[PrincessPooh]

So, most of you know that my DH surprised me with an overnighter to the city and tickets for the Lion King this weekend. So, I thought I'd amuse some of you with the details:

We left our house around 7:00 on Saturday and headed for the city. We were there in about an hour, even though DH missed the exit for the 59th St bridge, and we were forced into Midtown tunnel traffic (lots of security checks here). We checked into the Holiday Inn Midtown hotel (57th, between 9th and 10th). My MIL is very close friends with the GM there, so DH called him and got us hooked up with room for the night.

We had no plans in particular this evening. So, around 9:00 we headed out to walk 9th, looking for a dinner spot. We ate a pan-asian restaurant "Xing" which was mediocre at best. Nice atmosphere, very friendly service, but the food was just OK. I'm a foodie by heart and trade, so if you want to impress me, the place has to do more than just look pretty. We did get a nice private table against the red velvet wall, across from the saltwater aquarium though. Sort of romantic, I guess.

We then started walking across to 53rd, to a swiss fondue and wine bar where we thought we'd do dessert. However, we ended up walking past the NY Improv (comedy club) and they were just setting everyone in for the 11:00 show. We ended up there, and that too, was just OK. My big issue here is that there is a 2 drink minimum here (as in most clubs) but there drink menu STUNK! See, drinking Sake is a new, posh thing in NYC. So this place decides that all there cocktails will now be made only with Sake, and no hard liquour. So, I order a cosmo, which isn't really a cosmo, because it has no vodka. Hey, if you're going to force a drink minimum, be realistic and have real drinks. I like Sake too, but not in my cosmo!

The show got out just before 1 AM, so we walked around Columbus Circle for a bit, strolled along Central Park south and down Avenue of the Americas. It's amazing how empty NYC is on a summer weekend. Everyone is out in the Hamptons or down the shore. Nobody, except suburbians like me, are walking around this weekend.

We ended up at the "World Famous BenAsh Deli" on 8th for a late drink and some birthday cake. Again, they didn't have the two liquors needed to make their specialty "Godiva Diva" martini or cocktail, so I lose out. I try there chocolate mousse cake, and have to send it back because there is so much alcohol (liquor) in it, it was overwhelming and I couldn't stand the taste. Mind you, nobody mentions, nor does the menu state, that there is an enormous amount of Kirsch in this cake. So, I ask for a brownie in alternative, only to be brought a brownie loaded with walnuts...which I despise. So, long story short, no dessert and definately no birthday cake to end the night.

So, not an amazing evening, but just walking around the city with DH (alone, with no kids) on a cool summer night was just what the doctor ordered.

The best is yet to come...Sunday morning, outstanding breakfast, trip to WOD NYC and the Lion King....comin' up next!

[Cavey]

Well, I can't say I know anything about liquor, but how was the show?

[Andrea]

Hope Sunday was magical! I did the Lion King / WOD thing in December, and it was a blast!

Ahem... I probably would have eaten the chocolate mousse cake. But it's too bad about the food in general. I suspect you really have to plan things out in order to find the really good stuff.

[diisneygeek]

Oooh, I can't wait to hear the rest!!

[PrincessPooh]

OK-so enough of the boring stuff...here comes what you've been waiting for:

First, we get up Sunday morning and check out. Our luggage is held with the bellman for the day. We walked over to Le Parker Meridian hotel for breakfast around 11:45 and the wait they say is about 1 hr 15 minutes. You can only make reservations online for this restaurant and you cannot call ahead the day of to put your name on the list. This is a really well known breakfast spot (Norma's) in NYC and a place I've wanted to eat at for years (but never got to, although I did interview for a job there years ago).

So, in the wait time, we walked over to WOD-it's only about 3-4 blocks from where we were. I thought it would be a cool way to kill the wait time. The pirates are still all over, including the front window. They added a small scene for back to school off to the side showing off all the backpacks and such. Lots of new halloween stuff coming out now, including Nightmare Before Christmas. Some really cool tee shirts and tote bags with Nightmare characters are out. There was a smallish table with halloween decorations, including big candy bowls, and some indoor/outdoor Mickey pumpkin halloween lights, and Haunted Mansion tombstones. There are lots of new costumes this year, particularly for pirates. There are even entire family costumes for the Incredibles, although I don't know too many adults who would be comfortable walking arounmd in those tight, all to revealing Incredibles outfits. Also, now the princess don't just occupy the main princess room, but have infiltrated into the halloween area as well. Incase you couldn't walk to the back of the store to see the princess costumes, they are now 30 feet closer to the main entrance as well, just to ensure you browse them!

Very proud of myself for not buying anything right now, we went back to Norma's (restaurant) for our brunch, which was completely awesome! DH had a breakfast quesadilla w/apple smoked bacon, monterey jack cheese, scrambled eggs and pico de gallo. I had the huevos rancheros, which was amazing, even though it didn't have any beans (most huevos have some sort of refried beans under the eggs). The french press coffee pot on our table yielded so much caffeine, we thought we'd be able to fly down to the theatre after our meal!

[PrincessPooh]

So, finally after a long, and very rainy walk down 6th Avenue, we arried at the Minskoff theatre. The theatre is right in the heart of Times Square, directly across from the Mariott Marquis. The show has only recenlty re-opened here, as it was moved from the New Amsterdam theatre nearby, to make room for the Mary Poppins musical to open in November. The theatre is very, very big, compared to others in the area. There are two mezzanine levels that are completely enclosed in glass which over look Times Square. On each of these levels, there are artifacts from the show for you to admire adn take pictures. There is the original costume worn by Mufasa and a wax figure of Rafiki where you can have a "NY souvenier" photo taken. It's very similar to the photopass photographers that hang out around the castle in MK.

