[NEohioPAL] Preview of "Peter Pan" fundraiser for Mercury Summer Stock

[Bob Abelman]

A 'Peter Pan' for the next generation

Bob Abelman

News-Herald, Chagrin Valley Times, Solon Times, Geauga Times Courier

Member, International Association of Theatre Critics 

 

This preview appeared in the Times papers 2/18/10

There are few gifts as rewarding as introducing the next generation to the wonders of the performing arts.  

There are few initiatives more essential to the future of the performing arts than introducing them to the next generation.

Mercury Summer Stock's "My First Musical" accomplishes both.  Launched in June 2009, "My First Musical" invites underprivileged children from the Parma City School District and other educational institutions of the Greater Cleveland community to see their first musical theater production, at no cost.  Free admission is given to children 12 and under and their parents for one performance of each production in Mercury's summer season.  The experience includes an interactive educational component to help foster an understanding, appreciation and passion for the theatre arts. 

To raise funds to support this initiative, Pierre-Jacques Brault, the Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Mercury Summer Stock, will be staging a one-night-only performance of an extensively revised and stunning new production of Peter Pan - A Musical Adventure.  The performance will be this Saturday evening.

Sir James Barrie's timeless tale of the boy who never grew up is reborn with new music and lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe.  If you have seen the musical Honk or the Broadway touring company of Mary Poppins that came through Cleveland last July, then you are familiar with the works of Mr. Styles and Mr. Drewe.  The show was first broadcast in 2001 as the New Year's Eve concert on BBC Radio and enjoyed a London premiere in 2002.

The Mercury Summer Stock's fundraiser will be a staged reading which, according to Mr. Brault, "focuses more on the words and music than on elaborate production values.  Costumed performers will be seated on stage with scripts and come forward during their scenes.  There will be choreography, but it will be kept to a minimum.  The flying will take place in the audience's imagination." 

The ensemble is comprised of nearly 70 performers and musicians who have volunteered their time and talents for this cause.  "I am pleasantly surprised by the caliber of talent that has come forward for this fundraiser," notes Mr. Brault.  They are familiar faces to anyone who has seen local professional theater and include Matthew Wright as Captain Jas. Hook, Brian Marshall as Peter Pan, Kelly Monaghan as Wendy, and Maria Thomas Lister as the Storyteller.

The fundraiser will be held at the Breen Center for the Performing Arts at the St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland.  A wine and cheese reception will begin at 7:30pm and the performance will begin at 8:00pm.  Admission is $25 and tickets can be purchased by calling 216-771-5862 or by visiting www.mercurysummerstock.com
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