Tarzan (musical)

A workshop was held in 2004, with Daniel Manche as the Child Tarzan, Matthew Morrison as the Adult Tarzan, Adam Pascal as Tarzan Storyteller and Laura Bell Bundy as Jane.[1] Pascal's part was cut from the production when it opened on Broadway. The original production began previews on Broadway on March 24, 2006, and officially opened at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on May 10.[2] Danton Burroughs, grandson of Edgar Rice Burroughs, attended the opening night party, as did Phil Collins.[3] The production was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Lighting Design of a Musical.

The musical follows the plot of the Disney film, with a few minor changes. Some alterations include the female gorilla Terk being changed to male for the musical, while Tantor the elephant is absent completely.

Act 1

Off the West African coast, a young English couple and their newborn son barely survive a shipwreck and land in Africa. They construct a tree house for their son before being killed by a leopard named Sabor. In the African Jungle, Kerchak, the leader of a tribe of gorillas admires his new infant son with his mate, Kala ("Two Worlds"). Sabor suddenly appears and kidnaps the newborn baby gorilla. Kala goes off to find her son but finds the human boy instead and names him Tarzan. She mothers him and raises him despite Kerchak's refusal to treat Tarzan as his son ("You'll Be In My Heart").

As a young child, Tarzan finds that he cannot keep up with the tribe, while Kerchak views him as a threat. Despite this, Tarzan is befriended by the lighthearted Terk, a young gorilla who teaches him the ways of the gorillas ("Who Better Than Me"). However, Kerchak finds Tarzan constructing a spear, and assuming he intends to hurt the gorillas, he exiles him from the gorilla tribe ("No Other Way"). Kala worries for him and goes off to find him. She discovers him despairing by the water's edge ("I Need To Know"). Kala tells him that even though they look different, underneath the skin, they are just the same, reigniting Tarzan's desire to become the best ape ever.

Years pass, and Tarzan grows into a young man, athletic and resourceful ("Son of Man"), accepted by many of the gorillas as one of their own, except for Kerchak. Kala tries to convince Kerchak to accept Tarzan ("Sure As Sun Turns To Moon"). Kerchak won't change his mind until Tarzan kills the leopard that has been terrorizing the tribe. Suddenly, gunshots are heard throughout the jungle, causing the tribe to scatter, but Tarzan investigates. Deep in the jungle, Jane Porter, a young English naturalist, is overwhelmed by the thrillingly diverse jungle life ("Waiting For This Moment"). While exploring, she is attacked by a giant spider but is rescued by Tarzan. Tarzan and Jane carefully assess each other as they realize their similar qualities ("Different").

Act 2

At the Porter expedition site, Terk and the other gorillas discover the site and all of its unique features, and do some redecorating ("Trashin' The Camp"). Jane returns to the site with Tarzan, and she is thrilled by the tribe of gorillas. Kerchak arrives and scares the gorillas off. Jane tries to convince her father, Professor Porter, and their guide, Clayton, that she discovered a wild man and a tribe of apes. Kerchak forbids contact with the humans, but Tarzan and Jane grow to love each other and Jane tells her father more about the wild ape man ("Like No Man I've Ever Seen"). Tarzan soon visits the humans and becomes properly acquainted with them, especially Jane, though Clayton becomes jealous of their love.

Jane tries to teach Tarzan more about humans and human life, while Tarzan shows her his jungle world, too ("Strangers Like Me"); all the while, Jane tries to cope with her emotions ("For The First Time"). She tries to tell her father to stop Clayton's plans of killing the gorillas, but Clayton, wanting to achieve his goal, tricks Tarzan into taking the humans to the gorilla nesting grounds. Tarzan asks Terk to help him by keeping Kerchak away, and Terk agrees ("Who Better Than Me (Reprise)"). As Tarzan shows the humans his gorilla family, Kerchak arrives anyway, scattering the humans and demanding that Tarzan choose who he is. Realizing her son is torn between his loyalty to his gorilla family and his need to be with humans, Kala shows Tarzan the treehouse his parents built and he discovers all of their belongings ("Everything That I Am"). He decides to go to England with Jane and live as a human and he tells Kala his decision ("You'll Be In My Heart (Reprise)").

