Emporium will be staging its own tribute to Rudyard Kipling, the Rottingdean based writer born 150 years ago, with a musical version of his most famous work, The Jungle Book.
THIS classic tale of Mowgli the man cub raised by wolves, taught by a bear but hunted by a tiger, will transport its audiences from seagull-squawking Brighton to monkey-chattering India between July 7 and 31 with a script that was one of The Guardian’s ‘Top Five – not to be missed‘ shows when it toured in 2002/2003.
Playwright Mike Carter knows that the shadow of the Disney adaptation is a long one but feels the story is strong enough to bear more than one telling, with its power to both entertain and enthrall:
Mike said: “The element of danger is never far away.
“Shere Khan has made a vow that he will kill the man-cub before he grows up and the Chief Monkey threatens to eat Mowgli for breakfast for refusing to explain the mystery of fire to him!”
But it is the fire of friendship that fuels this particular story, as Mowgli’s love of his adoptive wolf mother, as well as of his mentor and protector Baloo the Bear, helps the man cub overcome the challenges he faces.
Along with Carter’s Earwig Productions, Emporium kicks off the summer with an epic adventure offering puppets, a live band and magical special effects suitable for children (and grown-up children) aged three years and older.
In keeping with the family feel, The Jungle Book reunites director James Weisz and choreographer Nathan Potter from last year’s hit pantomime Sleeping Beauty, working with a multi-ethnic cast and chorus drawn from across the region: a truly Sussex production befitting its original author.
The show marks the passing of a century and a half since Kipling’s birth and the author has since been adopted by the Brighton area, given his time spent living at The Elms in Rottingdean, where he wrote a number of his best-loved works, including the Just So Stories.
This adaptation was originally performed at The Gardner Arts Centre at the University of Sussex in 1995, making this production not just a double anniversary, but also a homecoming: the jungle returns to the city.
The cast includes: Gordon Winter (Brothers of War / Mike Leigh’s Secrets & Lies) as Chief Monkey. Suzanne Proctor (Fran in Coronation Street, Isobel in C4’s Cucumber) as Bagheera and Kamari Romeo as Mowgli.
Event: The Jungle Book
Where: Emporium, 88 London Road, Brighton
When: July 7 to 31
Time: 7:30pm and 2pm (July 18/19/25/26)
Tickets: £12 (cubs), £15 (big cats), £50 (wolf packs of four).
This production will be raising money for the UNICEF Nepal Earthquake Appeal.
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