“You Can Fly!” When thinking about Peter Pan, it’s difficult to not defer to the Disney movie version of this classic tale.  “Peter and the Starcatcher” at Williamsburg Players tells the story before where the Disney film picks up.  The boy who we will all know as Peter (played by Samuel Foraker in The Wasp’s Nest Cast and by Alex Fagerland in The Neverlanders Cast; the night we were in attendance, The Wasp’s Nest Cast was manning the ship), begins this tale without even a name.  He’s been an orphan so long, he no longer remembers his given name. With his terrible upbringing devoid of love and full of beatings at the orphanage, he dreams of just being “a boy for a while.”  Foraker imparts a dreamy wistfulness coupled with fits of impetuousness that capture the spirit of Peter Pan.  He is flanked by two other orphans: the oft self-proclaimed leader Prentiss (portrayed by Ronnie Littmann in The Wasp’s Nest Cast and Canton Murphy in The Neverlanders Cast) and the perpetually hungry Ted (Brendan O’Brien of The Wasp’s Nest and Thomas van der Dien of The Neverlanders).  

The boys are a bit lost at sea (almost literally) on the ship, The Neverland, when a girl (yes, “a girl!” as the boys proclaim) shows up to lead them to food and out of their fate to be snake food.  This girl, Molly (played by Margaret Perry in The Wasp’s Nest Cast and Ellery Dalgleish in The Neverlanders Cast), a natural leader, is in possession of a small bit of ‘star stuff’ and is a part of a group of “Starcatchers” who protect the world by destroying any ‘star stuff’ before it can fall into the wrong hands. The interactions between Perry, O’Brien, Littman, and Foraker, generally arguing about who is the real leader and making even potential life and death obstacles into competitions, allow for the viewers to get into the adolescent headspace of our protagonists.

 While our youths are holding their own on the ship The Neverland, Molly’s father, Lord Aster (portrayed by Ed Allmann for both casts), is taken prisoner on the ship known as The Wasp by *gasp* pirates!  While the first mate Smee (William Van Dyke in The Wasp’s Nest Crew and Kevin Clauberg in The Neverlanders Crew) is familiar to those Disney animation viewers, his captain, Black Stache (hilariously portrayed by Lawrence Nichols in The Wasp’s Nest Cast and Amy Stallings in The Neverlanders Cast) is named after his signature physical feature – which is not yet a hook.  Black Stache desires treasure of course, but also that most fleeting of villainous needs: a hero to define himself against. He is disappointed to find Lord Aster not a worthy adversary.  When the pull of treasure brings two ships together, all of our characters collide in a very fun fight scene (props to Action Choreographer, Dave Catanese) to end the first act. Make sure that you’re back in your seat before the start of Act II; you won’t want to miss the incredibly funny costumes (thanks to David Garrett) that begin the second act with a bang!

This is one of the largest casts we’ve seen this year. Neil Hollands does a commendable job of directing the action between the numerous pirates, sailors, Mollusks (a retrofit of the natives from the original Peter Pan), mermaids, and sea creatures without the stage feeling overcrowded.  He also composed some cool and interesting new ways of using Williamsburg Players’ new turntable feature, as well as putting together a really striking version of the night sky full of stars on stage, which is the vision I will take away most from this night.  The actors are very engrossed in their roles: whether they be seafarers, islanders or sea creatures. A special shoutout to Madison Foley who puppeteers the ship’s cat, much to my delight each time she is on stage.

Overall, “Peter and the Starcatcher” is an entertaining origin story for the beloved Peter Pan. Williamsburg Players ended their 66^th season with fun twist on a traditional story we all know and love, and we can’t wait to see what they have in store for season 67!