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Tri-State Theater

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Wednesday, November 05, 2008

The Directing Team for "Peter Pan"

I keep meaning to write a post about the directing team on Peter Pan and what a fantastic job they're done - but my pal Elaine Young sent me a note that says it all!

She wrote:
Just a note to let everyone know that all the creativeness in First Stage's production of Peter Pan comes from our brilliant director, Mary Smirl. The dancing trees, the flying fairies, the nursery toys, and the antics of Capt. Hook, all came from Mary's ingenious approach to children's theatre.

Mary took on the task of directing 87 children (with a preshow of 15) with fervor and passion. All the details that you will see in this production of Peter Pan came from her never-ending thoughts to make the show "exciting, fun, and interesting." The kids responded to Mary because she made acting fun and gave them positive reinforcement.

Lara Donahoe brought the best out in the cast vocally with her wit and praise while playing in the orchestra AND playing the role of Mrs. Darling. Tiffany McCullough provided challenging choreography which brought everything together.

Add those remarkable directors to an extremely talented cast and we have an amazing production!
Elaine only left out one important person - the producer of the show! It's probably the most thankless of the jobs you can tackle in community theatre, because the producer has to tackle a hundred different jobs, solve a never-ending series of problems, organize the workforce, and keep the production moving forward.

Peter Pan was blessed with an indefatigable producer who worked vitually around the clock to make the show the best it could be. She's done an amazing job. Oh, her name is: Elaine Young. She's my hero!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks Chuck- you are much too kind--but as Mary Lara Tiffany and I always say--it's not about us but all about those talented kids we have!!! That's what makes this so rewarding!

Chuck Minsker said...

That's true, of course - "Peter Pan" works because it has an incredibly talented cast on stage and working tech. But the directors deserve some credit, too, along with the parent volunteers - it takes a team working together to make a show happen!