If your children are Madagascar fans, you should catch the Madagascar Live! live theatrical show at the Marina Bay Sands Mastercard Theatre with them – the show follows closely the storyline of the blockbuster DreamWorks Animation franchise – Madagascar. This is one of the few shows where your child can dance to the Madagascar hit song ‘Move It, Move It’ during the performance because every other child will probably be doing the same thing. I also saw a lot of children completely mesmerised by the Madagascar Live! stage performances – which is totally understandable because they are seeing the cartoon characters coming to live!

Just to manage your expectations, this is not a Wicked or Lion King type of musical performance where there are elaborate stage sets and a large number of cast members. You can expect a performance that is a bit more informal with a little bit of interaction with the audiences (mainly with those in the front rows). You can take pictures during the performance but flash photography and videography are not allowed – so if you are holding your phone a bit too long to catch the right moment, one of the ushers might remind you of the no videography policy.

Madagascar Live! is about Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the Hippo and the plotting penguins’ escapade from their home at New York’s Central Park Zoo and find themselves on an unexpected journey to the madcap world of King Julien’s Madagascar. Catch a glimpse of the key characters of Madagascar Live! as well as the stage sets in the following pictures.

I think the show stayed true to the Madagascar movie in terms of costume design – although King Julien (the one who is not the lion in the picture below) is a lot bigger in real life – even bigger than the Alex the Lion! The funniest part is when King Julien exclaims that Alex the Lion and his friends are giants in his world! L 🙂

The first half of the musical (this is a 110-minute long show with a 20-minute intermission) is a bit slower but the pace starts to pick up at the second half with songs like “Move It, Move It” and great songs like “Food Chain”. The show’s story is adapted to focus on a fun-filled celebration of friendship and good times. There are also a few peppy dance numbers and spectacular new songs like Alex the Lion’s obsession over steaks, that will keep the audiences, young and old, entertained from the beginning until the end.

Towards the end of the performance, the penguins of Madagascar Live! – always a crowd favorite – will come off stage to interact with the audience and this absolutely drives the children nuts as they crowd around the penguins and dance to the groove of “Move It! Move It” – yes that is one of the finale songs and your cue to dance – dancing is encouraged at this point in time.

The finale is a free for all – let your children dance (or rather jump) all they want with the other kids in the theater! I think for kids, this Madagascar Live! show will definitely be quite an enjoyable experience.

Madagascar Live! is showing in Marina Bay Sands Mastercard Theatre only until 24 April – there are 3 performances daily on 23 April (Sat) and 24 April (Sun) – 11am, 2.30pm & 6pm.