We sat in the orchestra section, row W. My 10-year-old had the seat next to the aisle. I saw The Lion King in Las Vegas decades ago. I don’t remember everything, but I remember the animal costumes being my favorite part. Sitting there up against the aisle, he got to be up close and personal when the dove ladies came by. We could see the kites being twirled from long poles above us in the mezzanine. And he even had a little jump scare when he was eye-to-eye with a life-size rhinoceros—well, two people in a brilliantly designed rhinoceros costume—almost robotic in the way the panels moved.

There’s something about a Broadway show that’s just special. I’m no connoisseur, but I have seen The Music Man, half of The Seussical, Rent, and now The Lion King on Broadway. I’ve seen several other musicals in several other places, but Broadway is special. Before the show started, the host asked for a round of applause to celebrate all those in the audience who were experiencing their first Broadway show. My son was among them.

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