The Jungle Book Kids took place on March 15-16, 2019 at St. Francis Xavier School featuring performers of the Xavier Players ages 5-7.
This was the first production we ever staged with performers in grades K-2. Working with a group of young children proved to be challenging since many of them do not even know how to read, but their enthusiasm and raw talent carried them through the performances. Though assisted by production staff members reminding them of choreography and lines, the children proved to tackle the material with upmost independence. Our focus in mounting this production was introducing these children to the core elements of musical theatre - singing, dancing, and acting - and encourage them to explore characters and their worlds while making independent choices for their performances.