CMU School of Drama


Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Kidsburgh: Pittsburgh Musical Theater presents The Lion King Jr.

NEXTpittsburgh: Trek into the heart of a kingdom of majestic lions to join young cub Simba and his friends as they set off on memorable journeys in breathtaking Africa.

Fans of musicals, wildlife, fairy tales, and outdoor adventure alike won’t want to miss Pittsburgh Musical Theater’s lively stage adaptation of Disney’s Academy Award-winning 1994 film, The Lion King.

3 comments:

Annie Scheuermann said...

Lion King is one of my favorite Disney movies, and when I saw the Broadway production of the Lion King, I was blown away. I really love that MTI released a junior version of this show. Back in high school I worked at a community theater where we must of done every Disney MTI junior show, and they are all very similar with a Princess, silly side kick and a villain. Lion King is so much more interesting, especially with kids because I am sure they would love to be animals on stage rather than a villager. This article was very brief about the specific production going up. It is not something I would make a point to see, but I really am glad that Lion King is getting on stage and it will probably be another few years until a standard MTI version is available. I would be interested in seeing how small groups with a small budget do the costuming for the show.

Evan Schild said...

I remember seeing Lion King and watching the opening number. I remember seeing the giant animals walk through the orchestra and go onstage. I don’t remember but I was probably crying. It was such an amazing experience. I know for me it had a positive impact into doing theater when I was younger. I am so happy that MTI is allowing licensing for this show. There are a lot of parts of different sizes so a lot of kids can be in the spot light even if its for a second. Many people will want to come see it because its such a known brand. Having only seen it on Broadway I do wonder how some of the elements will happen. One major thing that jumps out to me is how will they kill Simba’s father? On Broadway they had a real cool stampede. I feel like with kids it might be harder to achieve something like that but no matter what the thrill of doing The Lion King will make up for it!

APJS said...

I love the Lion King the musical. Its one of the few musicals on broadway that actually made me cry in public. Its not because the show is a sad one, those it has some sad moment but the overwhelming emotion i felt I got while thinking of my mother and wishing she could have seen this production. With that being sad I hate to be that guy but I feel compelled to say something. While its great that there is a Jr script and that its being put is great. I just feel like, with the origin of the show taking place in Africa this would have been an even better opportunity for diverse school. It always saddens me to see a show or story that is based off of a black or brown culture, being portrait by another culture group that has nothing to do with the one they are trying to recreate. I am not saying there is not room for a diverse cast to learn together in a group the power of this story and the culture it represents, but I strongly feel like there needs to be effort to make sure that there is someone involved who comes from the accurate culture. This is where the problem starts when you talk about why we have a diversity problem on broadway. When children get it in there mind that they can appropriate stories from other cultures and that that is ok, when they become adults they see no problem casting an all white cast of Dreamgirls, or the Wiz. At the same times stories that have not racial Identity attached to it should see a verity of ethnic groups represented. That being said I wish this production luck and learning, and pray that the teachers and adults involved could see and understand where I am coming from.