NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� In the summer of 1997, audiences in Minneapolis at the Orpheum Theatre saw something no one had ever seen before: leaping antelopes, fluttering birds and elephants lumbering through the orchestra seats.
鈥淭he audience started screaming so early. When the animals came down the aisle everybody shot up,鈥� recalls director-writer Julie Taymor. 鈥淚 burst into tears. We were just overwhelmed and we knew we had something.鈥�
They did, indeed. That show in a trial run in Minneapolis would soon transfer to Broadway and start a stunning streak that regularly lands it among the weekly top earners and becomes young people's introduction to theater. It is 鈥淭he Lion King,鈥� and it turns 25 years old on Broadway this month.
鈥淭he Lion King鈥� has been a model of consistency in its march through records. In April 2012, it swiped the title of Broadway鈥檚 all-time highest-grossing show from 鈥淭he Phantom of the Opera,鈥� despite 鈥淧hantom鈥� having almost a full 10 years鈥� head start. With plans for 鈥漃hantom,鈥� , 鈥淭he Lion King鈥� jostles with 鈥淐hicago鈥� for its crown of longest-running show on Broadway.
So established is 鈥淭he Lion King鈥� that it's easy to forget its revolutionary origins. Audiences were seeing Asian-inspired puppets and masks telling an African tale with several African languages, using South African performers and a Black king.
Taymor, who works on theater, operas and films, recently took time to look back at the blockbuster show she directed, designed costumes for, crafted masks and puppets with Michael Curry, and even added lyrics for the song 鈥淓ndless Night.鈥�
Her task some 25 years ago was enormous: reimagining Disney鈥檚 animated blockbuster with its iconic Elton John songs 鈥� including the Academy Award-winning 鈥淐an You Feel the Love Tonight鈥� 鈥� into a live spectacle set on the African savannah. She filled the stage with warthogs and meerkats, with birds circling high on sticks and antelopes in the mezzanine.
"To work with Julie Taymor is a gift," says Bonita J. Hamilton, who plays Shenzi, the hyena leader. 鈥淪he is a genius and a visionary. As an actor, to be directed by someone with such vision is almost otherworldly.鈥�
Taymor conceived a magical African tapestry that incorporates half-human, half-animal figures; African masks as headdresses above human faces; stilt work; and colorful Balinese-style puppets. The actors manipulate the giant puppets in a movement style that recalls Bunraku theater popular in 16th century Japan.
鈥淭his is where theater is better than film. It completely surrounds you, 360 degrees. It鈥檚 physical, it鈥檚 dimensional and the lighting tells you where to look or the voice pulls you in,鈥� Taymor says.
"Most plays don鈥檛 translate to film because they鈥檙e not cinematic. And here you have 鈥楾he Lion King鈥� movie 鈥� the most cinematic. I had to use all the tools in the theater tool toolbox to make it dimensional and theatrical."
Taymor made no attempt to cover up the wheels and poles that bring her elaborate puppets to life. The human beings that control the puppets and wear the animal masks are fully seen 鈥� it鈥檚 up to the audience to supply the imagination.
It is something Taymor has called 鈥渢he double event,鈥� where the audience not only watches the animals on the stage, they watch humans driving the story, too.
鈥淭he puppet takes on the reaction-emotion of the actor, and the actor takes on the reaction-emotion of this puppet and they kind of meet somewhere in the middle,鈥� says Hamilton.
Most of the masks and puppet parts are molded of carbon graphite, a kind of rigid foam that makes them light and durable. Some have a set of wires to move the mouth and other parts, like the elephant鈥檚 ears and trunk.
It was an immersive experience long before that became a theatrical buzzword. 鈥淢ore particularly now, immersive theater is important because people are just sitting on their couches in their living rooms and bedrooms,鈥� says Taymor.
鈥淭he Lion King鈥� made Taymor the first woman to win a Tony Award for best director of a musical. And it has been an incubator for talent: Such Broadway stars as Heather Headley, Ren茅e Elise Goldsberry, Tom Hewitt, Christopher Jackson, Patrick Page, Wallace Smith and Adam Jacobs all have had turns in 鈥淭he Lion King.鈥�
There have been 28 鈥淭he Lion King鈥� productions since the first, it has been performed in nine different languages and seen by a staggering 110 million people. It has played over 100 cities in 21 countries on every continent except Antarctica.
Part of its longevity is due to the movie tie-in, simple-to-understand story, family-friendly themes and the fact that it鈥檚 a spectacle not dependent on big-name stars 鈥� important for attracting tourists whose command of English might be weak.
鈥淚鈥檓 not surprised at the longevity because the movie, when it came out, was so brilliant and then they put the musical on stage, which was a brilliant interpretation of the movie by Julie Taymor. It鈥檚 just astonishing what she did,鈥� Oscar-, Grammy- and Tony-winning John said this week.
Before it became a smash, Disney sent its top executives to the culmination of a two-week workshop at a rehearsal space on Broadway. One film boss suggested Taymor lose the puppetry when it came time for the principal characters. She demurred.
Taymor then set up a test on the stage of the Palace Theatre, presenting the musical in three different ways 鈥� just facial makeup, half-mask, and her original concept. Then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner embraced her vision: 鈥淗e said, 'The bigger the risk, the bigger the payoff,'鈥� Taymor recalls. 鈥淗ow many people say that?鈥�
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AP TV Writer Lynn Elber contributed to this report from Los Angeles.
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Mark Kennedy is at
Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press
