Roger Allers made his Broadway debut with co-author Irene Mecchi, with the TONY®-nominated book for The Lion King, adapted from the animated feature, which he co-directed. Mr. Allers has been instrumental in shaping the structure and dialogue for many Disney animated features since 1988, including Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Oliver and Company, Rescuers Down Under, Prince and the Pauper, and the computer-animated movie Tron. He directed the Academy Award®-nominated short The Little Matchgirl for Disney and co-directed the 2006 animated feature Open Season for Sony Studios. Prior to working with Disney, he created animation on children's programs and features for studios in Boston, Toronto, and Tokyo. He also wrote and directed an animated adaptation of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet.