30 Sep 2025
Disney’s The Lion King announces on sale date ahead of Sydney 2026 Season
Australian audiences will soon be able to secure their seats for Disney’s THE LION KING ahead of the triumphant return of the world’s #1 musical to Sydney. Opening at the Capitol Theatre from April 2026, this season marks ten years since this iconic musical was last on stage here in Australia.
THE LION KING has been seen by more than 120 million world-wide, cementing its status as one of the most beloved musicals of all time.
Tickets will go on sale from 9am AEDT 16 October 2025 via thelionkingmusical.com.au. To be kept informed of ticketing details sign up at thelionkingmusical.com.au.
Winner of six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, the awe-inspiring visual artistry, unforgettable music, and uniquely theatrical storytelling of THE LION KING has made it a global phenomenon. Loyal fans can once again experience the majesty of this smash-hit musical in Sydney, while a new generation of theatre goers will discover the magic of Disney’s epic theatrical masterpiece.
Responsible for bringing some of the biggest and most celebrated shows to Australia, Disney Theatrical Group have driven over 500,000 interstate visitors to Sydney across the past decade, through partnerships with the NSW government and Destination New South Wales. THE LION KING will be the ninth musical from Disney Theatrical Group to play in Sydney over the past twenty years, following an impressive list of smash-hits that include recent national tours of Beauty and the Beast, Mary Poppins and Frozen. An incredible 10 million audience members have seen a Disney musical in Australia.
Critically acclaimed around the world, with The New York Times proclaiming that ‘there is simply nothing else like it’. The previous 2013 Sydney season of THE LION KING was celebrated by both audiences and critics:
“The King of all musicals”
Channel 7
“Pure theatre magic, each puppet an ingenious delight”
The Sunday Telegraph
“Wonderous theatricality”
The Australian
Casting information for the new Sydney production will be announced at a later date.
Tickets for Disney’s The Lion King Sydney 2026 Season to go on sale from 9am AEDT 16 October 2025 via thelionkingmusical.com.au.
CommBank Yello gets you in first! Eligible CommBank Yello customers have exclusive early access to presale tickets starting from Thurs 9 Oct 2025 at 9am AEDT until Thurs 16 Oct 2025 at 8am AEDT. Visit commbank.com.au/disneypresale to find out more.
The Australian premiere of Disney's The Lion King is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW.
ABOUT THE LION KING
Approaching 30 landmark years on Broadway, The Lion King continues ascendant as one of the most popular stage musicals of all time. Since its premiere on November 13, 1997, 30 global productions have been seen by over 124 million people. Produced by Disney Theatrical Group, under the direction of Andrew Flatt, Anne Quart, and Thomas Schumacher, The Lion King has made theatrical history with two productions worldwide running 20 or more years and three others running 25 or more years.
Performed over its lifetime in nine different languages (English, Japanese, German, Korean, French, Dutch, Spanish, Mandarin and Portuguese), there are currently eight productions of The Lion King around the world: Broadway, London, Paris, Hamburg, Madrid, Tokyo, Mexico City, and on tour across North America. The Lion King has played over 100 cities in 24 countries on every continent except Antarctica; its worldwide gross exceeds that of any film, Broadway show or other entertainment title in box office history.
The Lion King won six 1998 Tony Awards®: Best Musical, Best Scenic Design (Richard Hudson), Best Costume Design (Julie Taymor), Best Lighting Design (Donald Holder), Best Choreography (Garth Fagan) and Best Direction of a Musical. The Lion King has also earned more than 70 major arts awards including the 1998 NY Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, the 1999 Grammy® for Best Musical Show Album, the 1999 Evening Standard Award for Theatrical Event of the Year and the 1999 Laurence Olivier Awards for Best Choreography and Best Costume Design.
Director, costume designer and mask co-designer Julie Taymor, the first woman to win a Tony Award for Best Director of a Musical, remains actively involved in the show, launching new productions and maintaining the flagship Broadway production.
The Broadway score features Elton John and Tim Rice’s songs from the Lion King animated film along with three new songs by John and Rice; additional musical material by South African Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Julie Taymor and Hans Zimmer; and music from "Rhythm of the Pride Lands," an album inspired by the original music in the film, written by Lebo M, Mark Mancina and Hans Zimmer. The resulting sound of The Lion King is a fusion of Western popular music and the distinctive sounds and rhythms of Africa, ranging from the Academy Award®-winning song “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” to Lebo M’s rich choral numbers.
Elton John, Lebo M, and Hans Zimmer all collaborated on the 2019 version of the film, executive produced by Julie Taymor and Thomas Schumacher, which has gone onto extraordinary worldwide success.
The book has been adapted by Roger Allers, who co-directed the animated The Lion King feature, and Irene Mecchi, who co-wrote the film’s screenplay. Other members of the creative team include: Michael Curry, who designed the masks and puppets with Taymor, Steve Canyon Kennedy (sound design), Michael Ward (hair and makeup design), Anthony Lyn (associate director), Marey Griffith (associate choreographer), Clement Ishmael (music supervisor), Lisa Dawn Cave (production supervisor), Thomas Schlenk (general manager) and ARC/Mark Brandon, CSA (casting). Anne Quart serves as executive producer.
For more information worldwide, visit LionKing.com, www.facebook.com/thelionkingusa and www.instagram.com/thelionking.
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Disney’s The Lion King
thelionking.com.au
Instagram: @thelionkingau
Facebook: @thelionkingau
Sydney – Capitol Theatre
Performances from April 2026
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