AFTER well over 100 shows, Kezia Joseph knows that her time as Mowgli in a new production of The Jungle Book is coming to an end.

The show heads to the Lowry next week and then ends its UK tour in Blackpool the week after.

“The thing I’m going to miss most is my Mowgli hair,” laughed Kezia. “It’s become part of me. When I first got it cut I thought it was too far away from me, Kez, the 25-year-old. But when I see people away from the job they keep saying ‘oh we love your hair’ as though I’ve had it done for me rather than for the part. I really will miss it.”

As Mowgli, Kezia is at the centre of this fast-paced, family show based on the stories by Rudyard Kipling. In them, Mowgli - who is brought up in the jungle by wolves - is described as a man cub. But for this production that’s not the case.

“When I got the job I thought I would be playing a small boy but after a run through, Jessica the writer took me to one side and said ‘I just feel like our Mowgli doesn’t have to be defined’,” said Kezia. “In rehearsal I’d been referred to both he and she so many times it was getting ridiculous. I even started to wonder why it had to be specified and once we got rid of all the possessive pronouns it’s just worked.

“We let the audience decide in their own minds and the response has been phenomenal. You have young girls seeing themselves in Mowgli or young boys seeing that a girl can be adventurous and naughty.”

The feedback from the audience has surprised Kezia.

“It’s so cute hearing their conversations as they leave the theatre arguing whether Mowgli was a boy or a girl,” she said. “Sometimes I play it more masculine and sometimes more feminine – it’s great fun finding the general energy of a child, trust me.”

The Jungle Book has been brought to the stage by the same team who adapted Michael Morpurgo’s Running Wild. For many people the Jungle Book will mean the famous Disney cartoon version.

“I think some people have been waiting for Bear Necessities or King of the Swingers but we’re not trying to replicate the Disney script in any way,” said Kezia.

“The show is based on the original stories and as a result, the show is very different from the film. You still have the characters you can respond to but we have some fantastic original songs which work so well. I don’t think the Disney songs would work with our version.”

And the show is not just for children.

“It’s a family show not just a kids’ show,” said Kezia.

Playing Mowgli has been a physically demanding challenge for her but apart from a broken toe early in the run Kezia’s emerged unscathed.

“I’m climbing ladders, then there’s the dancing - there’s no need for the gym, that’s for sure,” she said. “My arms are like steel as I have to work with the baby Mowgli puppet every night which is really heavy but you should see the biceps!”

The Jungle Book, the Lowry, Salford Quays, Wednesday, May 2 to Sunday, May 6. Details from 0843 208 6005 or www.thelowry.com. Blackpool Grand Theatre, Tuesday, May 8 to Saturday, May 12. Details from 01253 290 190