Lion King opens at Orpheum Theatre
Jan 13, 2012

Disney's The Lion King, celebrating nearly 15 years since its 1997 world premiere in Minneapolis, opens tonight, Friday, Jan. 13, at 8 p.m. at Hennepin Theatre Trust's Orpheum Theatre for a limited engagement of five weeks through Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012. "Hennepin Theatre Trust is thrilled to welcome The Lion King back to Minneapolis," says Hennepin Theatre Trust President/CEO Tom Hoch. "Tickets for this show are in high demand, but there are still good seats available for the weeknight performances." It is presented by Hennepin Theatre Trust as part of its 2011/12 Broadway Across America-Minneapolis Season.

The Lion King began as a 1994 animated feature-length film developed and produced by the Walt Disney Company. The story, a coming of age parable set among animals indigenous to its setting, the African savanna, tells the tale of Simba, the lion cub who rises to be the King of the jungle. The 1997 world premiere at the Orpheum Theatre was followed by sold-out return engagements in 2005 and 2007. Minneapolis is the first city in North America to host this landmark production four times.

Two cast members have Minnesota connections. "Scar" will be played by J. Anthony Crane, who grew up in Minneapolis and whose family still lives in the Twin Cities. Nick Cordileone, who went to grade school in Minneapolis and Brooklyn Park, is "Timon."

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