Grosse Pointe Theatre Stages Inventive PETER AND THE STARCATCHER At Pierce Auditorium

Did you ever wonder how Peter Pan got to Neverland? Grosse Pointe Theatre invites audiences on a high seas adventure, as it continues its historic 70th Season with a production of Peter and the Starcatcher. The eight performance runs starts on January 21, 2018 at Pierce Auditorium, located at 15430 Kercheval Ave, Grosse Pointe Park, MI 48230. Parking is free. Complementary valet is available. In 1948, Grosse Pointe Theatre staged their inaugural show, Clarence by Booth Tarkington at Pierce Auditorium.

The Tony-winning Peter and the Starcatcher 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 of Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson's best-selling novels, the play was conceived for the stage by directors, Roger Rees and Alex Timbers, and written by Rick Elice, with music by Wayne Barker. From marauding pirates and jungle tyrants to 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.

Featuring a dozen 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.

Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at www.gpt.org or by calling the Grosse Pointe Theatre Box Office at 313-881-4004. Parking at Pierce Auditorium is free and complementary valet will be available for all patrons.

Peter and the Starcatcher was originally produced on Broadway by Nancy Nagel Gibbs, Greg Schaffert,

Eva Price, Tom Smedes, and Disney Theatrical Productions and is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.

An incredibly talented ensemble cast includes: Joshua Whitson (Madison Heights) as Boy/Peter, Lauren Berndt (St. Clair Shores) as Molly, Jeffrey James Smyk (Roseville) as The Black Stache, Michael McDowell-Parker (Grosse Pointe Woods) as Lord Leonard Aster, Norm Killop (Romeo) as Smee, Phil Potter (St. Clair Shores) as Mrs.Bumbrake/Teacher, Joe Allen (Warren) as Fighting Prawn/Grempkin/Mack/Sanchez, Grayson Kennedy (Grosse Pointe Farms) as Prentiss, Gerald Ashby Jr. (Detroit) as Ted, Gordon Richardson (Grosse Pointe Park) as Bill Slank/Hawking Clam, Virginia Lee (Grosse Pointe) as Alf, and John Leo (Grosse Pointe) as Capt. Robert Falcon Scott.

The Crew includes Director / Set Designer Kevin Fitzhenry (Warren), Producer Kathleen Lusk (Detroit), Stage Manager Leta Chrisman (Clawson), Music/Vocal Director Ron Pietrantoni (Detroit), Choreographer Erica Clarke (Warren), Technical Director Eddie Tujaka (Grosse Pointe Farms), Lighting Designer Eric Leszczynski (Grosse Pointe Woods), Sound Designer Kevin Stephinson (holly), Costume Designer Anna Chrisman (Harper Woods), Hair and Make-up Designer Jessica Tujaka (Warren) and Properties and Set Dressing design by Beth Teagan (Grosse Pointe Woods) and Tom Arwady (Harrison Twp.)

GPT's 70th anniversary season will continue in February as The Purdon Studio Theatre, the black box arm of GPT will present the provocative Other Desert Cities at Grosse Pointe Woods Presbyterian Church February 15 - 25, 2018. The Mad Men meets musical comedy: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying will be performed at Pierce Auditorium March 11 -24, 2018. The 70th Season concludes with the Broadway blockbuster 42nd Street June 17 - 30, 2018 at the Christian A. Fenton Performing Arts Center at Grosse Pointe North High School.