Going Wild for The Jungle Book School Musical
Inspired by Rudyard Kipling’s original fables, The Jungle Book School Musical is an energetic, entertaining, and evocative adaptation of this beloved literary classic. Experience the adventures of Mowgli, Baloo and Bagheera as you have never seen them before, as they confront tigers, jackals, monkeys and members of their own wolf pack in an effort to return order to the jungle.
Packed with witty dialogue, exhilarating action scenes and nine original songs to boot, read on to discover why we think The Jungle Book School Musical would make the perfect summer show for younger and older students alike!
What’s the Show About?
Spoilers ahead!
This KS2 musical introduces us to Mowgli, the man-cub raised by wolves and beloved by all the animals in the jungle, or at least most of the animals. Despite the warnings of his friends and teachers, Baloo the bear and Bagheera the panther, Mowgli does not take the dangers of the jungle seriously until Shere Khan, the tiger, threatens the wolf pack.
Mowgli is captured in his sleep by the Bandar-log, the monkey tribe, and carried back to the ruins of the ancient city they inhabit. When Baloo and Bagheera realise Mowgli is missing, they enlist the help of Bill, the kite, and Kaa, the python, to rescue him. However, when word spreads to Shere Khan that Mowgli has been captured, the tiger rallies a gang of wolves to hunt down the man-cub.
With the help of Kaa’s hypnotic eyes, Baloo and Bagheera are able to subdue the Bandar-log, but Mowgli becomes separated from his friends once again as he flees into the jungle. Armed with only the embers of a fire-pot, Mowgli finds himself surrounded by Shere Khan and his wolves. When Shere Khan tries to strike Mowgli, he throws the embers in the tiger’s face, distracting him long enough for Baloo, Bagheera, and the wolf pack to find them. Admitting defeat, Shere Khan disappears into the jungle, never to be seen again.
Making The Jungle Book School Musical
While adults and children may know Mowgli, Baloo, Bagheera and the many other animal characters from the celebrated Disney animation, fewer people are familiar with the original short story collection by Rudyard Kipling. Written in the late nineteenth century, the language and structure of The Jungle Book are less accessible to modern audiences, yet the characters and stories are as alive and relevant as they were over 130 years ago.
Determined to capture the excitement and values of the original stories, the talented writing team behind The Wizard of Oz and the award-winning Pantastic, Tom Kirkham and Matthew Crossey, got to work adapting this Kipling classic for the primary school stage.
With so many meaningful stories and colourful characters to draw from, Tom and Matthew had to be selective about what to include in their adaptation, as well as what they could afford to exclude. In the end, they settled on the stories featuring the most prominent characters, locations, and moments of action, before weaving them together into one cohesive story.
While they wanted to capture the essence of Kipling’s work, Tom and Matthew were keen to add their own stamp on the adaptation with their original songs, which they strategically spaced throughout the musical to elevate key moments of action and character traits.
Why We’re Wild About The Jungle Book
In case it wasn’t obvious, we are absolutely wild about this school musical adaptation of these timeless tales. From its playful, thrilling and heartfelt script to its raucous and catchy tunes, we are sure your students will go bananas over what has to be one of our best school musicals to date! Here’s why we think The Jungle Book School Musical has been such a roaring success:
- The Story
The adventures of Mowgli, the wolf pack, and all the other colourful creatures of the jungle have been artfully translated for the stage, capturing the creativity and wisdom of Kipling’s prose while making his stories accessible to schools and youth theatres alike.
- The Script
From comical exchanges between the Bangar-log to intense confrontations with Shere Khan and the crazed jackal, Tabaqui, each scene offers something different from the last. The steady flow of humour, drama and gripping action scenes is sure to keep your students engaged and the audience on their toes!
