There have been seven theme park live adaptations of The Lion King at Disney Parks since the Disney animated feature film The Lion King was released by Walt Disney Animation Studios in 1994. These have included a parade, two theater-in-the-round shows (both of which are versions of Festival of the Lion King), and four stage shows (three of which are live musical stage show retellings of the story with costumed performers).
The Lion King Celebration
The Lion King Celebration was a parade that ran at Disneyland Park in California from June 1, 1994 to June 1, 1997. The parade's design centered around the story of Simba, the main protagonist of The Lion King, as if it were a tale passed down in Africa for generations. The lineup featured six floats designed around different aspects of African culture, dancers dressed in animal costumes, and a Pride Rock float featuring Simba and Nala. The design of the parade had strong roots in traditional African artwork, featuring vibrant colors, traditional designs, and dance routines based on traditional African dances. The parade featured six floats, accompanied by a total of 89 cast members. This included 56 dancers, 12 puppeteers, 10 acrobatic pole dancers, 6 musicians and 5 remote control operators. The Lion King Celebration also featured the first use of Audio-Animatronics in a Disneyland parade as well as the first use of "Puppetronics", a technique used to create the large, lifelike animal puppets featured on the floats. Puppetronics allowed the animatronic animals to be controlled by a puppeteer but still retain complex movement, allowing for a smoother and more realistic performance. A commemorative VHS, hosted by Robert Guillaume, was released by the park featuring the parade and behind-the-scenes footage. After the parade's run ended in 1997, four of the floats were moved to Disney's Animal Kingdom for the Festival of the Lion King show. Other assets from the parade were reused in other parades, including Walt Disney's Parade of Dreams.
Plot Set to a mostly instrumental version of the song "I Just Can't Wait to Be King", the first characters to appear are two rhinoceroses, followed by tribal dancers, drummers and a float featuring Zazu and Rafiki with two giraffes. Zazu and Rafiki introduce the parade as it continues down Main Street, U.S.A. or It's a Small World, depending on where you viewed it from. Next, a herd of gazelle dancers dressed in spandex costumes with hoods precede a float with tribal gazelle designs pushed along by wildebeest dancers. They are followed by a group of tribal crane dancers, the elephant float and two remote-controlled crocodiles. The elephant on the float occasionally shoots a stream of water from its trunk. In the first year of the show, the larger "mother" elephant was preceded by a smaller "baby" elephant whose costume was similar to that of the previously mentioned rhinoceroses, only larger. Two pole dancers dressed in tribal bird costumes walk at the sides. Leopard dancers dance around the Rainforest float, which features monkey dancers on swings and Pumbaa on the back. Pumbaa talks to Timon, who follows behind while chasing three remote-controlled bugs including a scorpion and a rhinoceros beetle. Two tribal-bird pole dancers lead the Drum Dancer float, which features drummers, dancers and percussionists in colourful, vibrant tribal costumes. The last float - Pride Rock - is led by a group of zebra and cheetah dancers, two tribal elephant dancers and two tribal bird dancers. Simba stands atop Pride Rock while Nala roars and drums out the beat with her paw at the foot of the float. Above them, Mufasa's face is represented in a spinning sun design. The end of the parade is marked by two tribal zebra performers holding a rope. The parade eventually stops and Mufasa's bass voice is heard telling Simba to take his place in the Circle of Life. The song "Circle of Life" begins to play and the dancers dance and leap around the floats as the drummers drum along to the song. At the end of the song, Simba roars and white doves are released from one of the floats, symbolizing hope and peace.
Festival of the Lion King
Festival of the Lion King is the name of two live stage musicals, one performed at Disney's Animal Kingdom in Walt Disney World, and the other in Adventureland at Hong Kong Disneyland. The shows, original interpretations of the Disney animated film The Lion King, use songs, dance, puppetry and visual effects to portray a tribal celebration in an African savanna setting filled with lions, elephants, giraffes, birds, zebras and gazelles.
Disney's Animal Kingdom version
The Disney's Animal Kingdom version of the show is presented as a celebration with Simba and his friends, including a band of four human singers. The show is in the form of a revue, and not a condensed version of either the film or the Broadway show. The show features Elton John and Tim Rice's songs from the movie, and Solomon Linda's song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". The show is performed inside an enclosed theater-in-the-round in Camp Minnie-Mickey. Guests sit in four sections, each designated with an animal name: Giraffe, Elephant, Warthog, Lion. These animals are represented by large puppets on parade-style floats, which were originally built for Disneyland's The Lion King Celebration parade. The show is hosted by four performers dressed in costumes inspired by traditional African dress. Each has a Swahili name: Kiume (meaning "masculine and strong"), Nakawa ("good-looking"), Kibibi ("princess"), and Zawadi ("the gift"). After the hosts welcome the audience to the show, the curtains open and a procession of dancers, puppeteers, and stilt walkers enter the theater (to the song "I Just Can't Wait to Be King"). Among them are Lion King characters Simba, Pumbaa (both puppets on floats), and Timon (played by a live performer). Acts include gymnastic "Tumble Monkeys" ("Hakuna Matata"), a fire knife-twirling "hyena" ("Be Prepared"), and an aerial dance featuring performers dressed as birds ("Can You Feel the Love Tonight"), leading to an interactive sing-along ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight"). The finale features reprises of all of these acts, ending with "Circle of Life".
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