Theatre Review: The Jungle Book
"Hear me, people of the jungle! I, Mowgli, keeper of the law and guardian of the jungle, have come to entertain you!"
The Jackson Children and Teen Theatre has put on The Jungle Book: The Musical at The Ned. The show opens with the talented Mowgli, played by Grayson Hart. He effectively captures the insolence and over-confidence of his character. The top vocal performance of the night, however, belongs to the tiger, Shere Khan, played by Lauren Ragsdale, for the song, "Can't We Be Friends."
Jungle scenery, including trees and stumps, filled the edges of the stage, leaving the middle open for the dramatic moves of the actors. Everyone was in impressive full costume, an they frequently on stage in herds and flocks.
After the tiger Shere Khan killed a man in the village, Mowgli, referred to as "man cub," wandered into the jungle as a toddler. The wolf pack sheltered and protected him from Shere Khan and entrusted Mowgli's education to the bear Baloo and his cobra and panther friend.
Twelve years have passed and Baloo is no longer able to answer all of Mowgli's questions or keep up with his energy and desire to lead. Tension arises as Father Wolf misses a kill, meaning by Jungle Law that another can take his place. Shere Khan makes his play for the position, realizing he can kill Mowgli once he is the one in power.
Can Mowgli and his friends find a way to deter Shere Khan's plans? Or will this vicious tiger usurp Father Wolf's place at Council Rock?
Take a break from the summer heat today and bring your family to this children-friendly play. Only two shows remain. Friday, July 1, at 1:30 p.m. and at 7:00 p.m.. The play runs one hour with no intermission.
To learn more about The Ned's Children & Teen Theatre, visit their website.
After graduating from Union University, Renae Adelsberger and her husband Kevin decided to make Jackson their home due to their love for their church, nonprofits, local businesses, and abundance of Sonic drive-ins. You can read more from Renae at www.pedestriangod.com.
Photographer Kevin Adelsberger and his wife Renae moved to Jackson for college (proud Union alumni) and have stayed every since. Jackson has since taken hold of Kevin’s heart, and he looks forward to continuing to grow with the city. Kevin opened Adelsberger Marketing in 2014 and saw working with Our Jackson Home as a way that he could serve the city he loves. Kevin and Renae are members of First Baptist Church and volunteer with the youth group there and with Madison County CASA.
The holiday magic may be over, but don’t worry that your January will be dull. Cozy up with these fun events throughout the community, and don’t forget to sync the full calendar with yours so you don’t miss a thing.
Spice up your holiday season with a trip to the Ned to watch their performance of A Christmas Story by Philip Grecian. You’ll be in stitches as this play has all your Christmas Story favorites: Little Orphan Annie decoder pin, double dog dares, “fudge,” “frah-jee-lay,” and more. As any fan of A Christmas Story can tell you, nothing is better than a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model Air Rifle. And the Jackson Theatre Guild has brought this play to the stage in downtown Jackson, Tennessee. The action in the play is driven by the narrator, played by David Stutzman.
August 1966 was a complicated time in the United States. Across the American landscape, leaders emerged, convictions solidified and movements progressed around highly-charged civil rights issues such as voting, education, and worker rights. It was also host to a range of less visible currents that touched the lives of African Americans. Frances, the daughter of West Tennessee sharecroppers and devoted parents, grew up in this time of tectonic social and political shifts.
July is by far one of our favorite times of the year with 731Day on its way, but there’s so much more leading up to that beloved end-of-summer event! Check out all the laughs, music, and other fun in store for this month.
In the late 1960’s in America, most states still enforced laws that made it illegal for a black person to drink from the same water fountain as a white person. Not all Americans embraced this way of thinking, however. Men like Matt Drayton (played by David Lundgren), publisher of a San Francisco newspaper, made a point to show biracial couples on the front page of his newspaper. Despite his progressive views on integration in America, Matt struggles when his white daughter comes home from her internship with quite a surprise: a black fiancé.
As the weather gradually warms up this month, we’re all eager to get out of the house and find unique ways to spend our weekends. This March is full of exciting events, new and old, and many of which are as fun for kids and they are for adults. Check them out!
While the weather may be dreary these days, Jackson’s social scene is most definitely not. February is bringing the most dancing, learning, and new fun our city has seen since the holiday. Here’s just a handful of the awesome events happening throughout our community this month.
