I consider myself an involved father. I don\u2019t just park my kids in front of movies for hours on end \u2014 I sit down and watch movies with them.<\/p>\n
So take it on my authority: your appreciation of \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d \u2014 which opens Perseverance Theatre\u2019s 38th season \u2014 depends on how old you are\u2026 at heart.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d is many things: enchanting, funny, fast-paced, visually arresting and clever. It is simultaneously complicated and simple, grown-up and childlike, base (there are more than a few \u201cfart\u201d jokes) and erudite (there\u2019s also a joke about Philip Glass symphonies) \u2014 all wrapped up in what\u2019s essentially a prequel to \u201cPeter Pan.\u201d<\/p>\n
But \u201cPeter Pan\u201d it is not. There are no complicated set pieces \u2014 just canvas and rope and a few choice props \u2014 and no big song and dance numbers \u2014 though the play does include original music by Wayne Barker, ably performed by Kaylee Bonatakis and Jon Hays. Most importantly there\u2019s no jerky \u201cflying\u201d around on \u201cinvisible\u201d guywires. Instead, Perseverance\u2019s production of \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d relies on inventiveness to evoke fantasy, which, in a way, makes the play even more fantastical.<\/p>\n
Adapted by Rick Elice from a children\u2019s novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d tells the story of how a nameless orphan metamorphoses into the immortal Peter Pan \u2014 along with how the \u201cLost Boys\u201d get \u201clost,\u201d how Tinkerbell becomes a fairy and how a certain megalomaniacal pirate captain loses his hand (presumably to replace with a prosthetic hook). The show features ocean voyages, a shipwreck, a magic substance called \u201cstar-stuff,\u201d a father and daughter who talk to each other in animal calls (sometimes remotely through glowing necklaces), a giant crocodile, pirates, mermaids and an island of natives who speak a language solely comprised of Italian food dishes.<\/p>\n
If that sounds like a lot, well, it is (with a run time of 135 minutes, it\u2019s also a bit long). But for those who can give themselves over to its whimsical, albeit frenetic, energy, \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d may be highly entertaining.<\/p>\n
For one, the play looks great. As I said, the scenery is purposefully \u2014 and wonderfully \u2014 sparse (although the costuming, by Elizabeth Rocha, is purposefully \u2014 and wonderfully \u2014 elaborate). This leaves it up to the actors to create both the characters and the world they inhabit.<\/p>\n
In other words, in \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher,\u201d the actors provide the settings. Under the resourceful direction of Teresa K. Pond, the new Producing Artistic Director of Cyrano\u2019s in Anchorage, a modest cast of 12 not only portrays a host of lead and supporting roles, but also the holds of two boats, a jungle, a stormy ocean and an enchanted grotto, one scene flowing directly into the next. The actors take turns delivering narrative while the others assume poses of the action described, sometimes speaking lines in unison\u2026 occasionally in time to music. I\u2019ve seen this type of kinetic theatre referred to as \u201clocomotive storytelling.\u201d Apt name. Hats off to the entire cast for the amount of time and effort it must have taken to achieve that level of synchrony.<\/p>\n
Indeed, \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d is a true team effort, giving every cast member multiple moments to shine, from James Sullivan\u2019s absurdly prim drag portrayal of Mrs. Bumbrake to \u201cher\u201d hapless paramour (and pirate) Smee (John Galas). As the 13-year-old Boy, Austin Roach, in his Perseverance Theatre debut, achieves a nice balance between adolescent boredom and adolescent hopefulness; Sylvia Kwan plays Molly, the aspiring starcatcher, with a charming precociousness.<\/p>\n
However, \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d saves the juiciest, hammiest part for bombastically bumbling Captain Black Stache (Kelly Rossberg). Rossberg, also a newcomer to the Perseverance stage, has little choice but to inflate himself into the role; his ineffectual swashbuckling steals several scenes.<\/p>\n
Oh, and I\u2019d be remiss not to mention the crocodile, artfully rendered as a giant, looming shadow puppet. Who doesn\u2019t love a giant, looming shadow puppet?<\/p>\n
But of course, like I said, all this may be too much. With so many detours, some are bound to hit dead ends; with so many attempts at humor, some are bound to fall a little flat. Personally, I found the plot overly complex and some of the \u201ctie-ins\u201d to \u201cPeter Pan\u201d more convenient than organic. I also wonder what, exactly, a starcatcher does, because I don\u2019t recall anyone catching any stars. Molly looked after a box of starstuff, but wouldn\u2019t that make her a \u201cstarminder\u201d or a \u201cstartender\u201d? \u201cStarwrangler\u201d?<\/p>\n
Obviously, all this might not matter to you. As long as you\u2019re willing to go wherever the show wants to take you \u2014 no questions asked \u2014 you\u2019ll probably love \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher,\u201d no matter your age. Does that mean it will make you feel like a kid again? I don\u2019t know, but at my performance they sold out of cookies.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Geoff Kirsch is a Juneau-based writer and humorist. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I consider myself an involved father. I don\u2019t just park my kids in front of movies for hours on end \u2014 I sit down and watch movies with them. So take it on my authority: your appreciation of \u201cPeter and the Starcatcher\u201d \u2014 which opens Perseverance Theatre\u2019s 38th season \u2014 depends on how old you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":107,"featured_media":32681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_stopmodifiedupdate":false,"_modified_date":"","wds_primary_category":7,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[74],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-32680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life","tag-arts-and-culture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/107"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32680"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32680\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32680"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=32680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}