The show itself is very true to the orignal cartoon, with a few lovely additions. Obviously though, the cast is human. Rafiki is played by a woman in this show, like and elder of a tribe, or a voodoo woman. I believe the actress, Tshidi Manye, is from South Africa, or thereabouts, as her bio in the playbill states several credits from shows/schools in that area. She was amazing, with an intensity in her voice that vibrated in my chest. Zazu is played as a puppet on the arm of an actor (Tony Freeman) who is dressed in all black and white, like a mime of sorts. It is much better this way, as it gives the character a relative size as a bird, not a human size who would be bigger than young Simba himself. Also, Timon is a puppet about 4 feet tall, attached to an actor at his feet (Danny Rutigliano, who is an original cast member), who is also covered in head to toe green, including face makeup and costume, so as to draw your attention to the puppet, and not the human (again for relative size I'm sure). Pumbaa is an actor (Bob Amaral) wearing a huge Pumbaa costume, and his head comes up like the puff of hair on Pumbaa's head. The stage scene is actually very simple. The only true piece of set is a spiral staircase that comes up out of the floor in multiple scenes to represent Pride Rock. Various chorus actors come out dressed as large trees and savannah grass to add some changes in the atmosphere during the show.

The music aspect of the show includes all the songs on the original movie, but with amazing harmonies and chants. Act I is basically the exact plot of the movie from the first scene, the Circle of Life, until the desert/Jungle of Timon, Pumbaa and Simba's Hakuna Matata. The only additions here are in Scene 4, where Zazu starts singing the Morning Report, which has been released in the new edition of the movie. Also, two other GREAT addiditions in Act I are the scene where Shenzi, Banzai and Ed corner Simba and Nala in the elephant graveyard and sing a song entitled Chow Time, which definately has a rock tune to it, with a lot of electric guitar. Right after that, in the scene after Mufasa rescues the cubs from the hyenas, Mufasa sings to Simba a song They Live in You, reflecting on the stars in the sky and the great leaders of the past. This song is reprised later in Act II and is one of the big hits of the show.

Act II is where most of the changes are, that I can see. It opens with the cast standing in the aisles, all around the theatre chanting as song One by One and flying birds over head (props attached to pole). It then goes into a scene is Scar's cave where he sings of his ever growing lack of happiness, despite acquiring the throne. He goes into how he needs to produce cubs to continue an eternal life. The song is called The Madness of Scar, and it includeds Scar, the hyenas and Nala, who Scar tries to force into being the mother of his cubs. From that, Nala goes into a solo while in the pridleands with the other lionesses. The song is about Nala having to make a choice to save her home and family, to go find help. It is rightly entitled The Shadowlands. It is an amazing song with an amazing actress (Kissy Simmons, a native Floridian)This would lead into where Nala runs off into the Jungle to run into Timon, Pumbaa and Simba. Meanwhile Simba and the boys are gazing up into the stars at night, debating what they are (just like in the movie) when Simba and the chorus break into song called Endless Night. It basically brings out Simba's lack of happiness, and his sense of feeling like he doesn't belong where he is. He feels lost in his world with Timon and Pumbaa and knows there is something else out there for him that he must find.

Enter Nala, and the song Can You Feel the Love Tongight. The rest from here is pretty much the same as the cartoon. I do have to say that the reprise of He Lives in You, which is sung when Rafiki finds Simba and shows him Mufasa's reflection is very touching. It takes place on a very dark stage, with a chorus of about 12 people, where you can only see their faces lit in a blackness. The song speaks of Mufasa living in Simba, and in all the things around us. The basic lyrics sung several times over are :He lives in you,
He lives in me, He watches over, Everything we see. Into the water, Into the truth, In your reflection, He lives in you. It is a very touching song, and probably the biggest hit to come out of the musical. The show finishes just like the movie, with Simba going back with his gang to regain his throne and have a cub of his own. The final song is King of Pride Rock, Circle of Life reprise.

The show ran about 2 1/2 hours, but I was captured by every minute of it. There were lots of kids there, despite the fact that Disney recommends only children of 6 or older attend. Most of the children were wonderful, and were amazed by the show. My biggest gripe was the family who brought in a young baby who would randomly start to wail at different points in the show. I mean, if you chose to bring in a baby, be considerate to those in the theatre and to the actors on stage, and walk out!! Don't sit there and console the kid in the middle of the performance. That is what the lobby is for.

OK-so in the interest of saving everyone's sanity in this emensely long thread, I'll end it here. If anyone has any other questions about the show, I'd be happy to answer them.

[PrincessPooh]

Here is a link to the lyrics for the songs of the musical. If you wanted to get an idea of the different scenes and the songs that go along with them, this is a great site...

The Lion King: Musical Soundtrack

[WishUponAStar]

OoOoOooo, I just LOVE that show! I am glad you appreciated it as much as I did. After reading your report I want to take Daniel to see it b/c he never got the chance too. I saw it with my Grandmother when it first toured nationally. I am so glad you had such a great time in NY!!!

[MissDisney]

Wonderful trip report!!! Glad you had a good time in the Big Apple!!!