January might not be the most exciting month following the joy of Christmas and entering the bleak midwinter, but Jackson has plenty of fun to offer, especially with a handful of annual events we’re all looking forward to. See what’s in store this month!
Maybe it will be a high school production of the musical Camelot. An exhibit of stunning photography by a local class may catch your eye. Perhaps you’ll just want to see the downstairs museum, where dozens of photos, plaques, awards, and costumes recall the acting careers of Dixie Carter and her husband, Hal Holbrook. What will bring you to The Dixie? The Dixie Carter Performing Arts & Academic Enrichment Center is a historical performing arts and enrichment center in Huntingdon, Tennessee.
This Tennessee summer heat is almost more than we can bear, but at least there's lots going around in town to keep us busy and happy! From fireworks and 5k's to music and theatre, July will be a month to remember. Here are the events we hope to see you at!
Who knew seven doors and a plate of sardines could cause so many uproarious laughs! The Jackson Theatre Guild has brought Noises Off by Michael Frayn to The Ned and it's guaranteed to keep you in stiches. Noises Off is a farcical play that gives the audience a peek behind the scenes of a live performance. The first act occurs the night before the first show; the dress rehearsal is going horribly. The director must constantly stop the action and redirect his actors.
Generally speaking, January is known as the reject-event month following the glitz and glam of the holiday season, but we're determined to make the most of it, especially with our new year's resolutions fresh on our minds. Here are five events we're especially excited so that our January is full of meaning and fun, but make sure to check out our full community calendar here.
In Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, we are dropped in the middle of a story already half told. Scrooge is a nasty, miserly man being haunted by his former business partner and the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and yet to come. But why? Who are these ghosts and what are their motives behind repeatedly visiting Scrooge that fateful Christmas Eve?The Jackson Theatre Guild has brought the very play to The Ned that we need to answer these questions: Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol.
Throughout my childhood, my parents and I would travel to Bells, Tennessee, to visit our relatives. With me being an only child, looking out of the car window was my main source of entertainment until we reached our destination. While passing through, there was one particular building that caught my eye. I suppose it was the huge movie poster displays or vibrant signs that always grabbed my attention. We’ve stopped in and shopped at a few stores on that strip, but I can’t recall ever entering in the mysterious building.
Fellow Jackson citizens: Do you need anything? How about legal counsel? Perhaps varicose veins reductions? Are you a painter who needs dance classes? What about some good old-fashioned matchmaking? Then you need Dolly! Fortunately for us, Hello, Dolly! has come to the stage at The Ned, and she has brought all her business cards with her. Dolly Levi, played by Julie Glosson, is an expert at everything. In her own words, she’s a professional meddler.
The Jackson Theatre Guild is kicking off this spring with Neil Simon’s farcical play Rumors this weekend at The Ned. Rumors is crammed with two hours of mass chaos, assumptions, misunderstandings, and (of course) rumors. The play opens as Ken and Chris Gorman (played by Kyle Williams and Caitlin Kent) arrive at their friends’ Charlie and Myra Brock’s house to celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary. But everything is amiss. Myra and the house staff are nowhere to be found, the meal isn’t cooked, and Charlie has survived a gunshot to his head.
Madison Academic Magnet High School is presenting the musical Grease this week, directed by Becky Fly. This is truly a Madison Academic Fine Arts Department production. Music Direction has been led by Kristy White (Band Director at Madison) and Lindsey Patterson (Choral Director at Madison), and the Art Department helped with the sets. The production consists of thirty students and ten crew members. Becky likes getting students involved in theatre because they learn more than just acting skills.
Richard Hannay gets swept into a spy thriller in the Jackson Theatre Guild's current production of The 39 Steps. When a gun is fired during a theater production, the seductive Annabella Schmidt convinces Richard Hannay to take her to his room for safety. While there, she is murdered. With her dying breaths, she mentions the mysterious "39 steps" in relation to a spy plot but does not reveal its meaning. Hannay, now a murder suspect, flees the country, follows Annabella's few, vague clues to discover the meaning of the 39 steps.
