Disney's next stage venture: THE JUNGLE BOOK directed by Mary Zimmerman

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/theaterloop/chi-goodman-theatre-season-jungle-book-20120227,0,1474284.column

Interesting. I don't see how it can work. But that's what I thought before THE LION KING.

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I'm always up for a new Disney musical, but this one is not one of my favorite scores. Still, I'm excited to see what they do with it.

Rosscoe(au), the Jungle Book as an American Film is an American animated classic; as a novel, that's a different story.

I look forward to seeing what Zimmerman can do with this, though I have to admit The Jungle Book has never been a favorite of mine.

It's still gonna be adult actors in giant bear and tiger costumes, unless you go the Lion King route, which has been done already.

I'm intrigued that she's going back to the original source material and also adding in some Indian-influenced songs. I have a feeling the public will HATE it when it's not the movie presented exactly as they know it. I can hear all the "WTF?" comments already. Still, it's a risk, and I'm glad she's taking it. I wish her luck.

As for Lion King, I've never gotten that comment about the first 10 minutes being brilliant and the rest sucking. I saw the show with the full OBC a week before the Tonys, and I thought the production was sensational. The first 10 minutes amounts to nothing more than a processional. It was wonderful, but so was the rest of the show, and it was no less imaginative after Circle of Life ended.

I must admit I roll my eyes whenever I hear that comment. It makes no sense. It's like saying, "I loved the show curtain. It was one of the most brilliant things I've ever seen, but then it went up."

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Updated On: 2/28/12 at 06:41 AM

Zimmerman is a pretty smart choice for this project. It will probably be something like her Arabian Nights at Lookingglass which was a big hit in Chicago. Lots of color, movement, choreography and acrobatics will be in store.

I have a feeling the public will HATE it when it's not the movie presented exactly as they know it.

I wouldn't be so sure. This is not a film that is on a sacred pedestal or has reached the iconic status of being a permanent fixture in the theme parks. The only songs from the film that are ever repeated or highlighted are Bare Necessities and I Wanna Be Like You so there really is a lot of wiggle room. Even when Mary Poppins strayed from the film, it still managed to be a massive hit.

As for Lion King, I've never gotten that comment about the first 10 minutes being brilliant and the rest sucking.

I never understood that, either. There were about three scenes I didn't care for, but the rest of the show more than made up for it. So many beautiful, original and creative things (big and small) occur throughout the show. Even something as simple as the second act opening thrilled me in its use of music, color, voice and spirit. It was joyous and I guess some people find joy to be shallow or trite.

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I guess I'll never get to see a Broadway version of Hunchback

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Updated On: 2/28/12 at 10:29 AM

Really? Sigh. I played Baloo when I was 9 at summer camp. It was fun. But that's about it.

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Walt famously told the Sherman Bros when he asked them to do the film that the first thing they should do is NOT read the book.

What makes you think that audiences will not tolerate any changes to this story from a popular film and yet they eat up Lion King which made the exact sort of changes being described here to a film that a lot of the audience knows by heart?

I think Zimmerman is a brilliant choice to head this up.

What makes you think that audiences will not tolerate any changes to this story from a popular film and yet they eat up Lion King which made the exact sort of changes being described here to a film that a lot of the audience knows by heart?

Joe, the Lion King didn't make any changes to the story. They expanded the original screenplay and added new songs, but they didn't change the plot. The major changes were all in the presentation.

The Jungle Book stories by Kipling are very different than the Disney animated film. It's not just a conceptual change or an expansion. It could be virtually unrecognizable to those only familiar with the film or it could be another "ice show" adaptation on stage where it's only enhanced with some minor Kipling details. It all depends on how far she wants to take it. She says she wants to go back to the source. I wonder how much she'll be able to do that (or how much they'll let her deviate from what is "established" as Disney's Jungle Book).

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The basic plot of the Disney Jungle Book film is Bargheera trying to get Mowgli to go to the Man Village and that aspect should remain, I think they could expand Mowgli's character, maybe introduce Shanti a little earlier so that he's conflicted whether to remain in the jungle or go to the Man Village.

Haha, interesting Besty. Nothing against her, of course. :) I just remember that song driving me absolutely crazy as a kid. (It didn't help that I wanted Mowgli to stay with the animals and not go to the man village)

What about ALLADIN and/or THE HUNCHBACK?

That said, this should be fun a la THE LION KING

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