As Written in The Art of The Lion King

ACT I

In the velvet blackness of an African night - at the hour before dawn when the land is full of dreams - a lone voice heralds the new day. As the red disc of the sun rises, the one voice becomes many until the Pride Lands echo with song. The distant mountain floats above the mist. Vast herds move across the golden plain, and the heavens come alive with storks and doves, kingfishers, and flamingos.

High on Pride Rock, Mufasa the Lion King waits, watching as the creatures of his domain gather below to celebrate the arrival of the newborn Prince.

Rafiki, keeper of the mysteries, anoints Prince Simba's brow, sprinkles the cub with ceremonial dust, and raises him to the skies for all of heaven and earth to see.

Mufasa's jealous sibling, Scar sits in the shade, taking bitter pride in his absence from the sacred ceremony, scheming and dreaming of the day he will usurp the throne

Zazu the hornbill, Pride Rock's chief of protocol, informs an indifferent Scar his truancy has not gone unnoticed. Confronted by Mufasa Scar hides revenge beneath a cloak of scorn.

Each sunrise finds Simba in the royal cave nudging his father from his sleep, begging him to join in the immemorial games that ensure the survival of the species.

From the peak of Pride Rock, father and son survey the Lion King's domain. Crossing his kingdom, Mufasa speaks earnestly of the Circle of Life - the endless chain that links all living things, from the crawling ant to the leaping antelope.

Too young to read the fury in his uncle's eyes Simba tells Scar all he has learned that day - how he, not Scar, will become the Lion King. Sly Scar exacts a promise from the cub, a pledge that Simba will never venture near the forbidden place where elephants go to die.

A graveyard! Scar has planted a secret Simba must share at once with Nala, his greatest and most trusted friend. He finds her in the dappled shade of Pride Rock lazing with the lionesses of the pride.

Simba and Nala mask their curiosity, but first they must lose their escort, Zazu, sent along to keep mischief at bay.

Mistaking the cubs' whispered plans for love talk, Zazu imagines that romance is blooming. The cubs scoff at his quaint idea and plot their escape.

Trying to elude their feathered guardian, the cubs play hide and seek. Elephants and hippos, monkeys and giraffes join in the fun as Simba sings his song.

I'M GONNA BE A MIGHTY KING SO ENEMIES BEWARE! (I'VE NEVER SEEN A KING OF BEASTS WITH QUITE SO LITTLE HAIR.) I'M GONNA BE THE MANE EVENT LIKE NO KING WAS BEFORE. I'M BRUSHING UP ON LOOKING DOWN, I'M WORKING ON MY ROAR. (THUS FAR A RATHER UNINSPIRING THING.) OH, I JUST CAN'T WAIT TO BE KING! NO ONE SAYING DO THIS NO ONE SAYING BE THERE NO ONE SAYING STOP THAT, NO ONE SAYING SEE HERE. FREE TO RUN AROUND ALL DAY. FREE TO DO IT ALL MY WAY. EVERYBODY LOOK LEFT, EVERYBODY LOOK RIGHT, EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK I'M STANDING IN THE SPOTLIGHT. LET EVERY CREATURE GO FOR BROKE AND SING, LET'S HEAR IT IN THE HERD AND ON THE WING, IT'S GONNA BE KING SIMBA'S FINEST FLING, OH, I JUST CAN'T WAIT TO BE KING!

Escaping Zazu the lion cubs arrive at the graveyard, an eerie spot guarded by thermal springs. A jet of steam subsides to reveal an eerie landscape littered with skeletons and monumental piles of bones. This macabre world seems to go on forever, vanishing into hissing vapor and eternal gloom.

From within a massive skull comes chilling laughter, and in the empty sockets blazing eyes appear. A grinning trio of hyenas slinks into view: baleful Shenzi, sadistic Banzai, and addlepated Ed.

Weaving among the skeletons, blinded by mist and steam, their short legs racing over treacherous terrain, Simba and Nala flee, hyenas in pursuit.

Zazu is caught and plunged into a thermal cauldron, barely escaping with his feathers intact.

A roar seems to bring the whole world to a stop. The three hyenas freeze until Mufasa's paw sends them running.

The sun sinks in the sapphire sky, but Simba does not notice its expiring glory. His head hung in shame, he follows Mufasa home, planting his childish paws in his father's giant footsteps.

