‘King’ brings in fans of all ages

Michael Miller

It’s one of the highest-grossing Disney movies of all time, a

multiple Oscar and Tony winner, and currently in its eighth sold-out

year on the New York stage. But for Moira Niehaus and Gloria Walter,

“The Lion King” was, of all things, a surprise.

“I didn’t even get to go with my grandson to see the cartoon,”

said Niehaus as she stood outside the Orange County Performing Arts

Center on Thursday, minutes before the musical’s first preview

showing. “He’s 17 now. We don’t go to ‘Winnie the Pooh’ anymore.”

Most of the patrons flooding into the theater said that they had

seen the movie or the musical countless times. Niehaus and Walter,

however, were a rarity -- first-time viewers. The Irvine homemakers,

who belong to the Con Brio fundraising guild for the Performing Arts

Center, often attend musicals at Saddleback College and the Fullerton

Civic Light Opera, but until Thursday, had ever thrilled to “Circle

of Life” or tapped their feet to “Hakuna Matata.””I’m just interested

to see it,” Walter said, “because I think it’ll be like ‘Cats.’”

“The Lion King” may have a few differences from Andrew Lloyd

Webber’s feline classic, but there’s no doubt it’s just as beloved.

At the first-ever Orange County performance of the play on Thursday,

spectators came from all over the Southland to experience the classic

tale -- even if they already knew it by heart.

“I’d say we see it at least once a week,” said Jessica Hirst, a

surgical technician from Glendale, who attended the preview with her

4-year-old daughter, Kasey Alexander, as well as her mother and

sister.

The family, Hirst said, owns a copy of the film on video and DVD

and saw it previously at the Pantages Theater in Los Angeles. Hirst’s

mother, Erin, said she preferred stage shows to movies.

“They’re real,” she explained. “There’s more involvement and

atmosphere, because it’s three-dimensional.”

Nine-year-old Tyler Lobo, of Dana Point, had never seen a stage

musical when he went with his mother Lisa Tyler on Thursday. “I like

animals a lot, and I kind of like baby animals,” Tyler said. “So my

favorite part of the movie is when Simba was born.”

David and Redonda Fuller, a couple from Paramount, had seen the

movie “maybe 10 times,” but hadn’t been able to score tickets for the

musical until Thursday.

“I heard it was really wonderful,” said Redonda, a teacher. “When

I tried to get tickets before in L.A., it was sold out.”

“The Lion King,” which will have its official opening tonight at 8

p.m., nearly sold out its Thursday performance, but still managed to

accommodate patrons from as far away as Temecula, Burbank and Corona.

“We see people coming to the show from all over because it’s not

playing anywhere else in Southern California right now,” said

Jennifer Mahal, a spokeswoman for the Performing Arts Center. “Having

it in Orange County is a big deal for us.”

* MICHAEL MILLER covers education and may be reached at (714)

966-4617 or by e-mail at michael.miller@ latimes.com.