alter based on the actor needing to be more human or more animal.
• I actually hate immersive theatre, but I have to say, I loved the way the performers utilized the whole building.
• I feel like the stage adaptation respects its audience in the same way that Walt did; it's not a "dumbed down" version in any way, and it really trusts the audience, especially the children in the audience.
• the way that Simba's PTSD is depicted is something we didn't get from the animated version, and it's so moving. Like, who ever decided to do this and the way they decided to do this absolutely knew what they were doing.
• all the performers were spectacular and I have no notes. I REALLY loved cub Nala and Simba, though.
• in many ways, the modern inclusion efforts seem so hammy and try-hard and shoehorned in a way that LION KING doesn't; it's built out of respect, and not attention-seeking.
• during the scene when Mufasa tells Simba about the Great Kings of the Past, Callan got really cute with his dad and snuggled with him. 🥹

• I cried SO HARD the entire first act. (Some spoilers) When Mufasa died, I cried so hard I got sick and had to leave before intermission, so I missed "Hakuna Matata."
• I hope it comes back sooner rather than later this time, because I can't wait to see it again.