Matthew Croke and Trevor Dion Nicholas in Aladdin. Picture: Deen Van Meer
Disney musical fans will get the chance to get closer than ever before to their favourite shows when a summer ‘Pop-Up’ opens in the heart of London’s Covent Garden later this month.
Located at 25 Long Acre, the Aladdin and The Lion King Summer Experience will open every day from Tuesday 31 July until Sunday 26 August 2018.
The unique space will offer guests the change to explore the masks, puppets and costumes from the Tony Award-winning The Lion King and learn about the inspiration behind the show’s distinctive designs. The Aladdin element of the event will allow the public to step into a specially-created ‘Cave of Wonders’ where they will be able to take a photograph with Aladdin’s famous lamp.
Covent Garden’s piazza will be the setting for a treasure hunt with guests searching for four magic lamps, each offering a clue to an Aladdin-themed puzzle. The prize for those who unscramble the message will be a limited-edition poster.
In addition, a variety of free events will take place daily within the Pop-Up including performances from cast members of the two West End shows, puppetry demonstrations and stage makeup masterclasses, as well as vocal and movement bite-sized workshops to get a first-hand flavour of the shows’ music and choreography.
This summer Disney’s lavish Aladdin celebrates its second birthday at London’s Prince Edward Theatre while The Lion King is now in its 19th year at the Lyceum Theatre.
Based on the 1992 animated film, Disney Theatrical Productions’ Aladdin features songs from the movie along with new music written by Alan Menken. The show also features lyrics from Howard Ashman, Tim Rice and Chad Beguelin who also provides the book. Aladdin is directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw.
Mkhize Cortes in The Lion King. Picture: Catherine Ashmore
The creative team also includes scenic designer Bob Crowley, lighting designer Natasha Katz, costume designer Gregg Barnes and sound designer Ken Travis. Casting is by Jill Green. The production team also includes illusion designer Jim Steinmeyer, hair designer Josh Marquette and makeup designer Milagros Medina-Cerdeira. The music team is headed by music supervisor and music director Michael Kosarin, who also created the vocal and incidental music arrangements, joined by orchestrator Danny Troob and dance music arranger Glen Kelly.
Disney’s hit West End musical Aladdin opened to critical acclaim on 15 June 2016 following preview performances from 27 May 2016. The show continues to play to sell-out houses, breaking attendance records at its London home, the Prince Edward Theatre. Tickets are now on sale for performances up to February 2019.
Now in its fifth record breaking year at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway, there are currently six productions of the show on four continents and it has been seen by over four million people to date. Aladdin opened in Tokyo in May 2015 ahead of its European premiere in Hamburg in December 2016. The show opened in Australia in August 2016 and launched its North American tour in Chicago in April 2017.
Julie Taymor’s internationally-celebrated stage adaptation of Disney’s much-loved animated film The Lion King premiered on Broadway in 1997 and had its UK premiere in London in October 1999. Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions (under the direction of Thomas Schumacher), the 25 productions of The Lion King have been seen globally by more than 95 million people.
The Lion King has made theatrical history with six productions worldwide running 15 or more years. Performed in eight different languages (Japanese, German, Korean, French, Dutch, Spanish, Mandarin and Portuguese), productions of The Lion King can currently be seen on Broadway, London’s West End, Hamburg, Tokyo and Sapporo, Madrid, Scheveningen, Holland, Manila, Philippines, and on tour across North America.
Having played over 100 cities in 20 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 Tony Awards in 1998 and has collected over 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 Olivier Awards for Best Choreography and Best Costume Design.
Angela Thomas
Tickets for The Lion King are available HERE.
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