Simba in Denver!

Our plans to go check out the Lion King were extremely last minute. We’d just made it into Westminster, CO (an area between Boulder and Denver) a few hours before making the decision to do something in Denver at night. After checking the listings at the Denver Performing Arts Center the answer to what we wanted to do was obvious and so we dressed in our best and took off to the theater.

The show started at 8 PM and when we neared the corner of the theater it was clear the charm of the Lion King’s long running tour and production had yet to wear off. People were everywhere and even though there were several other shows playing you could tell the biggest deal was the Lion King. It was now 7:25 PM and we had our fingers crossed that the show wouldn’t be entirely sold out. We learned at the ticket booth that there were only $70 seats remaining and as badly as we wanted to see young Simba and his crew in this Disney on Broadway production, that price was a little out of our budgets. To our advantage the ticket scalpers were on the prowl and we scored two of the $70 dollar seats for the price of one! Our seats ended up being fantastic! I was worried at first because the tickets had OBSTRUCTED VIEW in big bold red letters across the top and I just imagined sitting in front of a huge pole or the Elephant Man, and though the view was obstructed a little it was nothing to complain about at all. After all, we could have been in the far back squinting most of the show. 

Now onto the production… Amazing! I was really blown away by all aspects: set design, costume, music, and the choreography. Everything felt illuminated. In looking at the audience I could see the eyes of children and their parents glowing as giant giraffes, elephants and gazelles walked and leapt across the stage. The crowd giggled and let out hearty laughter as the playful and kooky Zazu buzzed around following the great Mufasa, but more importantly the young Simba. There were so many great scenes that it’s really hard to choose a favorite, so I’m not even going to try.

Although we were indoors during this first night in Denver – it will always be a special night to remember.

Akuna matata,
Adrienne