Jelani Remy Returns to Cast of Broadway's The Lion King July 26

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Broadway News Jelani Remy Returns to Cast of Broadway's The Lion King July 26

The Tony-winning musical continues at the Minskoff Theatre.

By Andrew Gans

July 26, 2022

Jelani Remy, last seen on Broadway as Eddie Kendricks in Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations, returns to the Main Stem cast of the Tony-winning The Lion King July 26 at the Minskoff Theatre.

Remy, who made his Broadway debut playing Simba, again steps into that role while Brandon A. McCall is on a leave of absence. The latter is scheduled to return to the long-running musical August 23.

Remy has also appeared in productions of High School Musical, High School Musical 2, Smokey Joe’s Cafe, The Apple Boys, Anjou: The Musical Horror Tale, The Oscar Micheaux Suite, and, most recently, Cabaret at Goodspeed Musicals.

Since its Broadway premiere November 13, 1997, 25 global productions of The Lion King have been seen by nearly 110 million people. Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions (under the direction of Thomas Schumacher), the international hit musical has played more than 100 cities in 21 countries on every continent except Antarctica; its worldwide gross exceeds that of any film, Broadway show, or other entertainment title in box-office history.

Watch: International Casts ofThe Lion King Perform Multilingual 'Circle of Life'

The Lion King won six 1998 Tony Awards: Best Musical, Best Scenic Design (Richard Hudson), Best Costume Design (Julie Taymor), Best Lighting Design (Donald Holder), Best Choreography (Garth Fagan), and Best Direction of a Musical. The international hit musical has also earned more than 70 major arts awards, including the 1998 NY Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, the 1999 Grammy for Best Musical Show Album, the 1999 Evening Standard Award for Theatrical Event of the Year, and the 1999 Laurence Olivier Awards for Best Choreography and Best Costume Design.

The show’s director, costume designer, and mask co-designer, Julie Taymor, was the first woman to win a Tony Award for Direction of a Musical; she continues to supervise new productions of the show around the world.

The Broadway score features Elton John and Tim Rice’s songs from The Lion King animated film along with three new songs by the pair; additional musical material by 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 by Lebo M, Mark Mancina, and Hans Zimmer.

The book was adapted by Roger Allers, who co-directed the animated The Lion King feature, and Irene Mecchi, who co-wrote the film’s screenplay.

Other members of the creative team include Michael Curry, who designed the masks and puppets with Taymor, as well as sound designer Steve Canyon Kennedy, hair and makeup designer Michael Ward, associate director John Stefaniuk, associate choreographer Marey Griffith, music supervisor Clement Ishmael, and production supervisor Doc Zorthian. Anne Quart serves as co-producer.