The Lion King is one of those shows where you can see exactly how some of the effects work and still be completely taken in by them.
Actors become giraffes, lions, birds and even grass, while enormous animals make their way through the audience during Circle of Life. The London production has been playing at the Lyceum Theatre since 1999 and is now in its 27th year.
Here are five things to look out for.
1. The giraffes are actors walking on four stilts
Those towering giraffes are not wheeled puppets.
Each one is operated by a performer using stilts on both their hands and feet. A long giraffe neck and head then rises above them.
Director Julie Taymor deliberately chose not to hide the performer. You can see the actor, the stilts and the puppet at the same time. Somehow your brain quickly puts everything together and sees a giraffe.
It must also make walking across a West End stage considerably more nerve racking than your average entrance.
2. Scar can move his own mask
Watch Scar carefully during the more threatening moments.
His lion mask can suddenly move from above his head to directly in front of his face. It looks complicated, but the performer actually controls the movement.
A small switch operated by the actor activates a motor which brings the mask forward. The mask itself is remarkably light because materials such as carbon fibre are used in its construction.
The same basic idea is used to let the audience see both the human character and the animal at different moments.
3. The elephant needs four people
One of the best moments happens almost immediately.
During Circle of Life, a huge elephant makes its way through the auditorium towards the stage.
This is not one performer in a particularly ambitious costume. The full sized puppet requires four people to operate it. It is also designed so it can collapse down when it needs to be stored backstage.
Seeing it coming down the aisle is one reason it is worth being in your seat before the show starts.
4. There is a whole department looking after the animals
The puppets do not simply get packed away after each performance.
The London production has a dedicated Masks and Puppets department responsible for checking, repairing and maintaining them. The current company even lists a Head of Masks and Puppets, deputies, assistants and specialist production fabricators.
Paint gets worn, moving parts need attention and puppets inevitably pick up damage after being used eight times a week.
Members of the team also work backstage during performances, including helping with the animals that travel through the auditorium during Circle of Life.
5. The show deliberately lets you see how the magic works
Perhaps the biggest secret of The Lion King is that many of its secrets aren’t actually hidden.
Julie Taymor wanted the audience to see the performers operating the animals. Rods, strings, stilts and other mechanisms are often completely visible.
Zazu is quite clearly a puppet being operated by an actor. The giraffe’s stilts can be seen. The performers carrying birds are visible. Even the lions’ masks sit above the actors’ faces rather than hiding them completely.
The idea is that your imagination does some of the work. Instead of trying to convince you that a real animal has appeared on stage, the production shows you a performer and a puppet and lets the two become one character.
It is probably one of the reasons the show still feels so distinctive more than 25 years after it opened in London.
Seeing The Lion King in London
The Lion King plays at the Lyceum Theatre on Wellington Street in London.
The performance lasts approximately 2 hours 30 minutes including an interval. Disney recommends the show for children aged 6 and over, and children under three are not admitted.
Official tickets: The Lion King London
If you are seeing it for the first time, get to your seat early and pay attention as Circle of Life begins. Some of the most impressive performers in the show don’t enter from the stage at all.
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