The Lion King Sunday Show at Hollywood Pantages

The North American touring company of Disney's The Lion King has a Sunday, December 20, 2026 performance at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre. If your weekend plans need something that works for grandparents, teenagers and the one cousin who only likes musicals, this is about as safe a bet as the Things Happening In Los Angeles list gets that week. A Sunday show also means you're not fighting Saturday-night Hollywood crowds on the way in.

What you're actually seeing

The stage show is its own animal (literally). Julie Taymor built it around masks and rod puppets that don't hide the actors. A performer playing a gazelle might carry three more gazelles on a wheeled frame. The birds are kites on long poles. Once you notice the people working the puppets, you can't stop watching them, and that's the point.

Musically, you get the film songs by Elton John and Tim Rice, plus a heavier dose of choral and percussion writing from Lebo M. The ensemble sings a lot in Zulu and other South African languages, and those numbers are often the ones people hum on the drive home. It's a different kind of night than the live music Los Angeles venues usually book, but the score carries the whole thing.

Picking a performance

Ticketmaster also has this production on Saturday, December 19, alongside the Sunday date. Different listings can mean different curtain times, so double-check the one you're clicking before you commit. We couldn't read a price from Ticketmaster when we checked, so look at the seat map yourself. Front mezzanine is a good compromise: high enough to see the stage pictures, close enough to catch the mask work.

Getting there

The Pantages sits at 6233 Hollywood Boulevard, near the corner of Vine. Metro's B Line stops at Hollywood/Vine, about a block away, and that's the least stressful way in during December. Parking lots nearby fill up and charge event rates. Give yourself time to look up inside, too. The 1930 Art Deco lobby is a show on its own.

Want more music on the calendar? Our concerts listings track concerts in Los Angeles from small clubs to stadiums, and the Los Angeles page rounds up the rest of what's on citywide. If the kids hold up after the final bow, the Walk of Fame stars run right past the theater doors.