In a play resembling a production straight out of New York’s Broadway, the St Stithians Boys’ Preparatory School hosted its major school drama production in their very own creative adaption of Rudyard Kipling’s classic The Jungle Book.
Every two years, the school community combines their creative forces to stage a drama production.
With every boy in the school having his own role to play, the youngsters enjoyed working in positions ranging from backstage crew to a lead character.
Parents and teachers were hands-on in bringing the production to life.
This coming of age story featured all the iconic scenes and songs from the Jungle Book, and some added home-grown extras that no audience member could have expected.
The well-loved vulture scene seemed to be following the 1967 animated classic until their cousin vultures from South Africa were introduced to the storyline and played a lively version of Sipho Hotstix Mabuse’s hit 80s song Burnout on their marimbas.
Besides the polished dramatics, singing, instrument playing and dancing that took place on stage, the play was also a visual feast of artistic make-up and flashy costumes blending in with a beautiful jungle background set.
Head of the major production Philippa Bragge said, “For me, staging a school production is probably the biggest highlight of my job as a drama teacher. All the long hours and sleepless nights fade into insignificance when those lights go up on stage and out walks a child and delivers, what he might not realise in that exact moment, the performance of a lifetime.
“Allowing children to be involved in the arts and to showcase their creative abilities is probably one of the most important life skills we as educators can offer a child. It doesn’t matter how large or small his role might have been, he is guaranteed to grow from an experience like this.
“It is moments like this that mould a personality and memories like this that last a lifetime. How lucky we are that our school values the arts and gives the children opportunities to each take part in the exploration of this wonderful world we call a stage.”
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