This production had dual casts in principal roles. In the interest of fairness to all, TASA reviewed both casts. David Smith reviewed the Elephant Cast and Jacqui Wall reviewed the Monkey Cast.
Elephant Cast
True to their beliefs, AYT have used this version of the well-loved Kipling tale to give genuine opportunity to young creatives in the production team, as well as the younger cohort of their performers. It’s a tried and true formula, and continues to work admirably for the whole company, not to mention its appreciative audiences. Indeed, earlier this year TASA acknowledged their work in encouraging those new to those various roles by awarding them the prestigious Matt Byrne Award.
This production showed the effective, developing talents of Milla Ilic as Director, Keira Wubbolts as MD and Bailey Wilkinson as Choreographer. They succeeded in bringing life and energy to the stage, and an impressive degree of focus and precision among the principals and supporting ensemble.
In the Elephant cast Zoey Ilicic was a delight as Mowgli, the boy raised by the jungle animals. She handled the dialogue confidently and had just the right amount of innocence and charm. She related well, too, to the various other characters, whether they nourished or threatened her.
Taylor Ngo as Bagheera the panther and Belle Coulson as Baloo the bear, were strong and nurturing in their roles. They showed care and protection of Mowgli, especially when challenged by the fierce Shere Khan (Annamaria Di Costanzo). The character of Kaa the python was well devised, being performed by six well-coordinated puppeteers holding the snake, and wearing stunning shiny green snakeskin costumes.
The whole production was a joy. The characters were lively and well-drawn, the action continuous and the cast were universally focussed and entertaining. Musically, both in solos and large ensemble numbers, the young voices were true and, to their great credit, articulate and audible – and all this was achieved without amplification. It was a wise choice in the intimate space, and showed the performers’ skills, power and thorough rehearsal. The Jungle Book warmed the hearts of the full house (one of many in this season) at Star Theatre 2.
Monkey Cast
In the Monkey cast we saw Nira Hancock showcase her talents as Mowgli, Maddison Dodd as Bagheera and Elaynah Magourilos as Baloo. Each brought their own style to their performance and were such a joy to watch. The puppeteers who were Kaa the Snake were excellent and kept it slithering and squirming throughout. Jacqueline Siow as Shere Khan was menacing especially when she was able to interact with the audience up close and personal. One particular standout for me was Nemanja Ilic as King Louis. How they were able to complete the tap routine in that costume I will never comprehend, but it brought down the house. All the cast whether they had a named role or were a dancer or an ensemble member were such a joy to watch and their excitement and enthusiasm shone through. That’s what is all about as far as I am concerned.
I truly applaud AYT in their continued nurturing of our future performers in such a way. It is heartwarming to see even the youngest of performers such as Baby Elephant being given the opportunity to begin their career in a safe and encouraging environment and even more so when they become awestruck by the audience (aka family) then suddenly you see flash through their head, “oh yeah, I’m meant to be doing that now.”
Keep up the great work AYT and we can’t wait for your next production.
