The Jungle Book has come to the theatrical stage in Chicago. The show came to life through a special agreement between Disney and the Chicago’s Goodman Theater. For this show, Disney Theatrical Productions is not producing the show. Instead, they are ceding control to the Goodman Theater for this production. This concession of control means that there are no guarantees for the future of The Jungle Book beyond this run.
Mary Zimmerman is the director and author of this production. Her trend of being unpredictable is one of the reasons for the special arrangement between Disney and the Goodman Theater for The Jungle Book.
The show does not use puppets like The Lion King. Instead the cast is costumed to represent that animal or character they are portraying. The costumes are minimalist with many principle characters where elaborate robes rather than masks.
The Jungle Book does utilize the music from the original Disney film of the same name. It also uses a song from The Jungle Book 2 called Jungle Rhythm.
Variety recently reviewed The Jungle Book and posted their thoughts here. The review is positive and if the public agrees with the review it will be interesting to see what the future holds for this show.
What do you think? Should The Jungle Book end up on Broadway? Would you want to see it?
