Las Vegas Weekly

May 5, 2009 · 12:44 PM

$600 life savings gamble pays off for The Lion King’s Kissy Simmons

By Robin Leach

Kissy Simmons, Nala in the Broadway cast, performs during a preview event at Mandalay Bay.

Photo: Leila Navidi

It was the family’s entire life savings: $600! With her unique vocal talent, Kissy Simmons had the full support of her mom and dad, her high school drama teacher and friends, so she took the money and went to New York to audition for Aida -- but wound up in The Lion King.

Now tonight for the third time in seven years, Kissy will step onto a new company’s production of the Walt Disney stage spectacular. Kissy -- she was named after the Florida city of Kissimmee, where she was born and grew up -- starred in the Broadway and national touring company productions before headlining tonight’s first preview of the Las Vegas company at Mandalay Bay.

Kissy was on a University of South Florida athletics scholarship and performing off-hours at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. She was never formally trained, but her high school drama teacher made her take part in their productions. The Performing Arts Center president encouraged her even more and told Kissy to go to New York for the Disney auditions.

Leila Navidi

Kissy Simmons, Nala in the Broadway cast of The Lion King, sings the song "Shadowland" from the award-winning musical.

She recalled arriving at the Manhattan audition for Aida at 6: 30 a.m. and was No. 52 in line. Kissy, who has a look-alike and sound-alike quality to Heather Headley, who made her own debut on Broadway as Nala in The Lion King and would win a Tony Award for originating the lead role in Aida, made the first cut and was sent to wait in a second room. Instead, one of The Lion King producers spotted her, and, as they say in showbiz, the rest is history.

The $600 has long been repaid, but when Kissy reprises her leading role as Nala, the love interest and childhood friend to Simba, she never forgets her early days when she was gunning to be a high jump star for her high school. Kissy says her determination as an athlete gives her a winning edge with each night’s show. She has a bachelor’s degree in speech communications, with a one-time goal of becoming a TV news anchorwoman.

Now that she’s arrived in Las Vegas, she hopes that that it will help her fulfill another goal, just 373 miles away in Hollywood. Kissy eventually wants to perform as a recording star and as a movie actress, where her athletic feminism shows to best advantage.

The Lion King, now nearly 12 years old on Broadway, is still setting records at the box office. Following the blockbuster animated movie in 1994, the musical has been seen by nearly 50 million people in more than 25,000 performances in countries including Holland, Germany, South Africa, England, Japan, Australia, France, China and the United States!

Photo: Joan Marcus

Kissy Simmons (Nala), Tshidi Manye (Rafiki) and Dashaun Young (Simba) in Disney's The Lion King.

The musical here will follow the full two-act format from New York’s Great White Way without any cuts. Yes, the elephant puppets atop the actors still march down the aisles! Director Thomas Schumacher, president of Disney Theatrical, believes he’s assembled the best cast of all for our production with Alton White, Clifton Oliver, Thom Sesma and nine South African performers. Click HERE for our interview with Thomas, where he runs down the cast as rehearsals began in March.

Previews start tonight, and the premiere is set at Mandalay Bay on May 15, with Tim Rice, who partnered with Elton John on the award-winning music and lyrics, in attendance. Tonight for Kissy, once again, she will find “her place on the path unwinding in the circle of life.” Nants ingonyama bakithi baba -- here comes the lion, folks!

Kissy had the last word about her family’s $600 life savings: “My dad told me that my mom always knew my name would be up in lights one day, and that was another reason she named me Kissy. It had that sound of a star to it.”

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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