Baldwin’s fall play, The Neverland Project, will bring a different style of show with creative comedy and a dose of magic.
The Neverland Project is a newly published show, the rights only having been released this past May. It tells the Peter Pan story through Wendy’s perspective in a unique manner.
The story is told through various jumps between narrations, interviews, and actual pieces of the plot, giving it a documentary-style feel. It has an intricate timeline and a fun cast of characters.
Sophomore Assistant Stage Manager Mackenzie Myers said the interactive nature of the show will play a big part in making the production special.
“My favorite parts of the show are when the audience will get to be a part of the show,” Myers said.
Because Baldwin will be among the first schools to produce this play, there’s a lot more flexibility in how to present the production, which opens an interesting array of opportunities.
“We are one of the first schools to perform this show. That means we have almost complete freedom on what it will look like and how the characters will be,” Myers said.
Stage Manager Josie Wysocki agreed.
“We are able to make a lot of changes and decisions that we haven’t been able to make before,” Wysocki said.
That creative opportunity, along with the large cast size and good balance between seriousness and comedy, all factored into Director Cassidy Cooper’s decision to choose this show.
“I’m really, really excited about how the story is told,” Cooper said. “In the past, we’ve done a lot of comedies. Then Little Women was a more realistic, serious piece. This show is a lot more whimsical and imaginative, so it’s a bit more artsy than some of our other shows,”
Wysocki said she also likes the tone of the play.
“The play is less serious than some plays we have done in the past,” she said. “It is more light-hearted.”
When Cooper came across this show, she was impressed by the play’s creativity.
”When I found this show, it kind of checked all of the boxes of things that I was looking for as the director in terms of wanting something really creative, and I wanted something that was going to challenge us,” Cooper said.
Now that auditions are done and the cast has been chosen, the actors will begin work on the script. Later, the full stage crew will begin to work on the production.
The Neverland Project will be showing from Nov. 13 to 15 at 7 p.m.
In other theater news, the spring musical was recently revealed to be 9 to 5, and Baldwin is introducing two new theater programs this year. The info meeting for the musical will be on Nov. 10 at 7:15 a.m. in the think tank. The performance dates will be March 22 and 25-28.
The newly introduced “Play in a Day,” meanwhile, will be a low-commitment program that offers students the opportunity to gain experience in writing, directing, and performing single-act plays – all within 24 hours of work. The “Play in a Day” will happen between Nov. 21 at 4 p.m. to Nov. 22 at 10 p.m.
The other new program will be the “Night of One Acts” program. Students will select three one-act plays, and upperclassmen will have full control of the directorial and technical aspects of the performance.
This year also brings Baldwin’s third annual Theater Showcase, a cabaret-style performance featuring songs, monologues, and short scenes to highlight student talent. The Theater Showcase will take place on Feb. 12 at 7 p.m.
Multimedia Chief Molly Gorman contributed to this report.
