TAMPA — Tampa Repertory Theatre and ThinkTank Theatre will join forces for a production of “Peter and the Starcatcher,” the wildly theatrical, Tony Award-winning adventure that reveals how a nameless orphan became the “Boy Who Would Not Grow Up.” The show will be presented Nov. 5-22, in the Shimberg Playhouse at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts, 1010 N. W.C. MacInnes Place, Tampa.
Tickets start at $67.20. Visit strazcenter.org.
“Peter and the Starcatcher” features music, physical comedy, ingenious stagecraft and a cast of actors transforming into dozens of unforgettable characters. Before Wendy, before Captain Hook and before Neverland, there was a Boy, a girl named Molly and a trunk filled with a mysterious substance called Starstuff. Sent on a dangerous sea voyage, the Boy encounters a fearless young Starcatcher, a flamboyant pirate and an adventure that will change his destiny forever. Based on the bestselling novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, “Peter and the Starcatcher” celebrates friendship, courage and the extraordinary power of imagination.
Longtime Tampa Bay favorite Spencer Meyers leads the pirates as Black Stache. An artistic associate and ensemble member with Jobsite Theater since 2007, Meyers’ credits include “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” “American Idiot,” “PUFFS,” “The Rocky Horror Show” and “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised].”
At the heart of the adventure are ThinkTank Young Artists’ Ensemble (YAE) Intern Company members Ian Riddle as Boy/Peter and Rio Ricardo as Molly Aster. The rest of the cast includes familiar faces on the Tampa theater scene, including Stageworks and Jobsite regulars Jaryn McCann and Katherine Yacko, and TampaRep/ThinkTank vet Randi J. Norman. New-to TampaRep and ThinkTank artists include Garrett Dahlman, Aidan Leary, Aaron Ford, Nicholas Torres, Tony Capizzi and Blaine Moss.
Additional YAE members will fill out the ensemble, including Haylyn Benton, Emma Boksen, Tessa Fritz, Andy Kennedy and Erin Gordon.
“Peter and the Starcatcher” marks the fourth collaboration between TampaRep and ThinkTank Theatre. The two professional producing organizations previously partnered on “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” “The Giver” and “The Crucible.”
The production is directed by Cameron Kubly, with music direction by Tristan J. Horta. The creative and production team includes Georgios Tsambis, production stage manager and costume designer; Dean Wick, scenic and properties designer; Keith Eisenstadt, lighting designer; Erin Gordon, assistant stage manager; and Erin Coalson and Georgios Tsambis, social media.