Based on the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, Peter and the Starcatcher premiered Off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop March 9, 2011, where it extended its run twice. The entire Off-Broadway cast returned for the Broadway transfer that began March 28, 2012, and opened to acclaim April 15 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre. It ended its Broadway run Jan. 20, 2013. The production transferred to an open-ended Off-Broadway run at New World Stages in March.
Tony Award nominee Rick Elice (Jersey Boys, The Addams Family) authored the stage adaptation that is co-directed by Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson Tony Award nominee Alex Timbers and Tony winner Roger Rees (The Addams Family, Nicholas Nickleby). It features original Tony Award-nominated songs by Wayne Barker.
Starcatcher received nine Tony Award nominations, and took home honors for Best Costume Design (Paloma H. Young), Best Lighting Design (Jeff Croiter), Best Sound Design (Darron L. West), Best Scenic Design (Donyale Werle) and Best Featured Actor (Christian Borle).
Joey deBettencourt (South of Settling at Steppenwolf Theatre) stars as Boy with Megan Stern (The Civilians' Be the Death of Me) as Molly and John Sanders (Peter and the Starcatcher, Matilda the Musical) as Black Stache. Rounding out the cast are Harter Clingman as Alf, Jimonn Cole as Slank, Nathan Hosner as Lord Aster, Carl Howell as Prentiss, Ian Michael Stuart as Captain Scott, Benjamin Schrader as Mrs. Bumbrake, Luke Smith as Smee, Edward Tournier as Ted, Lee Zarrett as Fighting Prawn, Ben Beckley, Robert Franklin Neill, Rachel Prather and Nick Vidal.
In the spirit of Starcatcher's Tony Award-winning sustainable set design, the producers invited the venues on the tour route to contribute reusable items to help build the tour proscenium. Denver sent in Coors bottle caps, Seattle collected wine corks from the bars at their theatre, and Dallas arranged a special collection drive at Klyde Warren Park to collect items.
Additional items donated by the Starcatcher tour markets include small children's toy figures, old silverware, used rope, buttons and whopper poppers, cords, aluminum can lids, old cooking tools, tin can tops, balls and paper tubes.
The current tour itinerary follows:
Los Angeles, CA (Dec. 3, 2013-Jan. 12, 2014 at the Ahmanson Theatre)
Tempe, AZ (Jan. 14-19, 2014 at the Gammage Auditorium)
East Lansing, MI (Jan. 22-26, 2014 at the Wharton Center)
Washington, DC (Jan. 28-Feb.16, 2014 at the Kennedy Center)
Hartford, CT (Feb. 18-23, 2014 at the Busnhell)
Providence, RI (Feb. 25-March 2, 2014 at the Providence PAC)
Utica, NY (March 4-5 at the Stanley Theatre)
St. Louis, MO (March 7-9 at the Peabody Opera House)
Minneapolis, MN (March 11-16, 2014 at the Orpheum Theatre)
Palm Desert, CA (March 28-30, 2014 at the McCallum Theatre)
Chicago, IL (April 2-13, 2014 at the Bank of America Theatre)
Charlotte, NC (April 29-May 4, 2014 at the Knight Theater)
Baltimore, MD (May 6-18, 2014 at the Hippodrome Theatre)
Pittsburgh, PA (May 20-25 at Heinz Hall)
The play, according to producers, "is the innovative and imaginative musical play based on the best-selling novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. A company of a dozen actors play more than a hundred unforgettable characters, all on a journey to answer the century-old question: How did Peter Pan become The Boy Who Never Grew Up? This epic origin story of popular culture's most enduring and beloved character proves that your imagination is the most captivating place in the world."
Steven Hoggett (American Idiot, Black Watch, Once) created the movement for the production, which has set design by Tony Award winner Donyale Werle, costume design by Tony Award winner Paloma Young, lighting design by Tony Award winner Jeff Croiter, sound design by Tony Award winner Darron L West and musical supervision by Marco Paguia.
Peter and the Starcatcher is produced by Nancy Nagel Gibbs, Greg Schaffert, Eva Price, Tom Smedes and Disney Theatrical Productions.
Disney Theatrical Productions commissioned the work. Peter and the Starcatcher began life at the La Jolla Playhouse as part of the company's Page To Stage Play Development program.
