Immediately after school ended for the day, the last rehearsal of “Peter and the Starcatcher” began. At 2:00 p.m. sharp, the drama department gathered in the MTHS theater. Under the direction of drama director Jeannie Brzovic, they prepared for the opening evening the next day.
“Peter and the Starcatcher” is the origin story of Peter Pan, based on the novel “Peter and the Starcatchers.” The play features Black Stache as the main villain as he seeks the magical properties of stardust. It also introduces the Lost Boys, Molly Aster, Smee and many more characters in the struggle between Peter and the pirates.
The play begins with Peter (freshman Jaren Kirkman) being under the care of a villainous headmaster. He, along with a few other boys, are placed on a ship headed for the kingdom of Rundoon. Peter soon meets Molly Aster (sophomore Peja Shymko) but is confronted by Black Stache (senior Flynn Thomas) along the way. The boys must overcome storms, conflicts with pirates and a mystical island in order to survive.
“I feel like it’s going to go really well, felt really rushed in other plays but this one gave enough time to fix mistakes,” Thomas said. “There was just so much stuff in other plays.”
Concise writing and lack of choreography allowed for a clear play where the actors felt confident in their roles.
The drama department has been practicing “Peter and the Starcatcher” since late March, allowing two months to practice the play. Initially, the practices began from after school to 2:45 p.m. These eventually extended to rehearsals from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. everyday.
Thomas said the play is “not a technical musical so there weren’t as many things to practice.” Because of this, the drama department “had more time to build characters and costumes.” Consequently, the time invested was used on improving performance to perfection rather than learning songs and developing the actor’s vocal abilities.
For those unable to pay the full $7, saying “I believe” allows for a discounted main ticket price of $5 instead of $7. Tinkerbell sends her thanks for the service to fairies everywhere.
“Y’all should come to the show because it’s a really entertaining show with tons of little bits and pieces here and there to keep the show running,” junior Michael Wollan stated.
“Peter and the Starcatcher” is playing from Thursday, May 31 to Saturday, June 2 at the MTHS theater every night at 7 p.m.
Thomas concluded, “I recommend going on Friday night. From my experience, the third show is the best.”
