Theater

Pure magic: Paramount Theatre’s ‘Peter and the Starcatcher’ revival soars

Posted August 02, 2024 1:24 pm

Barbara Vitello

Terry Bell, right, plays Peter and Shelbi Voss plays the titular starcatcher Molly in Paramount Theatre's enchanting revival of “Peter and the Starcatcher,” a “Peter Pan” prequel based on Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson's children's novel “Peter and the Starcatchers.” Courtesy of Liz Lauren

Describing “Peter and the Starcatcher” as a celebration of J.M. Barrie’s timeless tale about The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up would be accurate, but it would be insufficient.

Adapted from “Peter and the Starcatchers,” Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson’s 2004 “Peter Pan” prequel, Rick Elice’s enchantingly theatrical play-with-music (Wayne Barker composed the score) is much more.

Evidenced by director Nate Cohen’s artfully conceived, marvelously executed revival at Aurora’s Copley Theatre, “Peter and the Starcatcher” also celebrates the art of storytelling and the magic of theater. Helping to conjure that magic are designers Myra G. Reavis and Ivy Teccani, who get maximum effect from minimal sets and props.

It’s full steam ahead on the high seas for Bill Slank (Matt Miles, center) and the cast of Paramount Theatre's inventively staged, impressively acted “Peter and the Starcatcher,” Rick Elice's entertaining prequel to J.M. Barrie's “Peter Pan.” Courtesy of Liz Lauren

Reavis uses sawhorses, ladders, wooden slats and fabric to create a 19th century frigate, a forest, a grotto and a hurricane. Teccani’s props include several puppets, one an ingenious visual pun. All of it is accented by Jackie Fox’s lovely lighting and Eric Backus’ subtly evocative sound design.

Playful, pun-filled and peppered with wordplay, “Peter and the Starcatcher” is a swashbuckling coming-of-age tale about a boy who never ages. Gleefully metatheatrical, the play unfolds story-theater style, with actors stepping out of character to narrate and comment on the action.

Shelbi Voss, top, plays apprentice starcatcher Molly Aster, who befriends lost boys Peter (Terry Bell), bottom left, Prentiss (Michaela Shapiro), center, and Ted (Brandon Acosta) in Paramount Theatre's entertaining revival of “Peter and the Starcatcher.” Courtesy of Liz Lauren

The play centers on two 13-year-olds: The Boy (fine work by Terry Bell, whose character’s emotional arc is nicely limned) and Molly Aster (a charming Shelbi Voss). The Boy is an abused orphan from London sold into slavery with his fellow foundlings: self-styled leader Prentiss (an endearingly bothersome Michaela Shapiro) and the ever-hungry Ted (Brandon Acosta). Molly is a plucky, privileged apprentice starcatcher who inspires the hero’s journey that concludes with The Boy becoming Peter Pan.

Molly, her alliterative nanny Mrs. Bumbrake (Gabriel Fries) and the boys set sail on a ship called The Neverland bound for the fictional Rundoon. There, The Boy and his friends become slaves or snake food, and Molly will reunite with her father, full-fledged starcatcher Lord Leonard (Kevin Kantor). He is on board a second ship, also headed for Rundoon, on a mission from Queen Victoria to dispose of a trunk of magical starstuff, which could prove disastrous in the wrong hands.

Nick Sandys, left, plays pirate Black Stache and Mark David Kaplan plays his right-hand man Smee in “Peter and the Starcatcher,” the prequel to J.M. Barrie's “Peter Pan,” running through Sept. 1 at Aurora’s Copley Theatre. Courtesy of Liz Lauren

That includes a band of pirates led by malaprop-prone Black Stache, zestfully played by Nick Sandys, whose gorgeously sonorous voice and pristine timing make for a deliciously villainous buccaneer. Mark David Kaplan plays Stache’s right-hand man Smee with equal gusto, making for an ideal comic duo. (For the record, Sandys and Kaplan seem to be having the time of their lives).

Swapped trunks, skirmishes and shipwrecks ensue, along with mermaid encounters (Act II opens with a delightful production number showcasing transformed fish vibrantly costumed by Kotryna Hilko) and a confrontation with The Mollusks.

Mermaids sing about their starstuff transformation in Paramount Theatre's revival of “Peter and the Starcatcher,” a play-with-music by Rick Elice and composer Wayne Barker. Courtesy of Liz Lauren

Inhabitants of a nearly deserted island where Molly and the boys wash ashore post-shipwreck, The Mollusks are led by Fighting Prawn (the versatile Josh Bernaski), who hates the “not-so-Great-British” and speaks almost exclusively in Italian cooking terms. Prawn and his followers wear armor and carry weapons comprised of kitchen utensils (more inventive costuming from Hilko, who fashioned breastplates from plastic cups).

Peter (Terry Bell), center, gets lost at sea in Paramount Theatre's enchanting revival of “Peter and the Starcatcher.” Courtesy of Liz Lauren

Music director/pianist Kevin Reeks and percussionist Tina Laughlin provide accompaniment for Elice’s whimsical tale that empowers females, encourages boys, criticizes colonialism and sends-up theatrical conventions while delivering laughs and sharing the hard truths all of us must learn.

Kudos to Cohen, his talented cast and his resourceful designers for a winning revival that reminds us of the joy of a good story, well-told.

“Peter and the Starcatcher”

4 stars

Location: Copley Theatre, 8 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora, (630) 896-6666, paramountaurora.com

Showtimes: 1:30 and 7 p.m. Wednesday; 7 p.m. Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 1 and 5:30 p.m. Sunday through Sept. 1

Running time: About 2 hours, 40 minutes, with intermission

Tickets: $40-$55

Parking: Limited street parking, paid lots nearby

Rating: For most audiences, some fighting, discrimination toward females

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