IntroductionThe musical The Lion King is a well-known musical that has taken the stages of Broadway, the West End and the rest of the world by storm (The Lion King , 1997). Regarding the process of the musical, artistic director Julie Taymor's first thoughts on choosing The Lion King as the next big thing on stage were classified as "impossible" due to the lack of theatrical material in the film (The Lion King, 1997 ). Therefore, the staging of this particular work contained many uncertainties and the need to take enormous risks. Taymor (1997) suggests that "The Lion King was the worst possible idea for a stage show". It became apparent that a number of significant obstacles had to be overcome to ensure the practicality of production. In light of this controversy, this thesis will critically analyze the success of The Lion King by exploring two significant aspects that contributed to making the musical a success. Firstly, the essential components that make up this theatrical production will be explored, and secondly, the roles of each producer within The Lion King and the combined and individual influences they had from the production will be assessed. By analyzing these two central themes, this article will show how and why this musical developed and achieved its phenomenal success. The components can be divided as follows: dance and movement, character representation, masks/puppets, music, costumes and idealistic process. Each component will be analyzed in detail in an attempt to portray how this effectiveness has added to the overall musical vision. Chapter 1 Through dance and movement, the plot was expanded with the assistance of choreographer Garth Fagan. A renowned choreographer... middle of paper... falls. Fagan, in his hope, wants audiences to watch dance without becoming bored or thinking of dance as medicine (Bramley 24:1997). The musical allowed this particular component to make a difference in such dance-to-dance challenges. This was possible thanks to Fagan's approach to choreography which is different than other choreography designed for other Disney films turned musicals, for example Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid. These two major musicals have taken Broadway stages by storm. However, there is one ingredient missing from those shows that Taymor managed to capture from start to finish with The Lion King. It was a risky challenge as Fagan radically transformed the negative into the positive through the use of vocabulary to approach the use of dance and movement as part of a highly successful musical..