Some of my favorite things about Jackson’s many weekend entertainment options are the gambling, exotic dancers, and running from the cops. Of course, I am a sucker for the more romantic selections as well, including salsa dancing and island-inspired drinks, all of which can cause a woman’s inhibitions to wave bye-bye at the door. All of these are what make Jackson what it is—a lively city teeming with less-than-honest citizens looking for even less honest entertainment.
This 731Day, we're proud to bring you Vol. 2, Issue 3: Harvest! This fall 2016 magazine will be available July 31, premiering at the 731Day Summer Pop-Up Shop. You can pick up your preordered copy at the shop or theCO, or you can have it shipped directly to you. Enjoy this short promo video by Katie Howerton hinting at some of our magazine's best stories.
The Jackson Theatre Guild initiates the 2016-2017 season with the musical Guys and Dolls, now playing at The Ned. Set in colorful New York, the conflict between the police and the illegal gambling ring of craps is at an all time high. Nathan Detroit, played by Billy Worboys, is famous for setting up secret meeting places to shoot craps. But with the police on high alert, he must come up with $1,000 cash in order to secure a location.
"Hear me, people of the jungle! I, Mowgli, keeper of the law and guardian of the jungle, have come to entertain you!" The Jackson Children and Teen Theatre has put on The Jungle Book: The Musical at The Ned. The show opens with the talented Mowgli, played by Grayson Hart. He effectively captures the insolence and over-confidence of his character. The top vocal performance of the night, however, belongs to the tiger, Shere Khan, played by Lauren Ragsdale, for the song, "Can't We Be Friends."
The journey down the rabbit hole is one that most American children can recall vividly. Alice in Wonderland is a story that is colorful and bizarre in the very best ways. The Ballet Arts of Jackson performance this weekend was exceptional in the way they brought all of those iconic characteristics to the Civic Center stage.
“Dignity has nothing to do with palaces.” We live inside a moment in history when the world is politically charged. Countries all across the globe are experiencing revolutions and wars claiming to desire peace with their fellow man. America itself is in the midst of a pivotal political election. With such change and terror looming in the air, why would anyone desire to see a play that depicts these same themes?
To every season, turn, turn, turn. To every new chapter in the book of life, page turn. By closing one chapter it means we have to say goodbye to something that has changed us and transfer our energy into what’s next. It’s hard to say goodbye, especially when you were having a brilliant time, but it’s necessary because it helps remind you that there’s always tomorrow. For better or worse there are more things waiting up ahead. And this is how I currently feel.
The Jackson Theater Guild has brought a Christmas classic to The Ned in its presentation of It's a Wonderful Life. Set in the town of Bedford Falls, New York, in the 1940s, the play opens as George Bailey contemplates suicide at the top of a bridge. This triggers the appearance of Clarence Odbody, guardian angel, second class. He was sent to George to remind him of his past—times when he had acted honorably and made profound sacrifices for his family and friends.
In September when I packed up all of my things and started my fall journey I had no idea what to really expect. Not because I hadn’t toured before or worked before, but because this time was different. Working two full-time jobs simultaneously is not my norm, and it felt like I was possibly biting off more than I could chew. But I had to trust that God was not giving me more than He thought I would be able to handle. So off I went to New York City to begin putting Songbird on stage.
Upbeat music pounded against the walls and colorful lights flashed as we (Kimberly and Melissa) found ourselves on a dance floor. People of all ages and various ethnicities surrounded us as we all did dance motions to the best of our abilities. Women in bright traditional Indie dress flashed smiles as their friends joined the circle. A small boy laughed as he bounded from one side of the stage to the other and dodged between peoples’ legs.
Sitting here again in the van, traveling to Nashville today, and I am about to burst open wide with excitement for this hometown show at the Cannery Ballroom. After thirty or so days now on the road, I could not be happier about being back in a place I know—where everything looks familiar, smells familiar, and sounds familiar. But there’s something even more special about coming back to Nashville this time and I think it has to do with my musical baby, Songbird, being birthed.
There’s something to be said for being below the Mason-Dixon line while the college football season plays out. Yes, you can try and find the Manhattan affiliate grill & bar of your favorite team to watch the game in. Maybe you’re even lucky enough to have some people from your original hometown that live around you and you can have viewing parties with each other. These sorts of things I’ve somewhat figured out in my previous years of living in NYC.