Disney's The Lion King

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Matthew Murphy

Gerald Ramsey in "Disney's The Lion King."

Gerald Ramsey in "Disney's The Lion King."

“Hakuna Matata” is not perhaps the most apropos catchphrase for our current national mood, but another sentiment from The Lion King — “We are all connected in the great circle of life” — is as relevant as ever. This musical will pull kids in with its catchy songs, but the elaborately costumed, oversized animals — part puppet, part dancer — energize this stirring tale of life and loss in Africa for everyone. Shows at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2 & 8 p.m. Saturday, and 1 & 6:30 p.m. Sunday, plus 1 p.m., May 18.

media release: Disney Theatrical Productions and Overture Center for the Arts announced today that tickets for the long-awaited return engagement of Disney’s The Lion King will go on sale to the public on Friday, Feb. 10 at 11 a.m. Madison’s most eagerly awaited return will once again leap onto the Overture Hall stage on Thursday, May 11 for a limited engagement of three weeks through Sunday, May 28.

In Madison, The Lion King will play Tuesdays through Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays (2 p.m. and 8 p.m.) and Sundays at (1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.). There will also be a 1 p.m. matinee on Thursday, May 18. Premium Ticket Packages, which include a prime seat location, a souvenir program and a cinch bag, are also available. Beginning Friday, Feb. 10 at 11 a.m., tickets will be available at Overture’s ticket office and online at overture.org. Orders for groups of 20 or more may be placed by emailing groups@overture.org.

Ticket buyers are reminded that overture.org is the only official retail ticket outlet for all performances at Overture Center. Ticket buyers who purchase tickets from a ticket broker or any third party should be aware that Overture Center is unable to reprint or replace lost or stolen tickets and is unable to contact patrons with information regarding time changes or other pertinent updates regarding the performance.

For more than 20 years, the North American touring productions of The Lion King have been seen by over 21 million theatergoers. Having already played more than 9,000 performances in over 90 cities across North America, The Lion King now proudly returns to Madison’s Overture Center. 

ABOUT THE LION KING

After 25 landmark years on Broadway, The Lion King continues ascendant as one of the most popular stage musicals in the world.  Since its premiere on November 13, 1997, 27 global productions have been seen by over 112 million people.  Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions (under the direction of Thomas Schumacher), The Lion King has made theatrical history with six productions worldwide running 15 or more years, with four of those running 20 or more years.

Performed over its lifetime in nine different languages (English, Japanese, German, Korean, French, Dutch, Spanish, Mandarin and Portuguese), productions of The Lion King can currently be seen on Broadway; London’s West End; Paris; Hamburg; Tokyo; Madrid; on tour across North America and the U.K. & Ireland, with a separate production touring internationally, for a total of nine productions running concurrently across the globe.  Having played over 100 cities in 24 countries on every continent except Antarctica, The Lion King’s worldwide gross exceeds that of any film, Broadway show or other entertainment title in box office history.

The Lion King won six 1998 Tony Awards^®:  Best Musical, Best Scenic Design (Richard Hudson), Best Costume Design (Julie Taymor), Best Lighting Design (Donald Holder), Best Choreography (Garth Fagan) and Best Direction of a Musical.  The Lion King has also earned more than 70 major arts awards including the 1998 NY Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, the 1999 Grammy^® for Best Musical Show Album, the 1999 Evening Standard Award for Theatrical Event of the Year and the 1999 Laurence Olivier Awards for Best Choreography and Best Costume Design.

The show’s director, costume designer and mask co-designer Julie Taymor continues to play an integral part in the show’s ongoing success. The first woman to win a Tony Award for Direction of a Musical, Taymor supervises new productions of the show around the world.

The Broadway score features Elton John and Tim Rice’s songs from the Lion King animated film along with three new songs by John and Rice; additional musical material by South African Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Julie Taymor and Hans Zimmer; and music from "Rhythm of the Pride Lands," an album inspired by the original music in the film, written by Lebo M, Mark Mancina and Hans Zimmer.  The resulting sound of The Lion King is a fusion of Western popular music and the distinctive sounds and rhythms of Africa, ranging from the Academy Award^®-winning song “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” to Lebo M’s rich choral numbers.

Elton John, Lebo M, and Hans Zimmer all collaborated on the 2019 version of the film, executive produced by Julie Taymor and Thomas Schumacher, which has gone onto extraordinary worldwide success.

The book has been adapted by Roger Allers, who co-directed the animated The Lion King feature, and Irene Mecchi, who co-wrote the film’s screenplay.  Other members of the creative team include:  Michael Curry, who designed the masks and puppets with Taymor, Steve Canyon Kennedy (sound design), Michael Ward (hair and makeup design), Anthony Lyn (associate director), Marey Griffith (associate choreographer), Clement Ishmael (music supervisor), Lisa Dawn Cave (production supervisor) and Binder Casting/Mark Brandon, CSA (casting). Anne Quart serves as co-producer.

For more information worldwide, visit LionKing.com, Facebook and Instagram.

OVERTURE CENTER FOR THE ARTS in Madison, Wis., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization that features seven state-of-the-art performance spaces and four galleries where national and international touring artists, nine resident companies and hundreds of local artists engage people in nearly 700,000 educational and artistic experiences each year. With the vision to provide “Extraordinary Experiences for All,” Overture’s mission is to support and elevate our community’s creative culture, economy and quality of life through the arts. overture.org