On Wednesday, November 7th, `Iolani School welcomed to campus a group of talented cast members from the national tour of Disney's The Lion King. The highlight of this visit was the return of Charlaine Katsuyoshi ’94 – an ensemble dancer performing as the cheetah in the popular Broadway hit – to the same Upper School Dance Room where she developed her love of dance.
Katsuyoshi and Dance Captain Jose Silva led a master class for over sixty Lower School dance students who were taught African dance steps and lion movements to live rhythmic accompaniments of musician Bob Garrett. Pre-teen performers Nicholas Ashe and Trevor Jackson (Young Simbas) and Diamond Curvy and Jamani Epps (Young Nalas) joined in the fun and instruction. “It was cool to learn the dance moves,” exclaimed fifth-grader Mikayla Lum. Classmate Kamerin Fong added, “It was unique. We never tried those movements before.”
After the master dance class, Katsuyoshi teamed with even more of her Lion King castmates to provide a lecture/demonstration for nearly four hundred Lower School and Upper School students and faculty in Seto Hall. Additional guest artists included John Gardiner (Timon), Clifton Oliver (Simba), Rod Thomas (Pumbaa), and Steve Sanders (Musician). Third-grader Travis Matsukawa proclaimed, “Timon and Pumbaa were hilarious!” The cast members delivered memorable performances of “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” and “Hakuna Matata” with brilliant vocals, but this audience had the rare opportunity to see those famous numbers performed in street clothes by down-to-earth, friendly people. Second-grader Natalie Uhr commented, “It was neat to see how the performers looked without their costumes.”
Both sessions included Lion King trivia complete with prizes, the distribution of Lion King tattoos, and a question and answer session.
The Lion King visit was made possible through the generous support of the Tam & Young Visual and Performing Arts Chair.
