“Peter and the Starcatcher” to open at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre this Spring
Contact:
Rick Miramontez / Molly Barnett / Chelsea Nachman
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE
THE LOST BOYS HAVE FOUND THEIR HOME!
“P E T E R A N D T H E S T A R C A T C H E R”
TO LAND AT THE BROOKS ATKINSON THEATRE
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28
THE ANTICIPATED NEW PLAY BY RICK ELICE
DIRECTED BY ROGER REES AND ALEX TIMBERS
SETS APRIL 15 OPENING NIGHT DATE
TICKETS ON SALE FEBRUARY 13
BOX OFFICE OPENS FEBRUARY 20
New York, NY (1/19/12) – The producers of Peter and the Starcatcher announced today that the acclaimed new American play by Tony Award nominee Rick Elice, directed by Tony Award-winner Roger Rees and Drama Desk Award-winner and Tony Award nominee Alex Timbers (Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson), will begin preview performances on Broadway at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (256 West 47th Street) on Wednesday, March 28, with an official opening night set for Sunday, April 15, 2012. Based on The New York Times best selling Disney-Hyperion novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, Peter and the Starcatcher will be produced on Broadway by Nancy Nagel Gibbs, Greg Schaffert, Eva Price and Tom Smedes. Tickets will be on sale via Ticketmaster starting February 13 and in person at the Brooks Atkinson box office beginning February 20, 2012.
In this innovative and imaginative new play, a company of twelve actors plays some 50 characters, all on a journey to answer the century-old question: How did Peter Pan become The Boy Who Refused To Grow Up? This epic origin story of one of popular culture’s most enduring and beloved characters proves that an audience’s imagination can be the most captivating place in the world.
As previously announced, the entire creative team reunites for the Broadway production of Peter and the Starcatcher and includes: Wayne Barker (Music), Steven Hoggett (Movement), Marco Paguia (Music Direction), Donyale Werle (Scenic Design), Paloma Young (Costume Design), Jeff Croiter (Lighting Design) and Darron L. West (Sound Design).
Casting information is forthcoming.
Peter and the Starcatcher opened to rave reviews last March in its premiere Off Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop. In The New York Times, Ben Brantley enthused: “I truly felt I was floating. Peter and the Starcatcher sustains a breathless air of adventure and a cocky confidence in its powers to enchant. With grown-up theatrical savvy and a child’s wonder, Peter and the Starcatcher floats right through the ceiling of the physical limits imposed by a three-dimensional stage. While there’s not a body harness in sight, this show never stops flying.”
The sold out run was extended by popular demand and set a record for the highest grossing single day in NYTW’s history. The production went on to receive five Drama Desk nominations (and a win for Outstanding Music in a Play); two Obie Awards (for Direction and Design), two Lucille Lortel Awards (for Outstanding Lead Actor and Outstanding Choreography) and a Henry Hewes Design Award for Best Lighting.
The show began its journey to the stage in 2003 when Disney Theatrical Productions president Thomas Schumacher discovered the first Barry and Pearson book while it was still in galleys, and its development has been shepherded by DTP ever since. With just a few scenes outlined, the project received its first lab in 2007 at Williamstown Theatre Festival under the direction of Rees and Timbers. A full length version of the play was then written by Elice and developed in a Page to Stage production at La Jolla Playhouse in the winter of 2009. Following further revisions, the play received its first fully staged production with the spring 2011 run at NYTW.
CRITICAL PRAISE FOR PETER AND THE STARCATCHER
“Sensational! Showbiz at its most infectious!”
— Ben Brantley, The New York Times
“Hysterical! Peter and the Starcatcher is a madcap production, filled with silly puns, hip jokes and sophisticated zaniness!”
— Jennifer Farrar, Associated Press
“Mr. Rees and Mr. Timbers have created a theatrical world that’s so high-spirited, so inventive, so smart – it’s a hell of a lot of fun!”
— Jesse Oxfeld, New York Observer
“A rollicking good time!”
— Melissa Rose Bernardo, Entertainment Weekly
“Endlessly imaginative!”
— Matt Windman, AM NewYork
“A treasure chest of pleasures!”
— Adam Feldman, Time Out New York
“Magical! An infectious balance of broad gags with cheeky adult humor. In an era of mainstream entertainment in which audience imagination is too rarely a requirement, it's a breath of salty sea air.”
–David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
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