Playful People Offers STARMITES Workshop

Playful People Productions is offering a comprehensive exploration of the Tony nominated cult musical Starmites, led by PPP Co-Founder Barb Galiotto, at Historic Hoover Theatre in San Jose starting June 21. Recommended for ages 10 to 110, this week-long program is $125 per student and will be divided into age groups 10-14 and 14+. For more information on Playful People Productions and their programs, visit https://playfulpeople.org or call (408) 878-5362.

"Starmites came into my life about 26 years ago, and I have never been the same!" exclaims Galiotto. "This quirky musical has become almost a mascot for our company: full of perseverance, chutzpah, courage, self-esteem building, and of course beautiful, unforgettable songs. It is the most fun musical to do with kids, teens, or adults - but even more so with families. Everyone who has ever been in it knows what I mean ... we all come out better people when we are done."

Written by Barry Keating in 1980, Starmites is a sci-fi musical adventure, a Playful People Productions favorite, and a regularly scheduled production on the Hoover stage. In 1989, The New York Times called it "A Space-Age Peter Pan ... A light-hearted space flight [with] a childlike fancifulness and a genuine affection for its genre, for its labyrinthine detail as well as its exclamatory dialogue." Participants in this workshop will explore the complex and well loved script, story, and characters; read through both the original script and script adaptations; deep dive into character discussion; and explore the design possibilities of this epic musical escapade.

This workshop will be taught by Playful People founder and Executive Director Barb Galiotto, who has produced Starmites over a dozen times in the last 25 years.

Playful People Productions was first founded in 2010 as a positive, inclusive, family-focused theatre company, and has operated as a 501(c)3 nonprofit since 2017. While initially providing classes, camps, and shows for kids, the company has grown to offer similar classes for adults and stages performances where family members can perform together. Normally performing out of the Historic Hoover Theatre in San Jose, the company immediately sprung into action in March, 2020 to create POP (Playful Online People) programming, converting all its theatre experiences to virtual formats and continuing to make arts and theatre opportunities available to kids and families during the pandemic. Now with restrictions easing, Playful People is overjoyed to be adding in-person experiences back to its schedule, alongside purely virtual ones.

Mother and daughter team Barbara Galiotto and Katie D' Arcey are Positive Discipline trained; both have worked as early Childhood Educators; and as professional directors with children's theater. The pair have approximately 50 years experience between them in the musical theater world and, together with a small team of permanent staff and an array of talented directors, teachers, and support personnel, offer beginner through advanced theatre experiences for the whole family.