Plymouth State University

Plymouth, N.H. – Come meet Tinker Bell and her friends Peter Pan and the Lost Boys at Plymouth State University January 26–30. The Educational Theatre Collaborative (ETC) will stage a full-scale production of Peter Pan at the Silver Center for the Arts.

Wendy, Michael, John and their dog Nana will also be there, along with Tiger Lily and her Indian friends, Captain Hook, Smee, numerous pirates and Hook’s nemesis, the crocodile.

The production features flying of characters by ZFX Flying Effects, the company that flew Cathy Rigby in the most recent Broadway production of Peter Pan.

The intergenerational cast of 80 members, ages 8 to 65 years from 18 towns, will dance and sing their way through the musical adaptation of J.M. Barrie’s 1904 play Peter Pan.

The musical first gained renown on Broadway in the 1950s when Mary Martin as Peter and Cyril Richard as Captain Hook both won Tony Awards for their performances.

The musical retells the story of Peter Pan, a boy who didn’t want to grow up and so spends his life in Neverland battling pirates and Indians. While searching for his lost shadow, Pan enters the London bedroom of the Darling children—Wendy, Michael and John—and ends up teaching them to fly. The children fly with him to Neverland so Wendy can mother Pan’s lonely band of Lost Boys.

After many escapades and challenges Pan is eventually able to defeat his foe, Captain Hook, and befriend the Indian chief, before the Darling’s return home.

Among the more familiar songs are “I’m Flying,” “I’ve Gotta Crow,” and “I Won’t Grow Up.”

PSU Professor Trish Lindberg, co-founder and artistic director of ETC, says Peter Pan is a wonderful adventure story, full of imagination for actors and viewers of all ages. “I am extremely proud of the teamwork shown by our actors and production crew in order to produce such a challenging show in three and a half weeks. We have had a fabulous time working together and we all look forward to sharing this magical story with young and old alike,” Lindberg said.

Sam Tolley of Weare, a senior theatre arts major at Plymouth State University, portrays Peter Pan.

Captain Hook is portrayed by Robb Dimmick, a professional actor from Providence, R.I.

Sharleigh Kay Thomson of Danbury portrays Wendy, Elizabeth Casey of Holderness portrays Michael Darling and Samuel Ebner of Plymouth portrays John Darling.

Tiger Lily is portrayed by Rebecca Rose Martin of Rochester, a first-year theatre arts major at PSU, and the pirate Smee is portrayed by Dr. Joseph Casey of Holderness.

Nana, the Darlings’ St. Bernard nanny, is portrayed by Abbie Morin of Laconia, a junior theatre arts major at PSU and the crocodile is played by Beau Fisher of Nashua, a first-year theatre arts major at PSU.

A full cast list is available at <a href="http://www.plymouth.edu/outreach/etc".plymouth.edu/outreach/etc.

Performances of Peter Pan are January 26–29 at 7 p.m. and January 29 and 30 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $28 and $24 for adults, $24 and $20 for seniors, $22 and $18 for youth at the Silver Center Box Office, (603) 535-ARTS (2787) or (800) 779-3869. Tickets may also be purchased online at silver.plymouth.edu.

Wednesday and Thursday Section B tickets for PSU students and employees are $15 with I.D. at the Box Office only, first come, first served.

The Educational Theatre Collaborative (ETC) is a venture of Plymouth State University, Plymouth Elementary School and Friends of the Arts, in it’s 17th year of producing intergenerational theatre experiences that include community members, elementary, high school and university students and PSU faculty and staff.

General information about events at PSU is available at ThisWeek@PSU, http://thisweek.blogs.plymouth.edu.