THE LION KING North American Tour Welcomes New Principals to the Pridelands 7/13

The North American touring production of Disney's The Lion King is pleased to welcome to the company beginning Tuesday, July 13:

J. Anthony Crane as thepower-hungry lion "Scar"; BRENDA MHLONGO as the wise baboon shaman "Rafiki"; Nick Cordileone as the wisecracking meerkat "Timon"; Adam Jacobs as Mufasa's son, "Simba," the lion prince born to be king; SYNDEE WINTERS as the loyal lioness "Nala"; Monica L. Patton as the evil hyena "Shenzi"; KOLTON STEWART as "Young Simba" and MONIQUE LEE as "Young Nala." Crane, Mhlongo, Cordileone, Jacobs, Winters, Patton, Stewart and Lee will join the tour when it premieres in Vancouver, B.C. where it will play a limited four-week engagement at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre from Tuesday, July 13 to Sunday, August 8, 2010.

The press opening night is Thursday, July 15 at 7:30pm. The cast also includes Dionne Randolph as "Mufasa," the great warrior and ruler of the Pridelands; Tony Freeman as the prim and proper hornbilled bird "Zazu"; Ben Lipitz as the carefree warthog "Pumbaa"; OMARI TAU ("Banzai") and BEN ROSEBERRY ("Ed") play the evil hyenas and the role of "Young Simba" will be played by Jerome Stephens, JR.

(alternating with KOLTON STEWART) and the role of "Young Nala" will be played by MADAI MONICA WILLIAMS (alternating with MONIQUE LEE). In Vancouver, The Lion King will play Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 7:30pm, Sunday evenings at 6:30pm, Saturday matinees at 2:00pm, Sunday matinees at 1:00pm and an additional matinee Wednesday, August 4 at 2:00pm.

Ticket prices start as low as $24.00. Premium TicketPackages, which include prime seat locations, a commemorative souvenir program and an exclusiveVIP merchandise item, are also available. Tickets are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, by calling604-280-4444, or on line at www.ticketmaster.ca. Orders for groups of twenty (20) or more may beplaced by calling 1-800-889-8457.

The Vancouver engagement of D ISNEY ' S The Lion King ispresented by arrangement with Broadway Across Canada. After the Vancouver engagement The Lion King will return to Canada in April 2011 when the record-breaking musical comes back to Toronto where it had its Canadian premiere in April2000, entertained 2.9 million theater patrons and played 1,560 performances (closing in January2004). The North American touring company will begin performances on April 19, 2011 for a limited five-week run at the Princess of Wales Theatre, the same venue where the Toronto production was originally housed. Audiences in Alberta were captivated by The Lion King during the summer of 2009 whenthe production set new box office records during its two Canadian engagements in Calgary and Edmonton, grossing a combined total of $13 million and entertaining more than 154,000 guests.

Making a major economic impact in the Province of Alberta, it is estimated that theatergoers spent a combined total of $36 million in Calgary and Edmonton during both engagements of The Lion King. The North American touring production of The Lion King has been seen by over 12.5 million theatergoers and grossed over $815 million to date. The tour is one of seven productionsrunning worldwide, along with New York City, London, Hamburg, Paris, Tokyo and Las Vegas. Having already played 60 cities across North America, The Lion King continues to entertain audiences in new cities. The current schedule is listed below.

For more information and dates,please visit LionKing.com.

ABOUT The Lion King 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 thejungle. Now in its 13 th year, The Lion King continues to reign as one of the most popular shows on Broadway and around the world. It is the eighth longest-running musical in Broadway history and, according to figures just released by The Broadway League, placed second on the Top 10lists for both the highest-grossing and best-attended shows of the 2009-10 season, a remarkable indicator of its unprecedented success.

THE LION KING is one of only five musicalproductions in theatre history to play for ten years or more on both Broadway and the West End. The Lion King has been seen by more than 50 million people in 13 different countries andtranslated into five different languages (Japanese, German, Korean, French, Dutch). The Lion King made history in September 2009 when two of its signature costumes were inducted into the Permanent Collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.

The global phenomenon is the winner of more than 70 major awards worldwide, including the1998 Tony Award and NY Drama Critics Award for Best Musical, the 1999 Grammy forBest Musical Show Album, and the 1999 Laurence Olivier Awards for Best Choreography and Best Costume Design. Julie Taymor was the first woman in theatrical history to win the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical. She is also the winner of the 1998 Tony Award for Best Costume Design. Previous credits include The Green Bird, The Flying Dutchman, Fool's Fire, TitusAndronicus and the Tony Award-nominated Juan Darien: A Carnival Mass at Lincoln Center. Taymor, along with designer Michael Curry, has created hundreds of masks and puppets for The Lion King. Scenic design is by Richard Hudson; costume design is by Julie Taymor; lighting design is by Donald Holder. Choreography is by Garth Fagan.

