VIDEO: THE LION KING Celebrates Remarkable 9000th Performance

On the heels of reaching 100 million guests worldwide, The Lion King celebrated its 9,000th Broadway performance on Wednesday, June 5, 2019 at the Minskoff Theatre (200 West 45th Street). This historic milestone has been achieved by only two other shows in Broadway history.

watch as star LST (Mufasa) surprised the sold-out house at the Minskoff Theatre to announce they'd just seen the show's historic 9000th performance. The crowd exploded in cheers for ensemble performer Lindiwe Dlamini, who has been with the show since its first rehearsal in 1997 and throughout its entire 9000 performance run.

Over the course of 9,000 performances:

• 1,098,000 steps have been climbed to the top of Pride Rock
• "Hakuna Matata" has been said and sung 234, 000 times
• Rafiki and Simba have swung in on the vine a combined 36,000 times
• There have been 18,000 coronations
• Pride Rock has rotated 603 miles
• There have been 109 Young Simba's and Nala's, which the company calls "The Cubs"