Lancaster Dukes' award-winning outdoor walkabout theatre season returns to the city's Williamson Park this summer, with The Jungle Book playing from July 22 to the end of August. Audiences will be invited to step into the “jungle” of the spectacular park, which has views across to Morecambe Bay, as the tale is told by heroic wolves, cheeky monkeys and other jungle creatures.
The story of Mowgli, Baloo and fearsome villains Shere Kahn and Kaa will be related as audiences follow the drama (on foot) from one location to another around the park.
The Jungle Book will be directed by Sarah Punshon, who also directed The Dukes' outdoor production of Grimm Tales last summer, and is sponsored by Lancaster BID, which is supporting the show by helping the theatre to offer Jungle Book-inspired arts workshops at local schools as part of a city-centre jungle take-over of shops and local businesses. The "Jungle Trail" will launch in June.
Dukes' drector Karen O’Neill said: “We are so pleased to be back in the park, working with the team there and Lancaster City Council on this new retelling of a classic tale.”
The Dukes has been entertaining families with its summer "promenade" shows since 1987, attracting a total of more than 500,000 people. In 2016 its outdoor version of The Hobbit won the UK Theatre award for Best Show for Children and Young People. This year marks 35 years since the first park show and comes at the end of the theatre's 50th birthday year celebrations.
The Jungle Book will run Tuesdays to Sundays from July 22-August 28 (7.15pm). Tickets must be booked in advance. Group bookings: contact the theatre's box office on 01524 598500 or email .