Anjali Dalal-Whelan/ News Editor 

The University of San Diego’s undergraduate Department of Theatre flew its audience back to their childhoods through their fall production of “Peter and the Starcatcher.” The play ran four sold-out shows from Nov. 17-19. The cast consisted of 12 USD students while 15 other students participated behind the scenes. 

The play is a prequel to the classic story of Peter Pan and was adapted from the novel “Peter and the Starcatchers” by Dave Berry and Ridley Pearson. The show got its start in San Diego at the La Jolla Playhouse in 2009. Later it moved to Off-Broadway and then to Broadway in 2011, where it won five Tony Awards. Here at USD, the play was directed by  Assistant Professor of Theatre, Jersten Seraile.  

The comedic musical tells the story of Molly, played by USD junior Carly O’Rear, and her father, Lord Aster, played by USD senior Joshua Venegas, as they embark on a mission to protect a trunk filled with “starstuff,” a magical substance that can grant wishes — but can also be dangerous. Along their journey, Molly and Lord Aster board two ships, the Neverland and the Wasp, and meet a cast of characters resulting in friendships, rivalries and romances. 

Through the play, the audience learns the backstory of many classic “Peter Pan” characters, including Peter, played by sophomore Liv Meloy, Stache/Captain Hook, played by senior Vivian Moiso, the lost boys, played by senior Syd Gager and first-year Cincere Temple and even the mermaids of the past lagoon. The show moved at a fast pace with many fight scenes, costume changes, two songs and several well-timed one-liners. 

The play uses creative techniques to get the audience immersed in the magical elements of the show, such as asking them to use their imagination to make the actors fly rather than a harness. In scenes with Molly and Peter that involve flight, the cast worked together to lift the actors into the air and move them around to showcase the illusion. 

The play brings a new interpretation to the classic story of Peter Pan. The book “Peter and Wendy”, written by James Matthew Barrie, was published in 1911 and the Disney movie adaptation was released in 1953. The story holds nostalgia for many members of the audience and cast. 

For Gager, who played Prentiss, the story of Peter Pan is important, which led to a decision to switch from stage managing to acting in this show. 

“[The Peter Pan books] were really really important to me growing up,” Gager said. “So even though in stage managing you get some say in the artistic direction of the play, I just thought about stage managing, and I was like ‘I can’t watch the show be put on, I need to be in it. And it’s just been a blast getting to be in the books that were so important to me growing up.” 

“Peter and the Starcatcher” also included multiple gender-bent roles, in which actors played roles of the opposite gender. In the initial production, the entire cast is male, besides the character Molly.  USD’s production of “Peter and the Starcatcher” included more gender-bent characters than the original show. This included the roles of Stache, played by Moiso, Peter, played by Meloy and Captain Scott, played by first-year Annalise Bowman.  The character Mrs. Bumbrake is designed in the script to be played by a male actor dressed as a woman. In USD’s production, first-year Tanner Blackington played Mrs. Bumbrake and reflected on his experience. 

“Being Bumbrake for me has been one of the funniest experiences, and it’s just so much fun to be on stage,” Blackington said. “There’s just so much fun that I have, especially with Oz [who played Alf] as my scene partner, and I feel like it’s just hilarious.”

Partnership stood out in the show, with strong chemistry between many characters, especially Peter and Molly. The two characters’ relationship grew through the show, as Molly helped Peter find his identity. 

The show also used gender-bending to bring humor in the song “Mermaid Outta Me,” which opened Act II. The entire ensemble, regardless of gender identity, dressed as mermaids with bikini tops and glittery tails. 

USD sophomore Alex Kueter, the Stage Manager of “Peter and the Starcatcher,” explained that past shows the Theater department performed had constraints with the gender and race of actors, so gender-bending characters in this production provided an opportunity for a variety of students to participate. 

“Generally we have a higher percentage of female theater students than males, so it was really important to us that we could bend some of those roles,” Kueter said.

“Peter and the Starcatcher” swept the audience off its feet with its lighthearted humor and magic. But it ended on a bittersweet note, reminding the audience what it can cost to get what you want.  

USD sophomore Lauren Deerink, the Assistant Stage Manager of “Peter and the Starcatcher,” hoped the play would have that effect. 

“I hope that they [the audience] can find that childhood joy that came from the Disney ‘Peter Pan,’” Deerink said. “But also it has a lot more depth to it as far as finding out who you are, and I think that’s really important.”  

Although the audience of college students may be growing up, “Peter and the Starcatcher” proves that for USD students, the story of Peter Pan will never grow old.

Photo courtesy of Theatre Dept. Chair Nate Padre

Cast members of ‘Peter and the Starcatcher’ lifting Liv Meloy, who plays Peter, to create the illusion of flying toward the climax of the play.