Fantastic. Immersive. Jaw dropping. Moving. Inspiring. A spectacle.
These adjectives, surely, are intriguing indicators to get out of the house and see something. And nowadays with your home theater system doing everything but buttering the popcorn, not to mention the cost of a movie, game or an event -including gas, food and drinks - making it so you practically have to grow and harvest your own grain to afford a box of cereal, an event has to be described by at least some of these words to make it worthwhile.
Time out of the house has to be ... wait for it ... legendary.
The Fox Theatre is providing just that this month with the return of the world's No. 1 musical, Disney's The Lion King, to Atlanta.
I know what you're saying: I saw that as a kid; I know that story; we own that movie; if my kid makes me watch that pig and Meer cat one more time, I'm taking an African hunting safari.
But, the musical turns that great movie and story into something spectacular.
Most the songs and scenes are familiar, but in a new immersive way. Other songs are new and equally as great as "Can you Feel the Love Tonight" and "Circle of Life."
The latter will have your head turning in circles, and your mouth open in wonder for a jaw-dropping opener. It starts with the African sounds of the character Rafiki, speaking in her native Zulu tongue. From there, attention is drawn to dancers with elephant masks next to the percussion artists on both sides of the stage, as 8-foot tall giraffes walk past the giant sun on stage. The action then takes to the aisles, with every animal (they told me they were puppets) you can think of walking by you, including huge elephants.
Thanks to the incredible opener, for the non-theater folks it will only be 10 minutes to forget your shirt is tucked, your shoes are polished and your wallet is lighter, and for parents the wait for your kids to become enraptured is over before it started.
The rest of the show takes its cues from "Circle of Life;" the dancing remains upbeat, the theatricality unlike anything else on a stage.
The musical has proven itself since its Broadway opening in 1997, in which it received six Tony Awards and countless other accolades, but it is something you need to see yourself. The choreography lends the feel to real lions, hyenas and other animals, while at the same time providing an artistic movement that conveys struggle, love, death, fun and emotional growth.
The music is more than memorable, it truly will stay with you as jovial tunes, romantic love songs and inspirational, almost gospel-like sounds.
The opulence of the Fox Theater is the perfect house for such an experience. One anyone remotely fond of "The Lion King" needs to make the venture to Peachtree Road to see.
It is rare, nowadays, to find a reason to make a night out, and go to a destination event. The Lion King has been just that to worldwide audiences for almost two decades, and it continues to be as it calls Atlanta home until April 27.