The power of two: “Double event” secret behind stage longevity of ‘Lion King’

 

 

 

In the dark reality of the pandemic, a long-running classic has brought a sense of hopeful nostalgia to the stage.

“The Lion King” is back in Seoul after nearly 3 years, and has once again shown why it captures so many hearts.

As the curtains go up, the audience is immediately enraptured by the march of animals as Futhi Mhlong, who has been playing mandrill Rafiki for the past 14 years, sings “Circle of Life.”

Even though the iconic entry of the animals through the aisles has been removed from the production this time, due to concerns over COVID-19, this is the moment when even those familiar with the beloved story from watching the 1994 animated film during childhood discover a fresh look of the story.

Giving this freshness is the “double event” approach, which shows the audience both the puppets and their puppeteers, allowing the puppeteers to visually express their emotions.

Getting used to the “double event” took a lot of practice for the actor. This included watching videos of the animals at the beginning of each rehearsal to assimilate their moves, as well as learning traditional Southeast Asian dances. 

“I spent a lot of hours training in front of a mirror to see exactly what I look like, and what the puppet looks like on top of my head,” Lawrence said.

More importantly, actors had to learn how to incorporate themselves into their animal characters.

In addition to its theatrical mastery, the story itself has the power to send each audience member on an emotional journey.

“No matter what you‘re going through, no matter what you’re feeling, when you come into the theater and the lights go down, you’re going to go on an emotional journey and have an experience that is like no other thing that you’ll experience,” Dashaun Young, who has been playing Simba for years, said. He added that South Korean audiences do not shy away from expressing their emotional journeys through social networking services.

 

Words in this story : 

 

 nostalgia- n pleasure and sadness that is caused by remembering something from the past and wishing that you could experience it again

enraptured -n to fill with delight

animated- adj endowed with life or the qualities of life; ALIVE

harmony- n  the combination of different musical notes played or sung at the same time to produce a pleasing sound

incorporate- v to unite or work into something already existent so as to form an indistinguishable whole

 

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