Disneyland is closing another one of its big theater shows. Just weeks after "Rogers: The Musical" closed at Disney California Adventure's Hyperion Theater, Disneyland confirmed today that "Tale of The Lion King" will close at the Fantasyland Theater in January.
"Tale of The Lion King" first opened in California Adventure's Paradise Park in the summer of 2019. The reimagining of Disney's landmark 1994 animated hit as "story theater" played for just one season before returning in a 2023 revival at the Fantasyland Theater.
The latest production retained the story theater style of the previous show, adding a media wall and plussed theatrical design for its new home in a large, sit-down theater. For our reviews of the two productions, please see:
The show's final performances will be January 7, 2024.
Tale of The Lion King's closure will leave the Disneyland Resort's two biggest live-production theaters dark. While the first three months of the year are the closest that Disneyland has to an "off season" these days, that's also when the park is most likely to close attractions for refurbishment. With the former Splash Mountain still down for its transformation into Tiana's Bayou Adventure in late 2024, and Fantasmic! not due back until spring, Disneyland will have even less attraction flexibility with these big, people-eating theaters closed.
No one word from Disneyland yet on potential replacements in either theater.
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Disney has a new musical movie set to open next month with Wish. Wanna bet that will occupy the Fantasyland space?
Any bet that there will be staffing reductions? Shows, while large capacity eaters, are expensive and labor heavy. I hope I am wrong, but the recent track record at Disney parks is to remove shows without a replacement.
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This is a bummer - Tale of the Lion King was well-done and a perfect fit in that space. Both DLP and DCA need more live show entertainment options, and it's such a cost-cutting move to not include immediate replacements for Hyperion and Fantasyland Theater.