Moving around on crutches with a small futon mattress strapped to your chest might be a tad awkward. But Ben Roseberry transforms what sounds like some kind of moving day disaster into a theatric performance as Ed, one of the three hyenas that play lackey to the villainous Scar in the production of ""The Lion King,"" which debuts on the Overture Hall stage Tuesday.
""The biggest challenge is the physicality of it,"" Roseberry explained. ""The real challenge taking it all and making it look realistic.""
A 2003 graduate from Webster University, Roseberry has acted in some familiar roles, including a regional production of ""Forever Plaid"" and the 2006 national tour of ""Rent."" But the unique stagecraft of ""The Lion King""—a production that heavily employs inventive costuming, masks and puppetry—makes his June 2008 addition to this cast an especially unique part of his résume.
""Lion King is the largest-scale project that I've ever done,"" he added.
Roseberry only had five weeks to master the intricate puppetry behind Ed, a challenge that also included making his interactions with the rest of the hyena gang believable.
""I have no lines, so everything that I communicate is through laughter,"" he explained. ""But I have these two other hyenas having conversations with me.""
While the role demands a wide range of chuckles, giggles, guffaws and snickers to properly fill out the banter with other hyenas, Roseberry doesn't seem to mind much. ""I get to laugh every night. That's my job.""
Roseberry understudies for both Timon and Zazu as well, two characters that differ radically from the hobbling mute laughter of Ed. Both characters employ Bunraku puppetry, a style in which the puppeteer is displayed in full view of the audience, acting as part of the puppet they control. When he plays Timon, Ben stands upright, strapped to a meerkat puppet roughly equal to him in height. The puppet is more complex to control, but Roseberry said he is proportionally more fun to play. ""He's goofy and street smart, he's sort of New York gangstery. Whenever I go on as Timon, I have an absolute blast.""
Zazu seems less fun. ""You have a lever that controls the eyes, a lever that controls the beak and another lever that controls the wings,"" Roseberry explained, seeming exhausted just in the explanation.
Controlling the Zazu puppet while simultaneously keeping up with the choreography is the toughest role in the play according to Roseberry, but there's always an upside. ""I get to do a nice British upper-class accent, which is always fun to do,"" Roseberry remarked.
Roseberry was in Madison briefly with the national tour of ""Rent"" in 2006, but the four days he had in town didn't allow for much exploration, especially given the frozen state of the city at the time. ""It's the coolest little college town,"" he said.
With ""The Lion King"" making a four-week stop in Madison, Ben and his wife plan on settling in for a while and getting to know the city. But even that becomes a problem when it's time to move on.
""Just as I really grow to like a place, it's time to move. There's a letting go process,"" Ben lamented. ""Still, I wouldn't have it any other way. I get an opportunity to learn about every city we're in.""
Since ""The Lion King"" has been on stages worldwide for 13 years, the production has a huge reputation to live up to. But Ben remains enthusiastic for the show's Madison debut. ""It might not have every effect that you see on the Broadway stage, but it still looks really great,"" he said.
And whether playing to a veteran audience familiar with the Broadway show or people who have never seen it before, Ben mentioned that the show always seems to be a hit with audiences. ""It's always lovely to see the audience leap to their feet at the end,"" he said.
""The Lion King"" runs at the Overture Center from April 27 to May 23.
