Laws of the jungle rule with top shows: 'The Lion King' and 'Mean Girls'

The laws of the jungle rule two major musicals returning this summer -- one about a literal jungle in a fantasy Disney world, and another about a fantasy jungle in the literal world of high-school. Both center on the survival of the fittest -- and most cunning. "The Lion King" Little has changed from the 1997 Broadway version of "The Lion King," which followed the original 1994 Disney animated hit of the same name. Even more importantly, little has changed in the production quality of the latest touring Broadway version of "The Lion King" since it last came to Playhouse Square in the aftermath of the COVID theater shutdown in 2021, or the earlier tour two years before that in the wake of the Disney computer-animated live-action hit of the same name in 2019. But dependability proves quite an asset, judging by the cheering audience. When "The Lion King" first opened on Broadway nearly three decades ago, it marked a conceptual departure for Disney's venture into the Great White Way. Here is a serviceable, ostensibly original children's tale about a young lion prince who discovers himself after losing both his father and his African animal kingdom home, appropriated by the evil uncle and his laughing, singing and dancing hyena cohorts. (The moral of the story -- as noted by other critics -- seems to be, it's better to be eaten by lions than hyenas.) But rather than put actors in heavy makeup and furry costumes -- a la "Cats" -- Disney decided to hire nationally acclaimed puppeteer and designer (and Oberlin College grad) Julie Taymor to helm the production. The result of her unparalleled mastery of puppetry and costume design elevated what could have been a disposable Disney foray into Broadway (and there have been several of those, such as "Tarzan" and "The Little Mermaid") into a Tony-winning megahit that still reigns on stages across the globe. It's still a top show on Broadway and Playhouse Square this summer. "The Lion King" opens with a spectacle of antelope, giraffes, birds, zebras, et al (not to mention full-blown elephants literally in the room), parading down the aisles of a theater to the stage. As the African menagerie chorus sings Tim Rice' and Elton John's "The Circle of Life," marking the dawn of a new day and a new royal generation, the lion king lifts his kicking infant son before the rising sun. It's a mesmerizing tableau to behold. Not even the photo-real computer-generated version of the musical from 2019 can replace this sensation, the exclusive domain of live theater. But like the kingdom under the rule of the evil lion uncle, the show itself seems at times to dry up and wither a bit. There really is no other sustenance to draw upon other than the original Disney animated movie. Despite a handful scenes of new songs and music by various artists and allegedly authentic African sources (plus a fleshed-out rendition of the 1961 pop classic "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"), the show wallows in a rather pallid book by Roger Allers and Irene Mecchi. This touring production, although lavish, doesn't help much, with many actors proving more mechanical than the mechanizations of Taymor's multi-dimensional costumes. There are good exceptions, of course, including David D'Lancy Wilson as King Mufasa, Peter Hargrave as the evil uncle Scar and Nick Lamedica as the majordomo hornbill bird serving lion royalty. There are also enough theatrical diversions to render an overall engaging evening, not the least of which is the choreography by Garth Fagan. A Joffrey Ballet-style dance of lioness hunters is most striking, although, for some reason, this tour offers a truncated rendition of the show's biggest hit, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," which originally featured a Cirque du Soleil style interlude. But nothing tops that opening vista of the African animal kingdom -- an atmospheric triumph of set design by Richard Hudson and lighting design by Donald Holder -- paying homage to the titular star of the show. The opening also pays tribute to one of the greatest Broadway talents of contemporary Broadway -- Oberlin's Julie Taymor. "Mean Girls" As said before, does the entertainment world really need another go-round of a teen outsider navigating the trials and tribulations of high-school life and its social-cliques hierarchy? Well, if that go-round has the wit and heart of "Saturday Night Live" legend Tina Fey, why not? And if a return engagement of that musical gets the kind of kinetic, intelligent production value that the Beck Center is able to provide, all the better. That's why the two-and-a-half-hour musical version of Fey's 22-year-old hit film comedy "Mean Girls" is engaging audiences this month at one of the Cleveland area's best regional theaters. Starting with Rosalind Wiseman's 2002 self-help book, "Queen Bees and Wannabes," dissecting high-school social cliques and the damaging effects they can have on girls, Fey created a screenplay that also drew from her own teen experiences. What the screenplay and closely aligned musical book (script) lack in sheer originality, it more than makes up for in sheer hilarity. When the popular-girl antagonist gets hit by a school bus (portentously underlined in the opening number), that has Fey's stamp all over it. Some may ask why the film and musical would or should be premised with a backstory about a home-schooled teen who comes to Greater Chicago from Africa with her biologist parent. A home-schooled student from anywhere would suffice to ignite the plot. But the "Out of Africa" concept further underscores the thematic notion of a sacrificial antelope thrown into the lions' den of uber-popular girls. Indeed, the entire menagerie of jocks, glee-clubbers, band-standers, math geeks, goths, et al, end up following the laws of the institutional jungle. (For the purposes of Broadway, it doesn't hurt to have allusions to "Lion King," running on Playhouse Square, especially so well punctuated by able director Scott Spence.) There is one potentially jarring notion about updating the two-decade-old film to contemporary times: The musical version addresses how social media today has consumed teen lives -- at least more so than back in 2004, when cell phones could barely accommodate a simple text message. But propelling the climax of the show is the late discovery by the school staff of an incriminating "Burn Book," where an unknown teen maligns students and faculty with gossip and personal insults. Wouldn't a similarly untoward teen today simply create a fake troll social-media account and accomplish the same malice with better anonymity? Still, it's hard to quibble with the jubilance of Lauren Marousek's electric deceptively complex choreography, which would rival that of any national tour's. Likewise, it would be impossible to fault the performances by Lindsey Ross as the (literally) out-of-Africa protagonist who transitions into one of the popular girls (aka "The Plastics"), Samyah Henry as the bloodthirsty reigning Queen "B" (not referring to the insect), Max Larson as the down-to-earth jock love interest and Tyler J. Sanderlin and Blithe Pluger as the two singing, tap-dancing outsider LBGTQ+ pals who first befriend her, show her the ropes and then narrate the show in befitting mock-teen omniscience. At the Beck Center, the production crew turn out to be the equal stars of the show -- particularly scenic designer Laura Carlson Tarantowski and projection designer Val Kozlenko, mastering a stage that playfully transitions from cafeteria, to classroom, to bedroom and even a few vistas of Kenya. The infectious score by Jeff Richmond (music) and Nell Benjamin (lyrics) may not be Elton John's "Lion King," but as conducted by musical director Bryan Bird, they certainly fill the bill for catchy pop numbers, completing a solid evening of entertainment and hilarity. As one of the leads of "Mean Girls" would say, it's really "fetch!" while the rest of the applauding audience would say the whole production is quite fetching. Contact Howard Gollop at howieeg@hotmail.com. IF YOU GO WHAT: "The Lion King" WHEN: Through Aug 16 (times vary) WHERE: KeyBank State Theater, 1519 Euclid Ave., Playhouse Square TICKETS: $24 to $78INFO: (216) 241-6000 or playhousesquare.org WHAT: "Mean Girls" / Beck Center for the ArtsWHEN: Through Aug. 9 (times vary) WHERE: Senney Theater, Beck Center for the Arts, 17801 Detroit Ave., Lakewood TICKETS: $18 to $46 INFO: (216) 521-2540 or BeckCenter.org