Disney shows...hate 'em or love 'em? — Page 3

Unlucky as i am to be a Broadway fan living on the West Coast, i did get to see the tour of 'The Lion King' last week. I loved it. The sets and everything were amazing, and the person who played Scar, Larry Yando, was amazing. I was less impressed with the older Simba. I don't remember who it was.

So, Lion King: ***

I haven't seen the others. A friend of mine saw 'Aida' and hated it, but i figure she has no musical taste.

My school is actually doing Beauty and the Beast for our spring musical, and i'm very nervous about how elaborate everything is. Our auditions are this week.

If Disney transforms another movie into a musical though, it should be 'Mulan'.

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I really loved all three of them!! The sets & costumes are amazing! Aida was great to see too because I didn't know the story already. The other two lost something because I was so familiar with the movies. They were all great though! I will go to see anything else that disney puts out!

I have been fortunate enough to have seen all 3 shows with their original casts (2 in previews). I happen to like all 3 shows but for very different reasons:
1) B&B - Though I hear that now the show looks/sounds more theme-park, that was not the case when it was in previews at the Palace. I thought it was an earnest attempt to give more depth and expansion to an already wonderful movie/story/score.
2) Lion King - for bringing such wonderful stagecraft and "world" music to Broadway. Wonderful story-telling, scenically beautiful, exciting/varied score.
3) Aida - (I was at the preview that Elton stormed out of). for their first original piece, I found it successful. It gives tour-de-force opportunities for the 3 leads, pretty to look at and listen to. There are a couple dud songs (for the evil father role) which I always skip on the CD. But the show is a belter's dream with a sure-fire story.
The biggest problem with all three is the BOOK and by that I mean the DIALOGUE. The structure of the shows all work, but the dialogue (especially when based on the movie) is trite and overly familiar. Dumb jokes, etc.. I think they need to aim a little higher in their target demographic.
Can't wait to see/hear Mary Poppins. With Cameron McIntosh involved and their divergence from the movie, we should get a truely wonderful adaptation. The German Hunchback sounded gorgeous on the CD and I would hope some form of this will find its way to the stage back here in the US. The environmental TARZAN should be interesting and who can resist The Little Mermaid. Lots to look forward to.

Overall, I'm glad that Disney is working on Broadway. I just hope that the longer they stay, the bigger their artistic ambition will become.

What about Hercules? That'd be a great show.

Loved Lion King, Liked Aida, didn't see Beast.

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I loved Beauty & the Beast on Broadway. I thought it was a travesty that The Lion King won Best Musical with a weak score and even worse lyrics, and I thought AIDA was the most wretchedly awful thing I have ever seen.

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I love Beauty and the Beast. It's such a fun show both to see and perform. I recently did it and played Lefou. It was so much FUN!

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hmm i think they are okay.. i mean ultimately i think disney should stay on the screen....

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i recently saw lion king and boston, and although i LOVEDD the costumes and sets, i really wasnt impressed. i dont know why, but i just didnt think it was a good show. there werent any show stopping numbers that i can remember and i didnt really like the music. i LOVEE beauty and the beast. i saw it a couple years ago in boston and my friends school just did it and i saw it twice. i love the new music (new and old) and i love the costumes. 'be our guest' has some amazing choreography!

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LK and BATB 2 stars. Aida 3. I was hoping I would be plesently surprised but they were all wat i pretty much expected.