Somewhere in the circle of life

Oct. 16, 2003

Dear Julie,

In the age of information overload, most of us know almost everything about each new movie before it comes out. Plots have been summarized and discussed, the director's style has been analyzed and the actors and actresses have been praised or lambasted by critics before we step into the theater. On the one hand, all this forewarning can save seven bucks.

On the other, we forfeit the exquisite magic of being surprised.

Meditators call the state of being receptive and open beginner's mind. "In the beginner's mind, there are many possibilities," Zen master Shunryu Suzuki wrote. "In the expert's mind there are few."

Beginner's mind is like the mind of a child. It is the state of mind best for learning.

I had certain expectations when we went to see a theatrical production of "The Lion King" in St. Louis last weekend. The director/designer, Julie Taymor, had been lauded when the musical version of "The Lion King" debuted six years ago. I had seen film and photographs of the puppets and costumes and choreography and staging she had used to transform a cartoon into something never seen before.

"The poetry of the theater is that it allows the audience to use its imagination to fill in the blanks," Taymor told Time magazine just before "The Lion King" premiered.

DC and I took my parents to the show. They knew very little about it going in, so their beginner's minds were operating. At intermission, my mom was beaming. My dad, who was a good sport to be missing the Sunday football games, was smiling too.

What it must have been like not to know anything about the genius of these costumes and this staging, to have no expectations. And yet, the elephant's sudden appearance in the aisle dropped my jaw just like everyone else's. The swaying savannah atop the heads of the dancers made me giggle. The African chanting made DC feel good.

What this spectacle must have done to the 7-year-olds in the audience.

"If I were 7 years old and watching this, it would change my idea about theater," Taymor said.

Part of the reason "The Lion King" is so appealing is the archetypal story. Simba is taking the Hero's Journey described by mythologist Joseph Campbell.

He crosses into the field of adventure and as a result is separated from his known world. He faces ordeals and meets the goddess, Nala, who reminds him of his lineage and duty to the world.

There is an atonement with the father, the scene in which a vision of his father speaks to Simba, and Simba transforms himself from carefree boy into the king he was meant to be.

Finally, he returns from exile to claim his place in the world and to put the wisdom he gained on the quest into practice and to share it. He has become master of his world. This is the mastery we all aspire to, the unification of the material and spiritual, the inner and outer worlds.

We could learn from lions. They do not fear death. They don't live in the future and are not concerned with regrets about the past. They live now.

Life, Suzuki said, is like stepping onto a boat which is about to sail out to sea and sink. Let's sail.

Love, Sam

Sam Blackwell is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.