A Whole New World! Watch The Lion King in Paris, Aida in Korea & More Disney Shows Across the Globe

In May 2015, Japan will get a taste of “Arabian Nights” when the hit Broadway musical Aladdin heads to Tokyo. In anticipation of the Alan Menken, Tim Rice and Howard Ashman tuner landing its first international production, we’re taking a look back at a few other Broadway hits that have brought Disney magic around the world (it’s a small one, after all). Check out a French king of the jungle, a Russian mermaid and more below! And get ready, because after a premiere in Berlin, a new version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame is getting ready to ring in a U.S. debut.


Beauty and the Beast (Kyoto, Japan)
Long before Aladdin’s carpet made plans to fly over to Japan, the dancing dishes and napkins of Disney’s first foray into musical theater crossed the Pacific and played Kyoto. In Japan, it’s quite possible that Belle reads about daring sword fights, magic spells and a prince in disguise down the column from right to left.


The Lion King (Paris, France)
Pride Rock, meet the Eiffel Tower. The Lion King made its Parisian debut at the Théâtre Mogador in September 2007, where it became the City of Love's longest-running musical. Take a look; there’s still plenty of Swahili thrown in, but not without some French. Whatever language, those puppets (and that grass on their heads!) are a spectacular sight.


Aida (Seoul, South Korea)
Aida has received three major productions in Seoul, having first premiered in 2005. In the most recent mounting in 2012, pop star and Korean musical theater favorite Sonya took on the role of the enslaved Nubian princess, and belted her freaking face off. A big, flashy Elton John anthem is welcome in any language.


Tarzan (Hamburg, Germany)
Ever wondered what a thunderous jungle cry sounds like in Deutsch? The Phil Collins and David Henry Hwang tuner swung into Hamburg in 2008, starring Anton Zetterholm and Elisabeth Hübert as Tarzan and Jane. The two secured the roles on the German reality competition Ich Tarzan, Du Jane.


Mary Poppins (Reykjavík, Iceland)
As it turns out, “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” sounds pretty much exactly the same in Icelandic as it does in English. The practically perfect musical premiered in Reykjavik in February 2013 with Jóhanna Vigdís Arnardóttir in the title role. Take a look at the production and step in time, Nordic-style!


The Little Mermaid (Moscow, Russia)
Ariel swam over to Moscow’s Rossiya Theatre in 2012 in a revised production adapted from a previous Dutch incarnation, where those rolling shoes were out and some serious updos were in. Here’s Natalia Bystrova showing us what part of Ariel’s world is like fathoms below the Arctic Ocean. Hint: it’s probably cold. Like, really really cold.


¿Newsies...en español?
Not quite the King of New York, but the King of Venezuela doesn’t sound too shabby. While there aren’t plans on the horizon just yet for a non-English language production of Newsies, here’s a bonus. Check out Broadway fan Wilfredo Parra as he belts out “Santa Fe” in Spanish, but not before showing off his collection of Playbills.