Peter And The Starcatcher

[foxy]

I've seen about a dozen Broadway shows this season but this was by far my favorite. It is the prequel to Peter Pan but that doesn't really get explained till the last 20 minutes. It's a very funny, very clever show with wonderfully inventive props, sets and costumes. There were a lot of children at today's performance and it's certainly a show you could take kids to but it's not exactly kiddie material. How many jokes that reference Ayn Rand or Philip Glass would mean anything to the average kid? But there is definitely something for everyone here. One of the stars is Christian Borle who plays Tom Levitt on "Smash". I don't particularly care for the character he plays on "Smash" but he completely won me over today. He has lots to do on stage and I really enjoyed his performance which shows far more range than he is given to do on "Smash". I rarely see a Broadway show twice but I'm looking forward to seeing this show again.

[+ WilliamM]

How A Boy Became Peter Pan

 

I saw Peter and the Starcatcher several weeks ago. I agree with everything you wrote, and more. Back in the 1950s, I saw the two live telecasts of the musical version with Mary Martin---my first exposure to Broadway (although on TV) as a kid. Since then I saw Sandy Duncan and others play Peter, and thought I was through with Peter Pan.

 

But, this silly and witty play really got to me. As people may know, the play tells the story of how a boy became Peter Pan, and a pirate became Captain Hook. Christian Borle is wonderful as Hook (not sure if Hook is gay or not, but it seems that Borle has been directed to keep the audience guessing). There are a few good songs, but it is miles away from the famous Broadway musical, which was written for Martin.

 

Peter and The Starcatcher is the most enjoyable Broadway or Off-Broadway show that I have seen this season. And I hope to see it at least once more...something I did not feel when I saw Follies, Venus in Furs, Death of A Salesman, Cock or The Best Man despite enjoying them a lot.

[Cooper]

Two hours before show time, foxy and I went to the TKTS booth to purchase discounted tickets for this play. There were no lines and our seats were Row B, center orchestra. We were so close to the stage that no spit/sweat went unnoticed. And, there's a lot of that.

 

Going in, the only thing I knew about this play was that it told the story of how Peter Pan got to remain a boy for the rest of his life. I knew it was nominated for a few Tony Awards and I had heard that a cast member from the TV show "Smash" was in it.

 

The play is amazing. It has a very talented and most likeable cast. The plot is extremely creative and (most of the time) easy to follow. The humor ranges from silly to sophisticated. Some of which you'll miss because the dialogue is fast paced. I was captivated by the story and humor. I found the 1st Act to go very quickly and couldn't wait for the 2nd Act to begin. And, the start of the 2nd Act will not disappoint. It opens with a very funny number that has the male cast dressed as women. A lot of thought went into the costume designs which makes this scenes even funnier.

 

I had a most enjoyable afternoon at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.