A new spate of stars has joined the upcoming live-to-film concert of The Lion King, playing The Hollywood Bowl in California May 24–25.
Newly added to the roster of performers are Tony winner and The Lion King original Broadway cast member Heather Headley, The Lion King co-composer and vocalist Lebo M., and North West. They join the previously announced slate, including alum of the original animated film Jeremy Irons, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, and Jason Weaver (who voiced Scar, Timon, Pumbaa, and Young Simba, respectively); Billy Eichner, Timon in the 2019 remake; Bradley Gibson, who has starred as Simba in the film's Broadway musical adaptation; and EGOT winner Jennifer Hudson.
The concerts, which will be filmed to stream on Disney+ at a later date, will celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney's 1994 animated film The Lion King. The evenings will feature a screening of the movie with a live orchestra playing Hans Zimmer's score, plus performances from the event's special guests. Audiences are encouraged to attend in costume.
The evening will also pay tribute to the long-running stage musical with performances of select numbers featuring the production's iconic costumes, set designs, and puppets.
Tickets for both the May 24 and May 25 performances are currently on sale via Ticketmaster.
The evenings are being produced by Disney Concerts, AMP Worldwide, Fulwell 73 Productions, and Live Nation-Hewitt Silva. Misty Buckley is production designer, with Gabe Turner and Sally Wood serving as creative showrunners for Fulwell 73.
Loosely a retelling of Shakespeare's Hamlet reimagined to follow a pride of African lions, The Lion King released in movie theatres in 1994, featuring songs by Elton John and Tim Rice. After becoming a smash-hit in movie theatres, Disney brought the film to the stage in 1997, creating one of the biggest hits Broadway has ever seen. As directed and designed by Julie Taymor, the uniquely theatrical production employs African dance and music in concert with innovative puppetry to bring the film's animal characters to the stage. Twenty-seven years later, the musical is still one of Broadway's top-grossing musicals, with many other concurrent productions around the world. A film remake, using CGI to achieve a more "live-action" feel, was released in 2019.