Tarzan approaches Jane and Porter, announcing his intention to leave the jungle and be with Jane. As the rest of the gorillas arrive to say goodbye to Tarzan, they are suddenly attacked by Clayton, who is more than determined to kill the gorillas once and for all. He shoots Kerchak when he takes a bullet meant for Tarzan, fatally wounding the gorilla leader. Tarzan fights Clayton and nearly kills him, but Porter convinces him to spare his life and that they can handle Clayton in a less violent way, and Clayton is grabbed by the man that was accompanying him and taken back to the ship to await punishment for his actions. A dying Kerchak apologizes to Tarzan for not understanding him and finally accepts him as his son. The gorilla tribe, led by Kala, convinces Tarzan that they need him to stay ("Sure As Sun Turns To Moon (Reprise)"), and Tarzan becomes the new leader of the gorillas.

At the beach, Jane and Porter are about to leave on their ship to return to England. Tarzan arrives to say goodbye to them, until Jane realizes that she loves Tarzan and, with Porter's blessing, decides to stay with him in the jungle. Tarzan and Jane kiss and swing off towards their new home, planning to spend the rest of their lives together ("Two Worlds (Reprise)").

Phil Collins, who wrote five songs for the 1999 film, wrote nine new songs for the stage version.

The Broadway cast album, entitled Tarzan: The Broadway Musical - Original Broadway Cast Recording, was released on June 27, 2006, produced by Mark Mancina. Allmusic explains: "Elton John, who composed the music for the songs in the movie version of The Lion King (with lyrics by stage veteran Tim Rice), left others to expand the score for Broadway, while Phil Collins, who wrote music and lyrics for the five songs in the 1999 Tarzan movie, wrote an additional nine for the Broadway show".[4] Phil Collins sings a bonus track "Everything That I Am" at the end of the album.[4] The album includes "all four of the 'old' Tarzan songs (Two Worlds, You'll Be In My Heart, Son Of Man and Strangers Like Me)".[5] The album entered the Billboard Cast Album chart at No. 3.[6]

Allmusic gave the album a rating of 3 out of 5 stars, stating: "Collins seems to understand that theater lyrics, perhaps even more than pop-song lyrics, need to be concise to get dramatic points across quickly and clearly. What he doesn't seem to realize is that that doesn't mean they should be little more than a string of platitudes, clichés, and contemporary slang. ... It's a shame; his words are as bad as his music is good". The review notes that much of the cast perform the songs as Adult Contemporary numbers as opposed to Broadway songs, and concludes by saying that "as a musical work Tarzan represents a lost opportunity to make a good pop musical."[4] Genesis.com notes that rather than being a strict Collins album, "it is a concept album with music that has to work within the parameters of a Broadway musical".[5]

The show received mixed reviews. A review of the North Show Music Theatre production said the show took "a serious look at the deepest human emotions, setting its story to Collins’ vibrant score", and added that "this is a show that holds you and doesn’t let go."[24] The New York Times described Tarzan as "insistently kinetic ... fidgety and attention-deficient", noting that tough "momentous events occur regularly ... any tension or excitement is routinely sabotaged by overkill and diffuseness". It notes that despite "much money ... and international research" being invested into the show, "we now have conclusive evidence that the Disneyfied Tarzan does indeed flatten perversely when translated from two dimensions into three."[25] Kerry Lengel of The Republic said "the heart of Tarzan's' darkness is Phil Collins' bland melodies and generic lyrics, which offer such character insights as, 'My heart is beating faster, I must know more about her. ... She makes me feel so alive'. Even for a kiddie musical, that's a pretty weak effort."[26]

• Official website
• Tarzan at the Internet Broadway Database
• Tarzan at the Music Theatre International website
• ERB, Inc. site – Edgar Rice Burroughs Tribute Site – featuring reviews
• ERB, Inc. coverage of the Netherlands opening
• ERB, Inc. coverage of the Hamburg opening