Spring is here which meant that another play was in our midst. Bob Hunt, director of plays for this year, decided that the last play of the year was to be Jungal Book. This play was an adaptation of by Edward Mast; it contained all of the same characters that we know. This was not like the Disney movie, though it contained the same characters and some of the plot, it had much more meaning to it.

The play is about a boy who is raised by wolves and is troubled with having to make decisions about the future and how he wants to grow up. The jungle, itself, is a metaphor of the struggle that the boy deals with throughout the play. This play has fantasy elements to it as it was originally a children’s play.

As soon as the curtain opened, the audience was caught up in the story as it unfolded before them. While the tale journeyed on, the audience was able to identify real life issues in this fantasy world that the play was set in. The audience had the opportunity to be conscious of the metaphor that was present, they were able to relate to most of what was ocurring.

The play held a fluctuation of comedy and drama like a rollercoaster from one to the other as things built up in each scene. In some instances, the plot gradually grew from light comedy to heavy drama; for the audience there was never a dull moment.

Sound like the same plays as PHS has perforned in the past? Wrong. Mr. Hunt made a special addition to this one unlike any of the others. The cast incorporated music and dance to enhance the performance of this play, special effects and lighting were also used to capture the setting of each scene.

There were some difficulties with this however. The actors had to be able to perform their parts in precise timing, so that they would be on cue with the music that played at certain times.

The majority of roles were animals, so the actors had to have animalistic movements while in their character. With complications being compared to the talent of our performers, there was no problem with these matters. Sounds and lights were there to help make a scene, but it was the actors themselves that pulled it all together for an outstanding performance.

Members of the cast included: Baloo - Heather Flom, Mowgli - Nick Pierson, Baghera - Giandor Saltz, Sherakahn - Josey Nickles, Akela - Nik Davis, Grab - Chris Padilla, Grey - Betsy French, Monkey - Laramie Roling, Kaa - Kelsey Paylor, Chil - Laramie Roling, Water Buffalo - Yelena Olson, Heyena - Rebecca Waite, Hathi - Karl Johnson, Humans - Kelsey Paylor & Rebecca Waite.

The lights crew was Josey Nickles and Yelena Olson, sound was by Cory Harker, Kyle Oechsner, and Abigail Pollart, set was by Adam Kline, Cassandra Rodriguez, and Yelena Olson, and lastly, the costumes department was made up of Madeleine Van Epps, Myra Bennett, Caroline Aichele, and Brianna Steppe.