Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/10148
20 LIVEMAGS.NET MAY>>10 THE MAY TODO LIST "Disney's The Lion King" at the Orange County Performing Arts Center MAY 28th, 2010 By>>tYler Andrews F ive years after its 2005 sold out premiere run, "Disney's The Lion King" returns to the Orange County Performing Arts Center this summer for a limited three week engagement. Now in its second sold out decade on Broadway, "The Lion King" has only one other North American tour location, Las Vegas. So, it is with great fanfare that OCPAC brings the international sensation back to its Segerstrom Hall stage on May 28 – June 13, 2010. "The Lion King" will play Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 7:30 PM., Sunday evenings at 6:30 PM., Saturday matinees at 2 PM. and Sunday matinees at 1 PM. Tickets for "The Lion King" went on sale in February so fans who missed it in 2005 will want to act fast to secure seats for this three-week return run. Fans will also be happy to know that tickets for performances start as low as $23.25 and will be available online at OCPAC.org, by calling 714.556.2787 or at the Center's Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa. Orders for groups of 20 or more may be placed by calling the Group Services office at 714.755.0236. The TTY number is 714.55 6.2746. The 2 PM. performance on Saturday, June 12 will be sign-language interpreted. "The Lion King" has received more than 70 major international awards, including a 1998 Tony® Award, a New York Drama Critics Award and a Grammy® Award, and the show's director, Julie Taymor, became the first woman in Broadway history to win the Tony for Best Director. "The Lion King" features the Elton John and Tim Rice score from the original animated film, as well as three new songs from John and Rice. Perhaps its best-known feature is the incredible array of masked actors singing, dancing and pantomiming in an experience that demands to be seen in person. The masks themselves are costuming wonders of functionality and design, and the actors who operate them bring the animals of the African savanna to life. The Orange County Performing Arts Center, the theater responsible for bringing "Disney's The Lion King" to the OC twice, is Orange County's largest non- profit arts organization and is made up of a variety of live performance venues featuring these top Broadway shows, intimate jazz and cabaret revues, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, international ballet, and world class theater that captivate the whole family. The campus also features many important works of art, making a walking tour an adventure in discovery. As well, OCPAC offers free events, such as outdoor movies and dance parties on the arts plaza. The Center owns and operates the 3,000-seat Segerstrom Hall, an intimate 250-seat Founders Hall, both of which opened in 1986, and the 2,000-seat Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, the 500-seat Samueli Theater, and the Lawrence and Kristina Dodge Education Center's studio performance space and Boeing Education Lab, all of which were completed in 2006. The Center's Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall and Community Plaza, along with facilities of the adjacent Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the new home of the Orange County Museum of Art, are located at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. OCPAC also offers year-round educational programs for hundreds of thousands of young people each year, both on the Center's campus and in schools throughout Orange County. While the programs inspire young artists, they also provide important tools that enhance their core curriculum studies and help them to develop self-confidence that will last a lifetime. OCPAC is proud to be the home of the region's major artistic organizations: the Pacific Symphony, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and the Pacific Chorale. These organizations help to solidify the role of OCPAC as Orange County's artistic nucleus. OCPAC works diligently to maintain its international reputation and strives to improve on it every year. For fans of the theater and members of the community, the Orange County Performing Arts Center provides unsurpassed experiences in all of its venues.