BMS125 – Appreciating Local Theatre & Music
In-Course Assessment 1
Name of Musical Attended: The Lion King(The Landmark Musical Event)
On the 18th of March, 2011, I was blessed with the opportunity to attend a staged musical at the newly opened Marina Bay Sands. The musical attended was the world renowned, ‘The Lion King’. It is a theatrical production based on the Disney animated film of 1994 of the same name.
The central characters in this musical are:
Simba – the son of the Lion King,
Mufasa – the Lion King (who died shortly into the play),
Scar – the Uncle of Simba,
Timon the meerkat & Pumbaa the warthog – the comical duo
In this play, the story line revolves around Simba, and his quest to regain Kingship of the Kingdom after his uncle unscrupulously stole it by murdering Mufasa. On the journey of this quest, Simba got to know Timon & Pumbaa in the wilderness and spent some time with them before returning to the pride-lands.
Simba – Innocent, Strong Willed, Naïve
Mufasa – Courageous, Brave, Loving
Scar – Unscrupulous, Cruel, Disgusting
Timon & Pumbaa – Humourous, Silly, Dumb
I personally feel that all the performing actors were great, being able to portray the emotions well, and showed proficiency in bringing the audience to a ‘high’. What struck me the most was the jovial characters of Timon and Pumbaa, and how the actors were able to make the entire act so ‘real’ and personal. They really brought much unexpected joy to the entire musical.
On the specific moment that I felt was particularly dramatic and significant, was the part where Simba gave his uncle a chance of survival, to leave the pride lands and to never return; but instead of leaving, Scar attempted to attack Simba but fell to his death instead. It demonstrated how righteous and kind Simba was, and at the same time, depicted the evilness of Scar at its peak. The ‘good’ ending also demonstrated how evil will not usurp the just.
With the use of extravagant costumes, detailed and vivid makeup together with the moving music and lightings, the entire mood of the musical was as if we were in the plains of Africa and witnessing the story unfold ‘live’ in front of us. It was an ‘UTTERLY AMAZING’ experience. And at the end of it, it made me crave for more of such musicals having been taken by awe of such a theatrical performance.
The fact that this production was based on one of the top grossing international animated films, made this an instant welcome in the hearts of the young and old alike. Sometime, somewhere, every one would have definitely heard of this story before. And the ability to watch it come alive right before my eyes was like a fantasy come true.
With such a positive experience watching a theatrical performance, I would definitely love to be able to attend such plays in the future.
Prepared by:
Arisa Tay Jiamin
110611B
SW1102
