August 31, 2006
By Lucille Davie
JOBURG is about to get two firsts for the country: the first theatre performance of The Lion King, and the first theatre to seat 1 900 people.
The theatre, an extension of the Montecasino complex in Fourways, is being constructed specifically for The Lion King, as no theatre in the country is big enough to house the spectacular production. It will be called the Montecasino Teatro and will be one of the 10 largest lyric theatres in the world.
The production will open in Johannesburg in June 2007, when the theatre is complete.
Composer, singer, Grammy and Sama award winner Lebo M, who composed and performed many of the songs for the first Broadway production in New York in 1997, has played a key role in bringing the production to South Africa. He was an original cast member of the debut production on Broadway, and a lot of the songs were based on his album, Rhythm of the Pride Lands, which was inspired by the film.
Gazelles flying through the air in The Lion King
The Lion King has been seen by 35 million people across the globe - in China, the United States, Britain, Canada, Japan, Australia, Germany, Holland, and will shortly be staged in South Korea.
Lebo M and theatre impresario Pieter Toerien have collaborated on the production.
''I can't tell you how exciting this is,'' said Toerien, ''it is an amazing gift to the people of Gauteng.''
Toerien says the production will bring together ''Lebo's vast experience on The Lion King and my experience in producing Broadway musicals in South Africa – including Cats and Phantom of the Opera''.
According to a Montecasino press release, Lebo M is acknowledged as being ''the voice and spirit behind the show''. He says of the partnership with Toerien: ''My company, Till Dawn, will be responsible for the creative aspects of the production, as well as the casting, marketing and advertising, while Pieter Toerien will be responsible for putting the show together, and handling the financial management and logistics.''
The story has classical Shakespearian nuances: young Simba is driven into exile after his father's death, but returns to regain his kingdom after overthrowing his nasty uncle.
It has played to rave reviews in America and Britain, with theatre critics tripping out the superlatives – ''memorable'', ''moving'', ''like being in a dream awake'', ''brilliant'', ''gorgeous'', ''gasp-inducing spectacle'', and “visual poetry''.
A dilemma for the first production team was how to put on a show with a cast of animals. Director Julie Taymor was brought in to design the costumes and stage sets, for which she picked up a string of Tony Awards.
The costumes are extraordinary: they appear to grow out of the actors' bodies – animal masks don't cover their faces, but seem to grow out of the top of their heads. Theatrical techniques used include rods, ropes, shadow and hand puppets, aerial dancers, inflatable set pieces and off-stage performing.
The South African production will have an entirely local cast of 53, a 20-member orchestra, plus a technical crew of 40.
Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa said at the announcement this week: ''Gauteng will never be the same again.'' He cautioned the developers to consider the road infrastructure around Montecasino, and the need to expand it to cope with the flood of theatregoers.
He explained that Gauteng was becoming the ''home of the creative industries'', and that ''arts and culture had an important contribution to make to building bridges'' in the province.
Telkom is a sponsor in bringing the production to South Africa. ''Telkom is proud to be associated with The Lion King because of the extensive potential benefits to the country that include job creation, skills transfer, boosting tourism; promoting arts and expanding the theatre-going audience; and to the company through supplying technology to the theatre and promoting further opportunities for corporate social responsibility activities,'' said Papi Molotsane, CEO of Telkom.
Montecasino, which opened in 2000 and attracts some eight million visitors a year, is to undergo a R335-million expansion of the miniature Tuscan village entertainment complex, which includes the R110-million theatre. The finished project will see an outdoor Italian-style piazza the size of a rugby field, a hotel, a conference venue, five new restaurants, 1 000 additional parking bays, and a paved venue for large-scale productions.
Tickets for The Lion King are expected to sell for between R150 to R425.
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