Rhythms of the Pride Lands is a 30-minute stage show at Disneyland Paris. Taking place in the Frontierland Theater, this spectacular showcases the iconic songs of The Lion King with live performances, acrobats, dancing and more. The show takes place several times a day, you can find daily showtimes in the Disneyland Paris app. In this post, we’ll review the show before offering a few tips on seeing Rhythms of the Pride Lands.

Theme park stage shows are tricky endeavors. There typically isn’t time for a Broadway style show that dives into all of the plot points. In recent years, Disney has become more interested in a quick way to showcase as many characters as possible instead of a classic show. That’s if they go for a stage show at all. Disneyland Resort hardly has any at this point even though there are several stages and theaters built for them.

The most common concept for a theme park show is more of a variety style with a loose theme. That’s what we see at Festival of the Lion King at Animal Kingdom or Big Band Beat (which still hasn’t been returned to full glory) in Tokyo DisneySea. We love both of those shows and prefer this method of storytelling in a half hour window. That’s exactly the route that Rhythms of the Pride Lands follows while surpassing all expectations.

For those that have had the pleasure of seeing Festival of the Lion King, that’s the easiest and most fitting comparison to Rhythms of the Pride Lands. There are some differences, but the Disneyland Paris show takes guests chronologically through the iconic songs of The Lion King. Acrobatics and dance are main components of both shows, as well as some wonderful singing performances.

Where Rhythms differs is by being more elaborate with the storytelling, staging and concept. Instead of sticking with a more cirque-style idea like Festival of the Lion King, this feels like a happy marriage between a Broadway and cirque show placed into a tight 30 minute runtime. The concept puts the talent on full display and there was so much talent.

Throughout the entire Disneyland Paris Resort, we came away very impressed by the stage shows. Some of that is certainly drawing talent from the nearby metropolis. An art epicenter being so close to the theme park helps these shows excel, just like Disneyland Resort has been able to pull in talent from nearby Hollywood and Tokyo Disney from the gigantic capital. Rhythms of the Pride Lands takes that talent and puts it into a Disney show that still has French influence.

That French flare is most apparent when Scar performs Be Prepared, surrounded by 4 female hyenas. For a brief moment, it feels like you’ve moved from the Frontierland Theater to Moulin Rouge while the hyenas give a cabaret, maybe more burlesque, performance. The shadowing on the stage is amazing, followed by the fog rising around the hyenas and Scar. Don’t get me wrong, Rhythms of the Pride Lands is always family friendly but I’ve never seen a performance like that in any other theme park stage show.

There are plenty of other highlights throughout Rhythms of the Pride Lands, frankly too many to name. The opening and finale of the show features an ensemble cast triumphantly singing those memorable notes. With all of the great songs that they roll through, it’s hard not to sing along. Then I remember how much more talented the performers are than me and spare everyone of my, ahem, harmonizing.

A couple of the songs in the Broadway show that aren’t in the movie are performed very effectively. My favorite of those is They Live in You, which is set to a beautiful starlit backdrop. The song speaks for itself but is performed wonderfully, with simple yet elegant choreography. Shadowland is the other Broadway original performed and gives Nala an excellent showcase.

The performances in Rhythms of the Pride Lands are augmented by the elaborate stage. As if the show needed another championship title, I can’t think of a theme park show with a better stage. Different tiers give a nice texture to the performances, as well as moving the plot along. The effects are so well done and the theater space is well utilized giving more energy to the entire show.

As you can tell from the raving, bordering on rambling, there’s not one element about Rhythms of the Pride Lands that I didn’t enjoy. If there’s a complaint I have, it’s that the show ended. I came in hoping for a good show and came away amazed. This is one of the best uses of your time in all of Disneyland Paris. It’s also my favorite stage show I’ve ever seen in a theme park. The Lion King: Rhythms of the Pride Lands is not to be missed!

Viewing Tips

I don’t have any complaints about the show and no one else does either, judging by the popularity! Our first time trying to see Rhythms of the Pride Lands, we showed up to two different showings about half an hour in advance and were turned away because the queue had already filled up. Granted, it was a busier week at the resort but this does appear to be one of the most popular attractions in all of Disneyland Paris.

There is a way to avoid the lines – this show does offer reserved viewing for a fee. If you only have one day then this is an option but we don’t really think that’s worth it. Instead, I recommend showing up to the first showing of the day about 35 minutes ahead of time. If you get turned away then just repeat the process for the other showtimes until you get in. That said, I think that first show is the way to go. Use the skip-the-line money for something else in the park.

As far as where to sit, we’ve ended up on both sides of the theater and there’s not really a bad spot in the house. I preferred the far side (from where guests enter) of the seating area but the difference was negligible. Like most stage shows, if you can get close to the middle sections then the better the viewing will be. For this particular show, I think in the lower half of the sections offer a more exciting experience. But again, there’s really no bad seat.

Seeing Rhythms of the Pride Lands isn’t difficult, it just takes a little bit of time out of the day. If the wait times seems low throughout the park then there’s a good chance that you don’t need to get to the show as early as I recommended. Either way, do not miss it!

Have you seen The Lion King: Rhythms of the Pride Lands? Let us know, along with any questions you might have, in the comments below. We’re excited to bring you more content on the resort in the coming weeks and months! Planning a Disney trip? Check out our Travel Guides to help you along the way! Thank you for reading Wandering in Disney.  Please subscribe to the blog and like our social media pages, all of which you can do on the right side of the page. Have a wonderful day!