The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...I recieved my tickets to The Lion King musical as a christmas gift this year, my mum and sisters had seen it previously and had decided we would all go together. I know the show has already recieved 27 Chio reviews but i had the most amazing time and cannot get the show out of my head, it deserves all the reviews people can give. I thoroughly enjoyed this show and am passionate about it, i have so much i could say and feel i must warn you this will ...
...through the bits that interest you or just go for it and read the lot! What they say- "Set against the majesety of the Serengeti Plains & the evocative rythms of Africa Disneys multi award winning musical "the Lion King" will redefine your expectations of theatre. A specatacular feast, this adaption of disneys much loved film transports audiences to a dazzling world that explodes with glorious colours, stunning effects and enchanting music." The ...

piggypine 21.02.2007 (29.06.2007) · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

Aristotle in his 'Poetics' named the principal elements of a play as Plot, Character, Diction, Thought, Spectacle and Song, in order of decreasing importance. He probably wouldn't have cared much for The Lion King, whose plot and characterisation may not be the strongest but which cannot be faulted as far as spectacle and song are concerned. You might be used to live-action versions of Disney films imitating the animation as much as possible, with ...
...the appearance of Pluto, Dopey or Mrs Potts. The Lion King has been given a much more liberal interpretation thanks to innovative director/designer Julie Taymor, a brave move which allows the show to go far beyond the boundaries of a cartoon. Rest assured, this is no Mickey Mouse production. The show starts with a single voice crying out in a foreign tongue. The lights go up, but gradually, simulating dawn on the savannah. From either side of the ...

Worrals 03.09.2003 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...my knees," one reviewer at The Express said of the stage version of The Lion King, and I have to question that as I reckon that's probably anatomically impossible. However, they went on to say: "Is The Lion King as good as they say it is? - Dammit, yes!" With such ringing, if slightly dumbed-down, endorsements as that, and others like this: "It lights up the West End with a blaze of fabulous imagination," (The Evening Standard) and "A ravishing ...
...Rice and Elton John from the 1994 Disney animated movie, The Lion King, this stage production tells the story of Simba, a young lion cub who is set to inherit his father's kingdom. Unfortunately, for the young cub, his uncle Scar is none-too-happy about being displaced as the heir to the throne and sets out to take his rightful place as King. To do this, he must dispose of Simba's father, Mustafa, and the young cub himself. Fortunately, for Simba, ...

markd_uk 09.02.2007 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...good look around)...so I've taken the chance to share with you all my views on one of London's hottest shows at the moment...THE LION KING! INTRO ~ As EVERYONE probably knows, Disney's THE LION KING started life as an animation film from 1994 - winning 2 oscars. You could be forgiven for thinking how on earth can they put this animation where the central characters are animals, on stage. Following Disney's broadway smash, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, Julie ...
...one of the bag and has won countless awards, including Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical. . The theatricality involved in this production is immense. Do not, for one moment think you will be watching people dressed up as animals a la 'pantomine horse'...the audience are invited to take a leap of imagination on a journey through the African plains to Pride Rock and meet the mane (nothing like a good pun) characters. WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT ...

MarcoG 25.07.2006 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...variety of roles - nonetheless, the challenge facing the producers of the Lion King musical - of bringing the whole of the African Savannah convincingly to the stage - must have been a daunting one. If the prospect of bringing together a cast of anthropomorphic Lions, Hyenas, Elephants, Giraffes and the like is one you struggle to visualise, you should try to avoid seeing anything of the show before going, as the first scene is a spectacle like little ...
...The Circle of Life, the potential of the set design is immediately realised as a half-moon panel in the floor slides open and, with the centre of the stage rotating, Pride Rock rises up until it stands tall over the gathering creatures below. Each new arrival seems more impressive and creatively designed than the last, from the soaring birds swooping low over the audience in the stalls and the multitudes of gazelle, through to the elephant that arrives ...

Puggers 09.07.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...received a ticket to see The Lion King as a surprise Christmas Present a couple of years back. Although it wasn't my favourite Disney title (when will they bring a Toy Story musical to Broadway?) I must admit to being pretty excited to see this, as I hadn't been to the theatre in quite sometime. Having ditched the car for the night, we (My girlfriend & myself) decided to embrace public transport *gasp* - For those of you who don't know, most of ...
...and are served excellently by the tube & buses. The journey in itself was uneventful which came as a welcome surprise, and the Theatre was within 2 minutes walking distance from the station. One of the excellent things about Covent Garden is the free street entertainment which at times is very, well, entertaining! As we'd arrived with plenty of time before the doors opened, we did as any young couple would be advised to do when killing time in London ...

Gawain_dc 17.09.2004 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...I had seen Phantom of The Opera, Blod Brothers and Starlight Express but I think this gives me a good yardstick to write about this one. As a kid-at-heart, I thoroughly enjoyed the animated film of the same name. I did wonder how they were going to create thousands of wildebeast on a regular London stage but they managed it! At £32.50 per ticket, I hoped to get my moneys-worth. I got that from the opening sequence. The show opens with someone chanting ...
...as the sun starts to rise - as the chanting turns into singing, you start to recognise it as Circle of Life. Animals appear all around you, from the back of The Lyceum, moving down the aisles towards the stage. Elephants, Giraffes, Antelope, Rhino, you name it, it was there from the film. The animals were so well thought out it was incredible. From the giraffes who were actors on stilts, to the other creatures that had wires and controls where you ...

