A musical play at Legion Hall

Theatre Company of Saugus presents two-weekend performance of Peter and the Starcatcher next month

(Editor’s Note: The Theatre Company of Saugus issued the following press release this week)

  The Theatre Company of Saugus will present Peter and the Starcatcher, a play with music, during the second and third weekends of May 2023. This Tony-winning show upends the century-old story of how a miserable orphan comes to be The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up (a.k.a. Peter Pan). A wildly theatrical adaptation featuring marauding pirates, jungle tyrants, unwilling comrades, and unlikely heroes, Peter and the Starcatcher playfully explores the depths of greed and despair… and the bonds of friendship, duty and love.

   A young orphan and his mates are shipped off from Victorian England to a distant island ruled by the evil King Zarboff. They know nothing of the mysterious trunk in the captain’s cabin, which contains a precious, otherworldly cargo. At sea, the boys are discovered by a precocious young girl named Molly, a Starcatcher-in-training who realizes that the trunk’s precious cargo is starstuff, a celestial substance so powerful that it must never fall into the wrong hands. When the ship is taken over by pirates – led by the fearsome Black Stache, a villain determined to claim the trunk and its treasure for his own – the journey quickly becomes a thrilling adventure.

   Featuring 18 actors portraying more than 100 unforgettable characters, Peter and the Starcatcher uses ingenious stagecraft and the limitless possibilities of imagination to bring the story to life.

   The Theatre Company of Saugus (TCS) production is directed by Matthew Garlin, stage managed by Ally Lewis, and musically directed by Samantha Prindiville; with choreography by Julie Liuzza; costumes by Venessa Phelon; and props by Addie Pates.

   Performances are May 12-13-14 and 19-20-21, 2023, on Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.

   The venue is the American Legion Post 210 at 44 Taylor St. in Saugus. The performance space is not wheelchair accessible, but it does feature a bar serving alcoholic and soft drinks. Snacks and raffle tickets are available for purchase before the show and during intermission. Masks are required indoors for the safety of the audience and cast.

  Tickets paid at the door are $25 for adults or $23 for youth, seniors, or veterans. Tickets purchased in advance online are only $22 or $20. Tickets are now on sale; for complete information visit the Tickets page on the TCS website: TCSaugus.org/tickets/

   Peter and the Starcatcher is written by Rick Elice, based on the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, with music By Wayne Barker. The show was originally produced on Broadway by Nancy Nagel Gibbs, Greg Schaffert, Eva Price, Tom Smedes, and Disney Theatrical Productions. Peter and the Starcatcher is presented through special arrangement by Music Theatre International (MTI).

   We are pleased to announce the cast, including actors from throughout the North Shore area of Boston. The Orphans include Michael Mazzone as the Boy, Jackie Daley as Prentiss, and Jennifer Antocci as Ted. The British Subjects are Jon Workman as Lord Leonard Aster, Hailey Cooke as his daughter Molly Aster, D’Shyla Hodge as her governess Mrs. Bumbrake, Ted Merritt as the ship captain Robert Falcon Scott, and Kris Reynolds as Grempkin.

   The Seafarers aboard one ship, the Wasp, include Kaleigh Ryan as The Black Stache, Maria Mulcahy as Smee, and D’Shyla Hodge as Sanchez. The Seafarers aboard the other ship, the Neverland, are Bridget R Saunders as Bill Slank, Meg Brown as Alf, and Chinedu Ibiam as Mack.

   When the ships get to the island they meet the Mollusks: Andrew Quinney as Fighting Prawn, Chinedu Ibiam as Hawking Clam, and Kris Reynolds as Teacher. The Mermaids include Natalie Lewis, Jodie Putnam, Meg Brown, and JacLene London. Melz Phelon is the Young Child.

   For more information, see the Theatre Company of Saugus website at TCSaugus.org.

COVID Safety Policy Update

   Although policies about wearing masks have been loosening up in many places, in theaters we still must ensure the safety of our patrons, members, actors, and crew, by minimizing the risk of contagion. The Theatre Company of Saugus home at the Saugus American Legion is not large and social distancing is not possible.

   Therefore we will continue to require our audience to wear masks inside (unless actively eating or drinking), although we are no longer asking the audience for proof of vaccination at the door. All the cast members of our shows are vaccinated, will be masked during rehearsals, and will be tested prior to performances.

About the Theatre Company of Saugus

   The Theatre Company of Saugus (TCS), founded in 1968, is the community theatre serving Saugus, Massachusetts and surrounding towns. In most years we present four shows, including plays and musicals, and a summer youth theatre workshop.

   In May 2022 TCS presented the musical Spring Awakening to sold-out audiences. It received the EMACT DASH award for Best Choreography, and was nominated for ten other awards.

   Our production of Nevermore: The Imaginary Life and Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe, presented in October & November 2019, was the recipient of EMACT DASH Outstanding Achievement Awards for a Musical in almost every possible category, including Best Show, Direction, Musical Direction, Choreography, and Ensemble Cast. Our production of James and the Giant Peach in February 2020 also garnered two awards: Youth Actor in a Play and a Consultant Choice Award for Excellence in Original Music.

   Our other recent productions include: Zombie Prom (a musical), Lovely Thoughts and Other Stories (a short play festival), Night of the Living Dead, There’s No Business Like Snow Business (a holiday cabaret), and Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.

   The TCS Summer Youth Theatre Workshop has produced a number of “junior” musicals including: Wiliy Wonka Jr., The Addams Family young@part, The Little Mermaid, Jr., Elf, Jr., Getting to Know…Once Upon a Mattress, Honk! Jr., and Suessical Jr.