The Lion King: The Musical

Yesterday afternoon, a friend, her almost-six-year-old, and I shelled out $78 each to go see The Lion King on stage at the Kennedy Center. When the ads for the show started in, oh, November, we discussed the idea and finally decided to go. The guys decided to sit this one out, so three tickets were purchased and then, since the performance was more than seven months away, it was promptly forgotten.

I wish I could say it was magical and worth both the expense and the wait. The plain truth of it though, at least from where I sat, was that it was a good, solid, meh. Maybe it's the fact that the show is so incredibly hyped that there's no way it could ever live up to the press. Maybe it's that $78 should get you more than 3 rows from the back of the 2nd balcony. Maybe it's that I'm just home from what was a long and exhausting trip that, for me, was really not anything approximating a vacation. Maybe it's that I felt guilty for leaving Tim home with a very unhappy teething 7 month old. Realistically it's some combination thereof.

As it was, I found it disconcerting that the lions aren't wearing masks. Instead, they have face paint and then a lion head hat. So it's as if they're all two-headed lions. I didn't understand why Timon's puppeteer was a bright kelly green that didn't blend in with anything, nor did I really understand why the tail stuck out of the puppeteer's behind when it was meant to be the tail on the puppet. And it bothered me that Pumba's back legs were nowhere even close to being able to touch the ground, so you have this warthog romping across the stage with back legs dangling uselessly and free.

I did find the set amazing. It was, by far, the best part to watch the various technical manipulations of the stage as the show progressed. The singing was also quite good. And if the whole thing had been as magnificent as the opening scene, well, this would be a completely different post.

Despite obvious disappointment, I think, overall, I'm glad I went, if only because now I won't feel the need to try and get tickets another time.