- The Music
The nine original songs composed for The Jungle Book School Musical showcase the lyrical talents of our resident songsmiths while incorporating traditional Indian instruments such as sitars and tablas. While the catchy rhythms of Snake Eyes and We’re All Monkeys are sure to stay with your cast and audience long after the final performance, the powerful ballads Leader of the Pack and Whisper on the Breeze drive home the themes of the show. Listen to the opening song, Somewhere in the Jungle, below!
What We Can Learn from The Jungle Book
As Kipling created The Jungle Book stories to pass on the morals and values from his childhood in Mumbai to his own daughter, our writers have incorporated many of the original themes into this adaptation. By staging The Jungle Book School Musical with your students, you can teach them about:
- Identity
From the opening number through to the final showdown between Mowgli and Shere Khan, the show highlights how identity can impact our life experiences. While Mowgli initially sees himself as one of the wolf pack, throughout the story, he has to come to terms with his differences from the jungle animals and learns his place within the jungle society.
- Community
Despite his differences, Mowgli is accepted by most of his fellow jungle inhabitants and is encouraged to embrace more of the animals during his lesson with Baloo and Bagheera (Tongues of the Jungle). Combined with the theme of identity, these community values teach tolerance and acceptance to young children, inspiring them to celebrate their differences from those around them.
- Family
Mowgli may be a man-cub, but his adopted mother, Raksha, cares and worries about him as much as any of her wolf-cubs, yearning for his safe return in her sentimental solo, Whisper on the Breeze. Her maternal love for Mowgli reminds children about the importance of family while highlighting that unconventional or found families are as legitimate and meaningful as traditional ‘nuclear family’ arrangements. For more examples of maternal love in our school musical catalogue, check out our blog on creating an inclusive Mothers’ Day assembly.
- Friendship
The care and compassion that Baloo, Bagheera, and many other animals have for Mowgli similarly teaches children about the importance of friendship and forgiveness. Even after Mowgli ignores the warnings about the Bangar-log, leading to his kidnapping, his friends come to his rescue, demonstrating the importance of supporting friends through times of hardship.
- Courage
The menacing presence of Shere Khan can be felt throughout the show, building to the climactic action scene between the tiger, its gang of wolves and the near-defenceless Mowgli. Even when the odds are against him, Mowgli finds the courage to fight back against Shere Khan, inspiring the other wolves to turn against the tyrannical tiger. This teaches children to stand up for what they believe is right, even when faced with obstacles and challenges.
Who Should Purchase The Jungle Book?
Written to be performed by children aged 9 to 13, The Jungle Book School Musical would make an excellent leavers' musical for your KS2 class and could even capture the imaginations of younger secondary school students.
With a run time of 60 minutes, the show offers ample time for your actors and audience to become completely immersed in the antics of the jungle animals. While each purchase includes the necessary resources to extend or shorten the show, we find that an hour-long performance is perfect for keeping your students (and their parents) engaged throughout!
While the script features 36 speaking roles, the show can be adapted to accommodate between 26 to 60+ students by combining or dividing the dialogue. You may find that less confident members of your class shy away from the spotlight but would nevertheless like to be included in the jungle fun. In this case, you can fill out your ensemble with unspoken animal parts while giving the lines to those who want them.
Writing team Tom and Matthew recommend devoting between six and eight weeks' worth of rehearsals outside of lesson time to ensure the ensemble songs and action sequences get the attention they need. For summer youth theatres or students lucky enough to skip out on their regular classes for rehearsal, Tom and Matthew reckon rehearsals could be completed in between two and three weeks, as long as the lead roles have learned their lines!
Ready to Put on a Show to Remember?
Whether you are searching for the perfect send-off for your KS2 students or you are interested in a riotous alternative to the school nativity, The Jungle Book is an entertaining and poignant piece of musical theatre that will stick with your students for years to come.
Lose yourself in The Jungle Book School Musical, or check other musical adaptations from Tom and Matthew, The Wizard of Oz and Pantastic to imbue your performance with a sprinkling of fairy dust. For more information about any of our products or resources, please get in touch for a friendly chat about your next school musical production.