The Lion King is sheer spectacle. Think sunrise, storming wildebeest, animal fights, water that drains away, birds flying throughout the theatre, objects that fall from the sky and return again, dramatic scene changes as fabric simply drops in a splash of African colour and more.
All of this has as much to do with the show's concept and design as the theatre accommodating all this visual splendour. The flybars are too many to count as things move about all over the show while, in a crafty balancing act, there's as much that appears as disappears out of the stage floor.
Julie Taymor has given Disney a Lion King that stays true to the movie, but she has infused it with every bit of theatre magic she could conjure up. With puppets as the central concept, the animals were born allowing actors to play their part and yet become anything from a lion to a meerkat in both appearance and movement. It's brilliant and the visual animation on stage is truly the essence of the show.
It's very much an ensemble piece in which there are few stars, but much depends on the whole cast who fare brilliantly. On the dramatic as well as singing front, Buyisile Zama has made the role of Rafiki, the sangoma, her own. She has a stunning voice and a powerful stage presence.
The standout comic performance is that of Peter Mashigo as Timon, the fast-talking meerkat.
The other star of the show is Montecasino Teatro. Other than the name, there's fortunately nothing Tuscan about the look and the auditorium is designed to bring every member of the 1 850-strong audience as close to the stage as possible. One can't believe it's currently the biggest theatre in South Africa as it appears small by comparison to some of our other larger theatres that have less seats.
Technically, they've pulled out all the stops. Much of the magic was probably imported with the production, but it's possible and that's the thrill: to see this kind of creativity happening on stage in this country. And while the expertise might have been brought in, our artists made it happen.
It's a family show which should keep everyone entertained on different levels. The Lion King is, however, over-whelmingly about the dazzle. It's brilliantly conceived and executed from beginning to end.