Eleven year old Tavarez is one of the many patients badly in need of a bone marrow transplant due to acute leukemia. Tavarez plays the role of young Nala in the Broadway production of “The Lion King” which takes place at the Minskoff Theatre.

There will be two bone drives taking place in Manhattan. One on July 18 at the Encore Senior Center at The Actor’s Chapel (presently known as St. Malachy’s) from 10 AM to 4 PM and another at the Minskoff Theater hosted by the cast and crew of the Broadway production on July 23 at 10 AM to 3 PM.

Anyone aged 18 to 55 can register to be a bone marrow donor. As soon as the eligibility requirements are met, a cheek swab is collected that will be used in profiling the HLA tissue-type of the individual and will be stored in a data bank until a match is made between a patient and the donor. The prospective donors will then be contacted by DKMS which will be followed by a physical exam and a series of lab tests such as blood screening to fully determine the suitability of the donor’s bone marrow for the patient. If it is not a perfect match, the donor’s name will be placed on the DKMS wait list called “Be the Match”. At present, there are about 200 million donors on the list waiting for their perfect patient match.

Lab tests involved in the screening procedure would cost $65 per individual and while DKMS largely relies on benefactors to support these expenditures, people who are willing to go through the screening procedure for bone marrow donation are encouraged to shoulder the lab tests costs if they can.

Log on to matchshannon.com and getswabbed.org for more information on the bone drive events and procedures.

Gareth Saxe joins the cast as Scar, the power hungry and evil lion; Alton Fizgerald White will play Mufasa, Pridelands ruler and great lion warrior; Cameron Pow will portray Zazu, the proper and prim hornbilled bird; Ben Jeffrey will play Pumbaa, the carefree warthog; Fred Berman will play the role of Timon, the wisecracking meercat; and Chauntee Schuler will play Nala the loyal lioness.

Schuler, Berman and Jeffrey are making their Broadway debuts with Lion King.  Also featured in the cast are Tshidi Mayne playing Rafiki, James Brown-Orleans in the role of Banzai, Dashaun Young playing Simba, Mufasa’s son, Enrique Segura in the role of Ed, and Bonita J. Hamilton playing Shenzi.

The Loin King is based on the Disney animated film with the same name.  According to Disney the story follows Simba, young lion cub, on his adventures as he is struggling to accept responsibilities that come with becoming an adult as well as the role destined for him as King.

Since opening on Broadway on November 13, 1997, 50 million people have seen the Lion King worldwide.  Julie Taymor is the director, and is the first woman ever to win a Tony as Best Director of a Musical.  A huge international hit, The Lion King has productions playing currently all over the world.  The Tim Rice-Elton John musical has won more than 30 major awards, including six Tony Awards which includes Best Musical; six awards from the Outer Critics Circle; eight awards from the Drama Desk; two Sir Laurence Olivier awards; a Best Theatrical Event from Evening Standard; and three awards from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle.

Currently The Lion King is playing on Broadway at Minskoff Theatre.  More information is available at www.DisneyOnBroadway.com.

The search for Mr. Right by Ali will be taking place over some of the more adventurous and romantic dates yet, including a special New York City trip and viewing of The Lion King. The Broadway adventure of Ali’s begins at Minskoff Theatre with her auditioning seven men who try to dance and sing into her heart, hoping to be selected to make their Broadway debuts with her in the performance that night of The Lion King, the Tony winning musical.

The Lion King is still one of Broadway’s, as well as the world’s, most popular shows. It is has the eighth longest run for a musical in the history of Broadway and the first musical in American history to be seen by 50 million worldwide guests. The Lion King is currently in its 13th year. It opened officially November 13, 1997. It consistently has been a top five grossing show on Broadway. The Lion King, in adition to its North American tour and playing on Broadway, can also be seen on stages in Las Vegas, Tokyo, Paris, Hamburg and London. In September 2010, a new production will open in Singapore. More information and tickets can be found at www.LionKing.com.

The host of “The Bachelorette” is Chris Harrison. Next Entertainment with partner Warner Horizon Television is the producer. The executive producers are Martin Hilton and Mike Fleiss. The broadcast for “The Bachelorette” is in the selected HDTV format for ABC, 720 Progressive (720P), with stereo sound. Closer to the airdate is when the television parental guideline is going to be posted.

The program starting on Monday, May 31 will be moving to its two hour regular run time at 8-10 pm. “The Bachelorette” episodes will be made available at ABC.com for users one day after airing over network television to watch online.

The Broadway “The Lion King” espisode airdate will be announced soon.