Whenever Disney premieres a new stage musical, we see all over again how much of a draw they can be for families with children.
But from what age are the themes of such musicals really suitable for children, and how can they be best prepared for what they will be seeing on stage?
Officially, children aged three and up are allowed to attend a Disney live-action musical. Stephan Jaekel, the director of communications at theatre operator Stage Entertainment in Hamburg, Germany, says that it is extremely rare that children have to be turned away, since parents and legal guardians usually respect the minimum-age rule.
โBut of course we sometimes see parents actually having to leave the auditorium with their children while watching The Lion King, for example, because the child canโt be calmed down and asks: โIs [Mufasa] really dead?โ, Jaekel says.
While many children will have watched the on-screen version of the musical in question beforehand, having the story unfold in front of them on a stage can affect them much more directly.