In the gathering dusk, Mufasa turns to face his son. Tears of regret glisten in Simba's eyes.

Mufasa talks of wisdom and folly, the difference between bravery and bravado, and explains how even a Lion King can know fear when he believes he may have lost a son he loves. Night comes quickly to the Pride Lands. The sky turns violet and shatters into stars. At this magic hour, Mufasa and his son sit beneath the slowly turning galaxies, surrendering themselves to the rhythms of the nocturnal world.

Mufasa passes along the wisdom of the pride, telling Simba how the great kings of the past look down from the stars and will always be there to guide him.

Meanwhile Scar conceives a bolder scheme, one that will rid the Pride Lands of King Mufasa and the royal brat in one fell swoop. Scar preens and poses on his rocky pedestal, exhorting his accomplices to greater heights of infamy.

I KNOW THAT YOUR POWERS OF RETENTION ARE AS WET AS A WARTHOG'S BACKSIDE. BUT THICK AS YOU ARE, PAY ATTENTION! MY WORDS ARE A MATTER OF PRIDE. IT'S CLEAR FROM YOUR VACANT EXPRESSIONS THE LIGHTS ARE NOT ALL ON UPSTAIRS, BUT WE'RE TALKING KINGS AND SUCCESSIONS, EVEN YOU CAN'T BE CAUGHT UNAWARES. SO PREPARE FOR THE CHANCE OF A LIFETIME, BE PREPARED FOR SENSATIONAL NEWS. A SHINING NEW ERA, IS TIPTOEING NEARER. AND WHERE DO WE FEATURE? JUST LISTEN TO TEACHER. I KNOW IT SOUNDS SORDID, BUT YOU'LL BE REWARDED WHEN AT LAST I AM GIVEN MY DUES AND INJUSTICE DELICIOUSLY SQUARED - BE PREPARED! IT'S GREAT THAT WE'LL SOON BE CONNECTED WITH A KING WHO'LL BE ALL TIME ADORED. OF COURSE, QUID PRO QUO, YOU'RE EXPECTED TO TAKE CERTAIN DUTIES ON BOARD. THE FUTURE IS LITTERED WITH PRIZES, AND THOUGH I'M THE MAIN ADDRESSEE, THE POINT THAT I MUST EMPHASISE IS YOU WON'T GET A SNIFF WITHOUT ME. SO PREPARE FOR THE COUP OF THE CENTURY. BE PREPARED FOR THE MURKIEST SCAM, METICULOUS PLANNING, TENACITY SPANNING DECADES OF DENIAL IS SIMPLY WHY I'LL BE KING UNDISPUTED, RESPECTED, SALUTED, AND SEEN FOR THE WONDER I AM. YES, MY TEETH AND AMBITIONS ARE BARED - BE PREPARED!

Rank upon rank of hyenas strut below as geysers erupt in clouds of steam. The earth itself appears to crack apart in the face of Scar's villainous ambitions.

With lies and wily flattery Scar lures Simba to a winding gorge and tells him to wait there until Mufasa comes.

As Simba practices his roar, Scar signals to his criminal confederates and sets a tragedy in motion.

Simba hears a sound like thunder. Dust rises and the earth begins to tremble.

As he clings to a rotting tree, a tide of wildebeests sweeps by. Scar warns Mufasa of Simba's peril, sending his brother charging into the path of the stampede.

With his last reserve of strength, Mufasa reaches up and places Simba on a ledge, safe from the panicked herd.

Scrambling to save himself, Mufasa sees his brother above him on the cliff, stretching out a helping paw. Inch by inch, Scar pulls Mufasa towards safety but, at the last moment, lets him go and watches gleefully as Mufasa vanishes beneath the slashing hooves.

In the stillness that follows, Simba searches for his father and finds a lifeless body sprawled in the dust.

As Simba sobs beside his father Scar savors his hour of victory.

Scar toys with Simba, planting the seeds of guilt, and tells the bewildered cub to flee far from the Pride Lands. With Scar's hyena mercenaries in pursuit and gaining, Simba plunges from a bluff into the unknown.

The three hyenas watch as Simba vanishes, certain that the desert sun will finish off their work.

Continue to ACT II ...
Continue to ACT III ...