Johnston, SC – The Strom Thurmond High School Theatre program’s production of The Lion King, Jr. is off to a terrific start with the first pair of school shows for Edgefield County School District (ECSD) students receiving plenty of praise and lots of cheers. The final two student shows are scheduled for Friday (4/21) at 9:00 a.m., and Monday (4/24) at 9:00 a.m.
Public shows kick off this weekend on Saturday (4/22) at 7:00 p.m., and Sunday (4/23) at 3:30 p.m. Public shows will continue next weekend, on Saturday (4/29) at 7:00 p.m., and Sunday (4/30) at 3:30 p.m.
Tickets for The Lion King, Jr. may be purchased online at www.sttheatre.ludus.com. Tickets are $10.
Cast members Tobias Knight, who plays Mufasa’s evil brother Scar, and Jari Smith, who portrays the fun and rambunctious Pumbaa, say they’ve approached the Lion King, Jr. a bit differently than Beauty and the Beast.
“The school shows allow us to perform for students who will be the future of our theatre program,” stated Tobias. “Seeing all their smiles and making them laugh is always fun.”
“Everybody knows the Lion King, so it puts that much more pressure on us to do well,” Jari added.
Strom Thurmond High School Theatre cast members for The Lion King, Jr., who portray both animal characters and important physical elements such as grass or parts of the jungle, include the following students: Lillian Cockrell (Jungle), Cleo Heitman (Grass), Jessie Dampier (ZaZu), Ayden Culver (Mufasa), Olivia O’Gorman (Young Nala), Truman Massey (Young Simba), Molly Harling (Sarabi), Khyia Surry (Giraffe), Jenna Blue (Grass), Hailey Lyle (Grass), Reece Lowe (Jungle), Colton Johnson (Ed), Shakyla Jones (Grass), Lila Wood (Lioness), Kiersten Skinner (Shenzi), Tobias Knight (Scar), Mariah Norris (Grass), Ze’Mira Wakefield (Grass), Jericka Jones-Mason (Lioness), Natalie Dolph (Lioness), Sunasia Saxon (Lioness), Jenasys Washington (Lioness), Riley Brightharp (Lioness), Kamber Rawls (Grass), Mina Allen (Rafiki), Shamarion Freeman (Grass), Nate Millings (Grass), Daniel Mims (Timon), Ella Mathis Miller (Nala), Dawson Kulp (Simba), Jari Smith (Pumbaa), Ayaliah Williams (Grass), Dylan Rose (Gazelle), Payton Jackson (Jungle), Makayla Rushton (Bonzai), Chris Reed (Grass), Harmony Williams-Talbert (Jungle) and Evan lee (Giraffe/Jungle).
From a character development perspective, Tobias, who played the gallant Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast, says the scheming and manipulative Scar requires a totally different type of performance on stage.
“He’s a completely different character than Lumiere, which is exactly what I was looking for,” stated Tobias. “He’s a real villain.”
Jari wants his performance of Pumbaa to be far removed from his portrayal of Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast.
“This is my second play so I’ve really had to get out of that Cogsworth character,” commented Jari. “Pumbaa is this foil character for everyone else. He acts as though he’s not that smart when he really is, especially in the star scene when we talk about what the stars are, and that’s really different from Cogsworth, who was the leader of the household.”
In the end, the young actors say engaging with their audiences and experiencing the joy in those moments on stage makes the many long and repetitive hours of practice more than worth it.
“If we can get the kids excited multiple times in each show, it’s a good show,” stated Jari.
“Our paycheck is hearing that audience,” Tobias added.
