Jul 24 2006
Incredible Evening with the Lion King
Every now and then, I’m reminded why I love living in a big city. Sometime back in December or January, I jumped on Ticketmaster and ordered 4 tickets for the Lion King. After nearly choking on the $9.75 per ticket “convenience charge” from Ticketmaster, I hit submit. After all, balcony front row is perfect for a 3rd grader.
OK, I can’t let that go. I had to pay $39 for the convenience of buying my tickets online; a process that actually saves Ticketmaster time and money. When you buy things on the Internet, we generally expect to pay less than brick-and-mortar stores because they don’t need bricks and mortar to sell online! What happened to capitalism? Will someone please explain why a company is allowed to behave this way and why we have not called anti-trust on them?
Fortunately, after several months to forget the Ticketmaster “pillaging” fee, the night of the show finally arrived.
We started with dinner at Maggiano’s Little Italy. Fabulous restaurant. Great food, great service, and all the Frank Sinatra you can handle. If you have not dined there, you really should. One word of warning, “half-orders” are the way to go. I believe Maggiano’s full orders require additional table supports.
Being well-fed and content, we headed toward downtown by way of Memorial Drive. For those who don’t know Houston, Memorial Drive snakes through Memorial Park (our version of Central Park) and down along Buffalo Bayou. A very nice ride indeed. Trees and green on every side and a stunning view of our skyline in front. Also, surprisingly little traffic.
We arrived at the Hobby Center and were delighted to pay $5 to park at the building. Try that in Chicago or New York! Parking was good, the walk-way was covered, and the lobby was spacious and inviting. All around, a very nice facility.
Then came time for the “mane” event. Our seats afforded us a spectacular view of opening procession of animals into the theater; a breathtaking sight that produced a thunderous ovation. This opening started a two hour and 45 minute feast for the senses that included unbelievable staging, music, and even aerial maneuvers. The time passed instantly.
On the way home, our family spoke of our favorite moments; the opening scene, Scar’s song, the songs that were not in the movie, and the final battle. The show provided something for all members of my family and was an event that will be remembered for some time to come.
If you have the opportunity, go see this show.
