CHILDREN’S THEATER REVIEW : Exotic Minneapolis Show Is King of the ‘Jungle’

“I’m glad we came, aren’t you?” a woman was overheard saying to a friend after Monday’s performance of the Children’s Theatre Company’s “The Jungle Book” at the Irvine Barclay Theatre. “It doesn’t seem like a children’s show, it seems like it’s more for adults.”

The 28-year-old company from Minneapolis knows what the appreciative audience member didn’t: Children’s theater isn’t by definition inferior. Good theater is good theater, whatever the target audience, as this fine adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s Mowgli stories proves.

The production’s exotic tone is set before the show starts with an eye-catching arch of long-tailed monkeys, elephants and pagodas that frames the stage with symmetrical elegance. Then comes the sound of a flute, the curtains part to show trees and temple ruins in silhouette, and a voice says, “Imagine a night and a newborn moon. . . .”

And the play begins, a story within a story, about an orphan adopted by a storyteller, a “man cub” adopted by wolves, the killer tiger who claims him as prey and the mystical Law of the Jungle as set forth by Tha, the First Elephant and jungle Creator.

Inspired by folk theater traditions of India, the production mixes limited dialogue with mime and dance.

To suggest their animal characters, the actors wear skillfully crafted, stylized half-masks. (Maggie Belle Calin is credited with both set and costume design.)

Gregory Beech as elephants Tha and Hathi, moves with ponderous dignity; the python Kaa is given sinuous grace and beauty by Jocelyn Gorham. With athletic prowess, Richard Gustafson and Joseph P. McElroy stretch and leap as wolves; Shawn Hamilton’s arrogant posturings as evil Shere Khan the Tiger convey menace and Peter Jerrod Macon is a sleek and regal Bagheera the panther.

The atmosphere becomes somewhat more prosaic when the cast members speak. A slightly rough-edged, youthful energy and Western emphasis replace Eastern exoticism. (Christopher Parries, the only child in the cast, capably handles the role of both Mowgli and the orphan boy. He alternates in the role with Siua Hafoka.)

The miming, however, and the dances with their precise movements and dramatic foot stamping, are outstanding. (Rita Mustaphi is listed as “cultural consultant.”)

Evocative, Indian-flavored music, by Roberta Carlson, is provided by bells, flute, cello, keyboards, drums, keyboards and offstage narrative vocals; Charles D. Craun’s delicate lighting design adds shadowy mystery and bright washes of illumination.

Smoothly directed by Wendy Lehr, this adaptation by Thomas W. Olson, with its cautionary message about indiscriminate violence, and its plea for respect for our fellow creatures, is recommended for ages 6 or 7 and up--and parents too.

“The Jungle Book” is a Children’s Theatre Company production of Thomas W. Olson’s adaptation of the stories by Rudyard Kipling. Performances continue Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Bridges Auditorium, Claremont Colleges, 4th and College Way, Pomona, (714) 621-8032, $4-$18; Saturday, 3 p.m at UC Riverside, University Theatre, (714) 787-4629, $2.50-$6; Sunday, 7 p.m. at UC San Diego’s Mandeville Auditorium, (619) 534-4090, $14-$16; Tuesday, 6:30 p.m. at McCallum Theatre, Palm Desert, (619) 340-ARTS, (619) 278-TIXS; Feb. 6, 2 p.m. at UCLA, Royce Hall, (310) 825-2101, $10-$18; Feb. 7, 7 p.m. at Ventura High School, (805) 654-6459, (805) 648-4767, $10-$12. Running time: 65 minutes.