A Whole lot of Amazing

review by Shannon Wu

            A children’s movie turns into a majestic show that pleases both adults and their young ones. How rare is that? The Lion King musical performed in Providence Performing Arts Center achieved that. Based on the Disney movie, The Lion King, the musical retained the childlike attitude with the storyline; however, added in the sound of drums, actors and actresses full tunes, elegant dance moves, and emotional acting, the musical became a unbelievable show that contained so many different elements of art in it.

            With extremely detailed technique, the costumes of each character were specifically designed for the animal of which it was for. Using bamboo sticks, stilts, and many other tools, the designer tried to make the actors and actresses to look more believable to the real animals. The most impressive design was probably one of the most minor characters, yet the design of the costume was so thoughtful that proved time was not taken off while designing these costumes. The cheetah costume was incredibly convincing. The head and legs movement of the cheetah seemed as a real cheetah was patrolling across the safari. From the audiences’ seats, it was hard to tell what was used to create that effect. However, from a close up picture found on the official website, you can see there were two strings attached on the cheetah head to the actress’ headset. Therefore, as the actress moved her head as she was a cheetah, the costume created a realistic movement of rotating the head.

            The show was hard to identify as a play, a musical, or a dance show, because it was everything. The dances were elegant or rough as the mood of the play went. The lighting of the play also adjusted perfectly as needed. Don’t forget about the singing. The voices of the singers were so full, and as they came together it was as if you were only listening to one person’s voice.  The transition of the sets and the scenes of the play also came smoothly considering the how difficult it must had been to move the huge sets and to quickly move on and off the stage with the costumes they were in.

            The Lion King is one of those plays that you know would be a blast and have to see at least once in your lifetime. Preferably twice, once when you’re little and once with your kids! Imagine how different your experiences would be.