WHERE I’D RATHER BE: THE LION KING, AUCKLAND
It’s finally here — the all-singing, all-dancing record-breaking phenomenon that is The Lion King. For the next three weeks, this international show will be taking Auckland by storm.
When the show hit the stage at Spark Arena this week, it was the cast’s first performance in a year and a half — the last stop on the tour was Hong Kong in March 2020, the next was due to be Wuhan.
The Lion King stage show has been running since 2007, 13 years after the Disney film was released. It’s the third longest-running show in Broadway history (and the highest-grossing), and more than 100 million people around the world have seen it live.
Now it’s opening to New Zealand audiences for the first time, with record-breaking ticket sales and about 30 performances.
The show brings an international cast, with the lead role of the grown Simba played by New Zealander Nick Afoa, who hails from Māngere. Afoa first played Simba in 2013, on London’s West End.
It’s not often Kiwi audiences get to experience a proper taste of the West End and Broadway, so don’t miss your chance. ticketek.co.nz This international extravaganza isn’t the only theatre offering in Auckland this weekend. Lockdowns unleashed a boom of creativity, and this year alone we’ve seen some incredible productions including ATC’s The Haka Party (by Katie Wolfe) and Michelle Law’s Single Asian Female (which arrived to New Zealand following sell-out crowds in Australia).
Head uptown to Q Theatre, because today is your last Auckland chance to catch Jacob Rajan and Justin Lewis’ Paradise or the Impermanence of Ice Cream, with an added 4pm showing. With just two figures on the stage — Rajan, playing seven different characters — and an extraordinary vulture, brought to life by puppeteer Jon Coddington. It is warm, clever, funny and thoughtful — the kind of show you’ll be chewing over for days to come.
The show will be travelling south to Hamilton next, ending in Christchurch in September. I cannot recommend it highly enough. indianink.co.nz
Downstairs at Basement Theatre, check out Snort, the late-night improv show that runs until December.
There’s a large rotating cast, including Tom Sainbury, Chris Parker, Rose Matafeo. basementtheatre.co.nz
And down at the ASB Waterfront Theatre, Wynyard Quarter, catch Michael Hurst in The Life of Gallileo, by German playwright Bertold Brecht, which runs until July 10.