From the November 21, 1997 Lion King Collector's Issue In Theater Magazine:
MAX CASELLA
Character: Timon the meerkat, the savannah's leading stand-up.
Credits: Vinnie on "Doogie Howser, M.D." and starring roles in the movies "Ed Wood" and "Sgt. Bilko." A veteran of the Boston and L.A. stages, this marks Max's broadway debut. Currently writing a screenplay based on John Fante novel. (skweeker's note: no mention of newsies....)
Heads up!: "Oh god. I have had some really funny things happen to me in the course of my performances. Like once I look out into the audience and see these little kids in the front row, positively horrified. I'm thinking. 'Was it someting I said?' Then I see my head lying on the ground. I was the headless meerkat!"
Doing his homework: "I watched videos of meerkats in the jungle. What's a meerkat? Glad you asked! It's that little guy you always see standing up on his hind legs. Their movements are very twitchy, high energy. They're comic by nature, and so am I, so that part came easy. I'm not sure I could do the bug-eating thing, though..."
Muscle Man: "You wouldn't believe the physicality of this role--it's a workout. I think mine is really the hardest puppet to manipulate. It's full-body, and it's starapped to me, so I have to move everything--my arms, my legs, my head--to bring it to life. I didn't think I could do it at first. There's so much tho think about: your articulation and you expressions, lip-synching, as well as your puppet's movements and expressions. It's like rubbing your stomach and patting your head at the same time. (Skweeker Note! I can rub my stomach and pat my head...not like anyone really cares though! Sheesh, tough crowd!) At first I was aqful--Julie[Taymor, the director] made me watch myself on video. Timon looked like a limp rag doll. Then it all clicked."
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Max Casella has been captivating audiences as Timon in Broadway's "The Lion King," but come September 1998, his bug-eating days are over! Seems Max has decided not to renew his contract and go on with the show. In a recent interview with Howard Stern, Max explained that it isn't that he doesn't love his job, because he does. It's simply due to the fact that the extreme physicality of his role is wearing him out!
