Leila Navidi

Buyi Zama performs as “Rafiki” during a media run through of selected scenes from the new production of “The Lion King” at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on Monday, May 11, 2009.

By Robin Leach · May 12, 2009 · 12 PM

*Check out this story with accompanying photos and a continent-sized photo gallery at VegasDeLuxe.com.*

The Circle of Life will be complete again at Friday night’s star-studded premiere of The Lion King at Mandalay Bay. Siegfried & Roy will lead a contingent of Las Vegas celebrities to welcome musical genius Tim Rice, director and creator Julie Taymor and Thomas Schumacher, head of Disney Theatrical.

Contributing photographer Tom Donoghue joined me yesterday for an afternoon with the cast and crew of the amazing show, and each day now through Friday’s premiere, we will bring you our one-on-one interviews and exclusive photos.

I talked with actors Alton White, who plays Mufasa; Kissy Simmons, who plays Nala; Buya Zama from South Africa, who plays Rafiki; and Clifton Oliver, who plays Simba. The entire cast staged several scenes from the must-see hit musical for our Vegas DeLuxe cameras, and Kjeld Anderson, the production wardrobe supervisor, showed off several of the masks worn by the actors in the show.

We also watched -- from both onstage and underneath -- and marveled at the mechanics -- as the Pride Rock movable staircase operated on its own turntable to raise and lower for the cast. It’s so complicated that it was built in New York to the same specifications as its Broadway counterpart and shipped in pieces to Las Vegas. It was assembled here and then the stage area was constructed around it.

Click HERE for our previous interview with Disney chieftain Thomas Schumacher, and click HERE for our Kissy Simmons story from the first day of previews last week. We’ll be back all week long with additional stories and photos, and then early Saturday, we’ll have our overnight coverage from the red carpet and the after-party for the stars at Alain Ducasse’s Mix in The Hotel at Mandalay Bay.

Our photographer Tom Donoghue also shot the new Lion King display. The crew is all set. The cast is excited. Rehearsals have all been completed. Successful previews are underway, and the Circle of Life is ready for its Friday night Las Vegas premiere.

An exhibit that celebrates the inspiration and reveals the evolution of the Disney production is now on display at The Shoppes at Mandalay Place. It features photographs, imagery from Lion King productions throughout the world, and models designed by Tony Award-winning director Julie Taymor that served as prototypes for the costumes and puppets. It’s a behind-the-scenes tour that shares the making of The Lion King, including its choreography, costumes, puppets, masks, music, journey from film to stage and more.

The Las Vegas production is virtually identical to the other companies and is staged with the same spectacular music, sets and costumes. However, I have learned that the Disney producers and cast have managed to sneak in a couple of Vegas-related gems and references, but to tell you of them in advance would spoil the surprise!

Since its Broadway opening on Nov. 13, 1997, The Lion King has been seen by nearly 50 million people in 11 countries. In addition to New York City, where the show has remained among the top five selling shows on Broadway for 12 years, the curtain currently rises seven more times every night all over the world. The Lion King is the winner of six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.

Julie became the first woman in Broadway history to win a Tony for Best Director of a Musical. Michael Curry and she created hundreds of masks and puppets for the show. The score features recent Caesars Palace headliner Elton John and partner Tim Rice’s music from the animated film along with three new songs in a fusion of Western popular music and the distinctive sounds and rhythms of Africa.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground. Read more of Robin's stories at VegasDeLuxe.com.