Lion King is a Roaring Success at Bancroft’s Prep

The Pridelands of Africa came to life at Bancroft’s Prep School with a visually exciting production of Disney’s iconic The Lion King Jr by our Prep 2 (year 6) pupils between 22 and 25 May.

 This was a massive and ambitious undertaking, and preparations for the production were thorough.  Firstly, the children watched a performance of The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre in January this year.  Anna Healey, an actor and movement specialist, ran a session at School teaching the children how to mimic the various characters’ mannerisms and behaviour in the show.  The children were also treated to a workshop with actor Roger Wright, who played Simba in the original West End production of The Lion King in 1999.   Much to the delight of the Prep pupils, Mr Wright also attended the final performance when he met one of the two talented cast.  Mr Wright was most impressed by the production, saying “I had such a joyful experience watching Bancroft’s Prep’s production of The Lion King: superb cast and awesome talent. I foresee some stars in the making!”

Two casts each performed well-loved songs like Circle of Life and Hakuna Mutata to packed houses, over two, hugely successful, nights. All four performances were sold out.   The production involved every one of the 63 Prep 2 pupils in some capacity as well as choir made up of younger pupils.  It was directed by teachers Laura Phelps and Allison Moor, with Adam Baum as Musical Director.

The pupils were all very enthusiastic about the production and their roles.  James Hitching who played ‘Ed’ the Hyena, said: “As we got closer to the performance it got more and more exciting. Performance week was exhilarating!”  Kofi Adjei (King Mufasa) said, “It’s been really, really fun and it’s taught me a lot”.

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