The book has been adapted by Roger Allers, who co-directed the animated feature and Irene Mecchi, who co-wrote the film's screenplay. The Broadway score features Elton John and Tim Rice's music from The Lion King animated film along with three new songs by John and Rice; additional musical material by South African Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Julie Taymor and Hans Zimmer; and music from "Rhythm of the Pride Lands," an album inspired by the original music in the film, written byLebo M, Mark Mancina and Hans Zimmer. The resulting sound of The Lion King is afusion of Western popular music and the distinctive sounds and rhythms of Africa, ranging from the Academy Award-winning song "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" to the haunting ballad "Shadowlands."

About Broadway Across Canada: Broadway Across Canada and Broadway Across America (Producer) is owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and entertainment industry veteran Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman).

Broadway Across Canada in association with Broadway Across America, presents first-class touring musicals and plays across 40 North American cities. Under the supervision of Beth Williams (COO & Head of Production), Broadway Across America is also dedicatedto the development and production of new and diverse theatre. Current Broadway productions include Promises, Promises; Million Dollar Quartet; A View From The Bridge; Lend Me a Tenor; La Cage aux Folles; Hair and West Side Story. Touring productions include Dreamgirls and Nickelodeon's Storytime Live.

Please visit BroadwayAcrossCanada.ca.

NORTH AMERICAN TOUR SCHEDULE THROUGH JULY 2011

Portland - Keller Auditorium

June 16 - July 11, 2010

Vancouver - Queen Elizabeth Theatre

July 13 - Aug 8, 2010

Salt Lake City - Capitol Theatre Aug 11 - Sept 26, 2010

Chicago - Cadillac Palace Theatre Sept 29 - Nov 7, 2010

Norfolk - Chrysler Hall Nov 30 - Jan 2, 2011

Durham - Durham Performing Arts Center Jan 4 - 30, 2011

Providence - Providence Performing Arts Center Feb 1 - Feb 20, 2011

Rochester - Auditorium Theatre March 22 - April 17, 2011

Toronto - Princess of Wales Theatre April 19 - May 22, 2011 Dayton - Schuster Hall June 14 - July 10, 2011

J. Anthony Crane (Scar) Broadway: Butley with Nathan Lane. Sight Unseen. Off-Broadway: Modern Orthodox, The Brothers Karamazov. Regional: Lost In Yonkers at Papermill Playhouse and Cleveland Playhouse, The Humana Festival, Old Globe, Two River, Pasadena Playhouse, and many others. Film / TV: CSI, Frasier, JAG, Judging Amy, Third Watch, The Big Easy, Ugly Betty, As The World Turns, and the upcoming film In Praise of Shadows.

BRENDA MHLONGO (Rafiki) has worked with KCAP Theatre Company in KwaMashu, South Africa and play a lead role in Bayede Shaka "The Spear is Born" as Queen Nandi with Henry Cele then Jabulani South Africa Celebrate Musical. Recruited by Hong Kong Disneyland, The Lion King Germany, South Africa and Broadway Company.Nick Cordileone (Timon)

OFF-BROADWAY: Widowing of Mrs. Holroyd (Mint Theater), Hamlet (Theatre by the Blind) REGIONAL: The Alchemist (Shakespeare TheatreCompany), Lobby Hero (The Old Globe), Crime and Punishment (Cincinnati Playhouse & Actors Theatre), Henry VI, Richard III (Alabama Shakespeare Festival), Comedy of Errors, Taming of the Shrew (Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey) FILM: Step Up 2. LOVE: Amy &Hero.

SYNDEE WINTERS (Nala) is psyched to be making her Broadway Tour debut with The Lion King family. A graduate of Five Towns College Syndee's background ranges from dancing as a NY Knicks City Dancer, performing with artists such as Rihanna, and JordinSparks, and also being the in-house anthem singer for Madison Square Garden.

Adam Jacobs (Simba) is roaring with pride to be playing one of his dream roles! Broadway: Les Miserables (Marius), National Tours: Mamma Mia! (Sky), Les Miserables (Marius), Cinderella (Prince). Regional: West Side Story (Bernardo), The King and I (Lun Tha), Joseph and the Amazing... (Joseph). NYU graduate.

Monica L. Patton (Shenzi) Broadway: Finian's Rainbow, Charlotte; Abby's Song, Leah; RAGTIME, Sarah us, performed countless times; Off-Broadway: Little Ham, Tiny Lee; City Center Encores, Fanny, Shika Soloist; Finian's Rainbow, Charlotte; On The Town, Flossie's Friend; Other noteworthy productions include: Annie-30th, Star To Be; Joseph...Dreamcoat, Narrator; Ain't Misbehavin', Charlaine; Smokey Joes Cafe,

BJ.KOLTON STEWART (Young Simba at certain performances) is incredibly honored to be part of Disney's Lion King Family. Credits include; Stratford Festivals production of WestSide Story, MacBeth, and The Music Man. At 8 years old Kolton was awarded the prestigious Percussive Arts Society Scholarship for drumming. Aside from the stage, Kolton can be seenin numerous TV commercials.

MONIQUE LEE (Young Nala at certain performances) was born in Atlanta, GA and is excited to be a part of The Lion King Family. Talent was observed at a young age when Monique was in kindergarten and gave a speech on Coretta Scott-King. Monique is very active in the children'schoir and dance ministry at her church in Lawrenceville, GA. Her dream is to be an American Idol.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.