'THE LION KING' Puppet doctor loves role behind scenes

His job is to make sure nothing goes wrong.
By DEBORA SHAULIS
ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Willie Wilson's unbilled role in the Broadway musical "The Lion King" is that of "puppernarian."
Wilson coined the word himself because he thinks of himself as part puppeteer, part veterinarian. His official title is puppet supervisor, but when one of director-designer Julie Taymor's animal-like creations is injured, it's up to him to be the healer.
That's one of the things he loves about "The Lion King."
"It's the best show I ever had" the opportunity to work on, Wilson said when called recently in Charlotte, N.C. "It's allowed me to use all my skills."
Wilson has worked on "The Lion King" since Taymor reworked it from a kid-friendly Walt Disney animated movie to an eye-popping Broadway musical. Now he's with The Gazelle Company, the touring arm of the production, which has reached Cleveland. Its first performances in State Theatre will be this weekend.
New territory
Brooklyn-born Wilson now lives in Victorville, Calif., the former home of the Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum. He honed his skills in electronics, construction and painting at other jobs. Not only does "The Lion King" enable him to bring it all together, it also allowed him to delve into new territory that fascinated him -- puppetry.
Taymor's use of puppets is far from traditional. "She put a new form of puppetry in theater," Wilson said.
Many rod, shadow and full-size puppets are used in "The Lion King." They are modeled after birds, fish, animals and insects. The biggest is the elephant that walks down the center aisle at the beginning of each performance. It's 13 feet long, more than 11 feet tall and as much as 9 feet wide from ear to ear. There's an actor inside each of the elephant's four legs.
Taymor also has been lauded for allowing actors' faces and bodies to be seen despite the animal masks and costumes they wear. "Ms. Taymor's re-conception of the meaning of anthropomorphism reconnects the audience to the meaning of one of the signature songs in 'The Lion King' -- 'Circle of Life,'" the New York Times said in an editorial. "That song now not only links lions and antelopes, flesh and grass. It reminds the listener that what is human is also partly animal and what is animal is also partly human."
Durability is an issue with the puppets. Wilson said the elephant's composition is Tyvek -- sheets of fine polyethylene fibers that work like paper, film and fabric. As a protective material, it's used in safety clothing, construction and mail packaging. Masks aren't heavy to wear because they're made with carbon fiber, just like race cars, Wilson noted. Lion king Mufasa's mask weighs just 11 ounces; evil Scar's is 9 ounces.
His job
As puppet supervisor, Wilson's work begins at 10 a.m. daily. That's when all puppets and battery-operated masks are assessed for damage. His job is to "make sure nothing goes wrong," he said, but with so many puppets in the show, "something is likely to go wrong."
Come showtime, backstage becomes an area of "very controlled chaos," Wilson said. More than 50 people are backstage at any time. "Just like the choreography onstage, there's choreography backstage, too. It can be dangerous if you're out of place."
If something bad happens, at least there's a puppernarian in the house.
shaulis@vindy.com