King of the Jungle

20-year-old Turanga Merito has assumed the lead role of Simba in the Sydney production of The Lion King, after fellow Kiwi Vincent Harder bowed out for family reasons. The Disney blockbuster draws a minimum of 16,000 viewers a week. “I’m so humbled by all of it but it gets a little scary sometimes,” said Merito to the NZ Herald. “Sometimes I wonder how did this Maori boy from Okere Falls in Rotorua get here?” NZ performers play five of the nine principal roles in the show, as well as two ensemble parts.