8 minute read
GetOut
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BY ABI CELAYA
GetOut Staff Writer
Darian Sanders and Michelle Scalpone are obsessed with “The Lion King.”
They call the musical – now at ASU Gammage through July 31 – beautiful, stunning and a story for all ages.
“I have been obsessed with big cats and lions my entire life,” said Sanders, who plays Simba.
“I named my first dog Nala and this was 15 years ago. I was obsessed with the animated feature. I absolutely loved it. It’s been cool to come full circle.”
Broadway’s “The Lion King” hit stages for the first time in 1997, three years after Disney’s animated film was released. Since then, it has garnered more than 70 theatrical awards.
With roots in Kentucky, Sanders joined the cast of “The Lion King” in September 2019. He heard about the role after singing the national anthem at a basketball game. And, thanks to his former manager, he was connected with “The Lion King” producers.
He was hired as a cover for Simba and was in the ensemble for the Broadway show. Last year, he landed the role of Simba on the national tour.
Sanders said, in some ways, he’s similar to his character.
“Everybody has a little bit of Simba in them,” he said.
“That story and that journey are personalized for everyone when they come and watch the show.”
The strongest connection between Sanders and Simba rests in their faith.
“My faith is what grounds me,” said Sanders, who also works as a worship leader.
“For Simba, Mufasa has told him that the kings of the past are who he can rest on and who he can call upon and I say, ‘Man, that’s awesome.’”
Sanders, who made his theatrical debut at Lexington Theater Co., said audiences should keep an eye on the opening scene, “The Circle of Life.”
“There’s something about being there in the theater and having Rafiki do that opening call,” Sanders said.
“That just shifts and changes something in your heart and it brings you back to the first moment you ever saw the animated feature.”
At Tucson native, Scalpone is the assistant stage manager for “The Lion King.” She speaks to the joy of working on such a large-scale production.
She fell in love with the magic of stage management at a young age when she attended a production of “Beauty and the Beast.”
“I remember more things that happened in that wing than what happened on stage,” Scalpone said.
“I immediately went to my middle school like, ‘How do I do that?’ I staged my way through high school and went to college for it and then I went to Juilliard working professionally and now I work for Disney,” Scalpone said.
She started with the legendary company 10 days before the pandemic put its clamp on the world.
She was working on “Love Life” for Encores at City Center when she got a text from her mentor asking her if she wanted to go on tour for “The Lion King.” Scalpone interviewed and two days later she was hired.
Scalpone — who travels by car so she can sightsee—agrees with Sanders that the opening scene is moving.
“I’ve been working here, technically, for two years,” she said. “‘The Circle of Life’ still brings me to tears because it is just so beautiful.”
She said her favorite line in the performance is, “The past can hurt, but the way I see it, you can either run from it or you can learn from it.”
Sanders and Scalpone say they believe “The Lion King” is a show for people of all ages.
He said anyone who has a pulse, heartbeat and breath in their lungs needs to see “The Lion King.”
“It is phenomenally great, and it is timeless,” Sanders said.
Scalpone was quick to add that the show isn’t just for kids.
“The messages are so universal and make you feel like it is an individual story being told just to you,” Scalpone said.
“The Lion King” is about inner strength and being OK with your journey, she adds.
“The aspect of redemption” is important, Sanders adds.
“There is nothing you can do or a spot you can go too far that you can’t come back and be redeemed from.”
Darian Sanders as Simba and Kayla Cyphers as Nola share a tender moment in “The Lion King,” now at ASU Gammage Theater.
(Special to GetOut)
Estefan musical brings audiences to their feet
BY ERYKA FORQUER GetOut Contributor
The ideal of the American dream is brought to life in scenes from “On Your Feet!” as Gloria Estefan works to make an impact on the music industry as a Cuban immigrant.
Phoenix Theatre Company Associate Producing Director Pasha Yamotahari said the musical celebrates immigrants’ influence on other cultures.
“Whether you’re living in Kentucky hearing this music or it’s jammed into your Walkman in the early ’90s on a cassette tape in New York City, music is music,” Yamotahari said. “Her music is that, in a way that makes us move, it makes us think, it makes us breathe and it makes us live.”
“On Your Feet” hits the Phoenix Theatre Company stage through Aug. 28.
It recounts Gloria and Emilio’s climb to stardom, detailing Gloria’s childhood in Miami and the tour bus crash that left her with a fractured spine.
Yamotahari said the musical will bring back memories of Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine.
“It’s going to be a great way to rekindle our love for the Miami Sound Machine and to revisit Gloria and Emilio’s life,” Yamotahari said.
The story is accompanied by music and lyrics from the Estefans and the Miami Sound Machine and features songs like “Conga” and “1-2-3.” Yamotahari calls the couple’s music “anthems” that will encourage audience members to sing the lyrics with the cast.
“As a community of audience members, they all remember what it felt like to be at a concert, or in their car or in their house vacuuming their carpet and hearing a song,” he said.
Yamotahari said the music will be brought to life by a 13-piece band with Phoenix musicians who blend synth and Afro-Cuban sounds with music from South America and Central America.
“On Your Feet!” also captures the relationship between Gloria and Estefan. As scenes from their relationship unfold, the audience will witness the pivotal role that the two played in each other’s lives.
“It’s a crazy, passionate and challenging relationship that they had,” Yamotahari said.
Emilio and Gloria’s relationship was fiery and passionate, which they parlayed into their careers. The pair worked with fervor as they tried to change “what pop music should be defined as.”
The actress who plays Gloria, Kassandra Haddock, said audience members will get a sense of community and family from the show.
Haddock said she appreciates the relationship between Gloria and Emilio. In the musical, Emilio encourages Gloria to keep going.
“It is the Emilio and Gloria Estefan show,” Haddock said. “Every moment with them is so funny, it’s so real and it’s so inspiring. Who doesn’t want that kind of love?”
Haddock, who grew up singing in choirs, was introduced to musical theater in high school when she auditioned for her first musical role in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” Now at 29 years old, Haddock said playing the role of Gloria is terrifying as she prepares to step into “really, really big shoes.”
Haddock said she is inspired by Gloria’s “endless drive” and her pursuit of the American dream.
“She has dealt with so many hardships in her life,” she said. “From coming to America as an immigrant and then having to help raise her sister and care for her father, my question the whole time is how did you become a superstar? She didn’t have any trajectory.”
Yamotahari said the musical has all the ingredients for a memorable show. You have top-tier choreography and dancers, amazing vocalists and amazing actors all working together within a beautiful design of the show to create a memorable postcard for anyone that’s attending.”
Kassandra Haddock plays Gloria Estefan in “On Your Feet,” a musical that celebrates
her career. (Special to GetOut)
When: Various times through Aug. 28 Where: The Phoenix Theatre Company, 1825 N. Central Ave., Phoenix Cost: Tickets start at $44 Info: Phoenixtheatre.Com
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