Guyonahi 22.10.2001 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...feel it was up to the hype surrounding it so thought I’d give an alternate side to all those rave reviews! First what was great … The puppetry and the way the animals were portrayed was fantastic - especially at the start of the show where most of the animals parade into the theatre. Best of all was a huge , and baby, elephant that ambled onto the stage! I enjoyed the fact that you could see exactly how the puppetry was being worked ...
...formed part of the animal and controlled it’s actions. Also, these people were very good at conveying the movements of the animals they represented. It would have fascinating been for fans of dance and puppetry to watch. There a couple of good songs , notably ‘can you feel the love tonight’ but nothing else really grabbed my attention. The show didn’t get me singing the songs to myself on the tube home ( usually a sure sign ...

shazzany 07.04.2002 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

I saw the Lion King film when it first came out. I was young, very young! Having seen the film since, I thought it was mediocre. When I heard there was an adaption for the stage, I immediately thought 'no'. But since it warpped around a trip to London, I thought I would give it a go. And I am glad I did so. Since Lion King was an animated film, it was interesting the way the actors brought the characters to life through extremely skilled puppetry. ...
...the human controlling the puppet. In fact, the actor was in full show, faces and all, and they used this 'problem'. By being separate, but as one, meant they could banter even with their own character. The acting, to say the least, was brilliant, with a very talented cast, as I have described with the puppetry. The young Simba I must confess is a bit of brat, but the girls I was with certainly liked older Simba. The costumes of the actors are also ...

goodematthew 14.04.2002 (16.04.2002) · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

It's the circle of life. It's the wheel of fortune. From a little cartoon, a stage show grows. It fends for itself in the wild until it has established its own feeing ground. It thrives until it gets eaten by another, even bigger, more glitzy musical... Well, perhaps I'm taking the analogy a little far. As I'm sure anyone who reads this will know, The Lion King is the Disney Cartoon turned into a musical. One of Disney's more heartfelt stories, ...
...This is mostly due to the ideas of Julie Taymor who deisgned the very open masks and costumes for the show, and ensured that it had a strong african influence. This is a total contrast to the traditional diney approach of pretty masks which obscure the actor and which remain fairly expressionless. Elements of the show are truly spectacular - especially the watering hole where all the animals gather. Elephants walk down the aisles, birds fly from ...

iainc 03.03.2003 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...dancing. I have loved the ‘Disney’ story of The Lion King since it came out at the cinema, and was dying to see the show at the Lyceum Theatre. I was lucky enough to see this award winning musical last year. The story: Young Simba is son of the King of Pride Rock, Mufasa, so is heir to the throne. Simba (a lion) meets Nala (a lioness) when they are young, and they become best of friends. The beginning of the story tracks their friendship, ...
...Scar ends up taking over the throne through his lying to Simba and banishing him from Pride Rock. Nala finds Simba, who has befriended Timone and Pumbaa, a warthog and his friend, a very amusing double act I must add. As with most Disney stories, it all ends happily ever after, with Simba returning, and making a very fine king. The show: The majority of the cast are native Africans, and their voices are truly superb. The actress, who plays a baboon, ...

smile 13.01.2001 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

If you get the chance to go and see The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre in London, you MUST go. The Lyceum itself is in the heart of London’s theatre land, best reached from Charing Cross, Leicester Square or Embankment tube stations. It is situated in Wellington Street, which is a couple of minute’s walk from any of the three tube stations mentioned. It was my partner who wanted to see this musical having seen the film at the cinema. ...
...could see it and get the hang of the story line. I did enjoy the film but I didn't think it would transfer very well to the stage but how wrong I was! We sat in a box to the left-hand side of the stage. I was surprised to find that the seats in the boxes were actually cheaper than the cost of those in the stalls, but when we got there I could see why. The far left-hand side of the stage was obscured from our view. I have to say that this did not ...

SusanLesley 23.11.2000 (21.06.2001) · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

...a 8 month wait for the seats that where booked. The production was spectacular, with visual effects amazing for stage work. Unlike Beauty and the Beast. The scenario was more simple but more dramatic. The special effects such as the stampede are amazing and are very convincing. To make the story last that bit longer, as the film is only about 1hour 1/2, the storyline was padded out, to great effect. The added sections worked well with the original ...
...I actually thought that the added bits imporved on the overall story. If you have any children it is well worth the wait to see it. The children will love it and the adults too. With the comical references to other Disney films and productions, and some adult humour too, it really does show that Disney can cater for all ages. The performers are brilliant, the singing and dancing well cariographed, along with the fight scenes. This is so far the ...

Joper 11.07.2000 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

18 January 2000 The Lion King Lyceum Theatre, London £20 I went to see The Lion King last year with my school on one of the school trips to london. We went and saw two musicals; Saturday Night Fever and The Lion King. The Lion King is being shown at The Lyceum Theatre in the West End of London and has been for the past year. The actors and Actresses aren't dressed up as animals but they are in a way. They have hats that are like an animal but ...
...look so professional. The story hasn't been changed like some of the musicals do, so you already know the story if you have seen the Disney film. The Actors / Actresses all have amazing voices and they are very clear so if you are sitting high up you can still see very well. I thought this was the best Musical around and because it's great I'm going again this July! If I were you and you haven't seen it, make sure you do see it before you miss out! ...

jenny_carr 25.03.2001 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)

Not being the greatest fan of a)Disney, b)tim Rice and c)Elton John I wasn't too sure if I would like this musical but I was blown away by it. The costumes in themselves were enough to make me want to see the show again. Vibrant colours adorned the stage as the opening number 'Circle of life' began and all the animals made their way through the audience. Although I'm still not a big fan of the above musicians, the performance of the actors could ...
...rate. The set was imaginative and left me feeling very overawed at the talent of the designers of the show. Tickets are very hard to get hold of but I would strongly urge booking now. It's at the Lyceum Theatre in London. I want to go again, that's the best recommendation I can give. ...

Doe 15.10.2000 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of The Lion King / Lyceum Theatre (London)