Company of “The Lion King on Broadway.” (Photo by Matthew Murphy/courtesy Disney)
“Disney’s The Lion King” musical is making its grand return to the Dr. Phillips Center’s Walt Disney Theater, running from April 23–May 18.
Winner of six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, “The Lion King” brings together one of the most imaginative and creative teams on Broadway. Tony Award-winning director Julie Taymor brings to life a story filled with hope and adventure set against an amazing backdrop of stunning visuals. “The Lion King” also features the extraordinary work of Tony Award-winning choreographer Garth Fagan and some of Broadway’s most recognizable music, crafted by Tony Award-winning artists Elton John and Tim Rice.
“The Lion King” has been touring North America for more than 22 years and, during that time, has played more than 10,000 performances in over 90 cities to more than 23 million theatergoers, making it North America’s longest-running and most-attended Broadway tour.
The iconic production has held the attention of over 110 million audience members worldwide, known for its iconic soundtrack, spectacular set design and dazzling choreography. An essential aspect of the show that brings the Serengeti to life in the theater is visual storytelling with the massive animal puppets and awe-inspiring costume design.
In a recent interview with “The Lion King’s” touring assistant stage manager, Karen Parlato, we learn a bit about how the backstage crew brings the show to life.
WATERMARK: Karen, what drew you to stage management in theatre and how did you wind up with “The Lion King”?
Karen Parlato: I started out when I was young, 9 or 10, aiming towards something in the entertainment industry. I grew up just outside of New York and I had access somewhat to Broadway shows but I don’t think I quite registered “Oh, that’s a job you can do.” I was interested in some kind of storytelling medium, but not as a performer ever.
Then, when I was 12, my parents took me to see “Phantom of the Opera” and that was the actual catalyst for me to put all the pieces together and decide I wanted to do that. It has something to do with the musical nature of it, the collaboration between staging and music and the way that telling a story with music makes people feel things in a deeper way. I really connected to that and began to pursue that route through middle and high school.
I started working on Broadway when I was 16, selling merchandise for “Phantom.” I thought I wanted to be a director so I went to NYU for directing and while I was there it just didn’t connect for me. I started to really doubt whether I could come out of school on the right trajectory to be a Broadway director but I knew that I could be a Broadway stage manager. I started working in New York and once I got my equity card I started subbing on “Phantom,” so that was my Broadway debut. I was a sub there for 17 years on and off until the pandemic, and afterwards I got “The Lion King.”
How has your experience been shifting from working on Broadway to now touring the country with “The Lion King”?
It’s funny because when I was coming up in the business I thought, “I’ll tour for a few years, save some money and then come back to New York,” that was kind of where I was looking at at the time. I thought I’d do the tour thing and then I’d really want an apartment forever and settle down, I never got the big contract that allowed me to do that, whether on tour or on Broadway. So, it was weird when I finally got the job I’ve wanted my whole life at 42.
All my stuff is in two suitcases and a trunk and a little drawer that travels with work. I love being free to go anywhere and do anything, surprisingly to me. I’m much more of a homebody but I really like the touring family aspect of it because you kind of have a little friend group that moves around the country with you, it gives you a built-in community.
What are some key differences you’ve noticed between stage managing a Broadway show and a touring show in terms of production?
Well, the show always has to be designed in a certain way that makes it easier to travel and can accommodate the base level of what each venue can provide. With “The Lion King,” you generally assume that the theater doesn’t have a basement that can handle heavily designed scenery, like Pride Rock coming up from the floor. On Broadway, it comes up from the ground, but it’s really ingenious the way it works on tour. It’s sort of like a giant model train, it has tracks on the stages and switches so that it can change tracks and spin around to get back off. Other than that, things are mostly just designed to be portable and come apart, the costumes and puppets are still basically the same.
Can you tell us about the production and design of the large-scale puppets and how that contributes to the show experience?
I think the show is, most of all, known for its puppets and in large part because of the opening procession of the “Circle of Life” where all the puppets come through the audience. It’s one of those things that you can’t compromise on for the tour. That part of the experience would just be really lost if we kept the whole thing on stage because the theaters are different. Actually, my specific job on the show is to figure out that procession. I do lots of normal stage manager things but my specialty is everything involving how the cast is in the house. So what aisles we’re using, where to hide the puppets; I literally spend my entire day of the load-in figuring that stuff out. All those details work to make that procession possible and I think it is one the best parts of the show. It makes a huge difference to me when I hear people talk about their experience of the show and being able to deliver that moment.
Can you give us some insight into how culture and entertainment come together in such a classic story?
Right now, we have seven South African performers in the company and the idea behind that is that there’s always grounding in the actual culture of where the story comes from. Our show has more African languages than originally featured in the movie (Swahili, Zulu, Xhosa, Sotho, Tswana, Congolese) and so it really is multinational in production. There are people, not just from Africa, but all over the world, everybody brings their own sort of lived experience and diversity. I think that really grounds the show, having people there that really understand the material from a native speaker’s perspective.
Do you have a favorite memory since joining “The Lion King” on tour?
I just love watching “Circle of Life” from the house, I’m always right there watching with the audience. If you’re feeling down, questioning why you’re doing this today, you never doubt it if you see people experience that part of the show.
What would you say to someone to convince them to see “The Lion King” on tour?
I think it is the world’s number one musical for a reason. It really hits something, there’s something in us as humans that is triggered by the show. It’s also not just like you’re taking your kids to watch the movie that they watch all the time, it has an additional cultural element that is interesting for adults in a way that maybe goes over kids heads. It’s really designed to where it’s not just something that parents are taking their kids to, it’s very entertaining for everyone.
“Disney’s The Lion King” plays in the Dr. Phillips Center’s Walt Disney Theater for an epic four-week run April 23-May 18. Tickets are available now at DrPhillipsCenter.org.
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