Jungle Book: Mowgli and the Great Kaa

From the story "Kaa's Hunting" by Rudyard Kipling.  Deep in a jungle in India in the middle of the 19th century a tribe of monkeys come chasing in with the boy Mowgli in their midst. In the middle of their play, Kaa, the great python, terrifies them as well as Baloo, a great bear, and Bagheera, a panther, who are Mowgli's friends and protectors. Once out of harm's way, the two scold the boy and teach him how to make himself safe in the jungle. They fall asleep. The monkeys, eager to get Mowgli to make them huts like his, wake him and drag him off. Baloo and Bagheera ask Kaa to help rescue Mowgli. A battle ensues and Mowgli learns he is content to be a human and grateful he can still live for a while with Baloo and Bagheera. This show is easily produced by using leaf-covered ladders and jungle-gym elements for "trees" and creating a combination puppet-costume for Kaa. Performance time just less than an hour.