"The Lion King" turns you into a kid again.
Sit through the first few minutes of the Disney musical, now playing at the Tucson Music Hall, and you'll be transformed into a youngster with a sense of wonder and awe.
It happens. Honest.
The opening scene is so magical, so theatrical, so deliciously musical. It starts with a rousing shout song and the infectious "Circle of Life," and is punctuated with richly colorful traditional African patterns and is wild with animals. Animals like giraffes. And elephants. And antelopes gliding across the stage. And birds flying. And an exquisite preening cheetah. And zebras strutting.
OK, they aren't real animals. But they might as well be. While the humans who work the ingenious puppets manipulate them and speak for them, it takes about one second to stretch the imagination and see Africa's Serengeti come to life.
Disney has a tight grip on its road shows — though the casts are different, what you see here, including commanding voices and fine acting, is what you get in New York. And Los Angeles. And Phoenix and London.
That's good, though on some level one does sort of wish for a different Scar, or a Timon that doesn't echo Nathan Lane, who played the character in the movie version.
The genius behind this production belongs to Julie Taymor, who conceived and directed the original production, designed the costumes and co-designed the puppets and masks.
When the musical opened on Broadway in 1997, the sophisticated theatergoers who frequent the Great White Way were stunned — this was a thrilling, innovative production, borrowing from cultures around the world and thick with imagination. It was hard to believe predictable Disney was behind it. Well-deserved kudos went to that corporation for having the guts to hire Taymor and let her do her thing. We are the richer for it.
You know the story: Young Simba is in line to take over his father's (Mufasa) gig as king. But Mufasa's evil brother, Scar, has other plans, which result in Mufasa's death and a scared Simba fleeing the kingdom, certain that Dad died because of him.
The movie took a scant 90 minutes to tell the tale of love and responsibility and good versus evil. The stage play takes more than 2 1/2 hours.
And while the script is thin, the story predictable (we bet you'll guess exactly what's going to happen even if you've never seen the film or play), and much of the Elton John and Tim Rice music lovely but forgettable, the musical is full of moments that soar. Soar.
Such as that opening "Circle of Life" number, with the wise baboon Rafiki (Gugwana Dlamini) calling to the animals to gather for the infant Simba's presentation ceremony at Pride Rock. Dlamini's voice is a wonder, full of earthiness and integrity.
The scene in which Simba and Nala (played with unaffected innocence by Cameron Ball and Kenisha Simone Harris, respectively — these roles are double-cast) ride colorful ostriches around long-necked giraffes that dip their heads into the orchestra pit, as though it were a crystal-clear watering hole, is an ooh-aah moment.
The frightening scene in which wildebeests stampede and kill Mufasa (a regal and commanding Nathaniel Stampley) will get your blood pumping and your heart breaking. And the one in which Zazu the hornbill bird (Timothy McGeever, who possesses the gift of fine timing) gives the morning report as Simba skulks through the grasslands while his father teaches him how to pounce bounces with joy. The absolutely giddy "Hakuna Matata," which introduces us to the hilariously sophomoric duo of the wise-cracking Timon (Damian Baldet) and gaseous Pumbaa (Phil Fiorini) will have you giggling and bouncing.
"The Lion King" is a stunning production that doesn't resort to fancy-schmancy special effects or cheap thrills.
Instead it relies on rich imagination expertly realized.
And, of course, an audience willing to be whisked back to childhood.
'The Lion King'
● Disney's "The Lion King," presented by Broadway in Tucson/ A Nederlander Presentation and directed by Julie Taymor, is staged 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays through Sept. 24 at the Tucson Music Hall, 260 S. Church Ave. Tickets are $23.50-$126, available in person at the Tucson Convention Center box office, or through Ticketmaster at 321-1000. The play, appropriate for children, runs 2 hours, 40 minutes.
