Weathervane Playhouse

June 15 - 24, 2017

Directed by:  Kevin Connell

Scenic Designer:  Matthew Hamel

Costume Designer:  Renee Bell

Lighting Designer:  Seth Morrison

 

 

Peter and the Starcatcher tells us the story of Peter Pan before he was Peter Pan.  The story is a play with music, told by a large ensemble who all play many different parts.  The backdrop is an attic, a space filled with many odd things that could all be pulled to create sailing ships, deserted islands, and magical caves.

 

My research for this play was largely about capturing the fantasy story telling of this play.  There were music elements that would need to be included, but less so than a traditional musical.  Locational sounds and magical moments would frame my choices for sounds.

 

One of the building sections of the show is during the first act, when the ships are set upon by a storm.  The storytellers give indication as to how powerful the storm would grow to, and the sound environment would burst with these different levels.  In all, I created 6 distinct levels of storm, punctuated by winds, rain, and thunders.  Each level of storm had a normal version and an ‘uninteresting’ version with the volume reduced and the overall sound muffled.  This allowed the level of the storm to continue to rage at each moment of the sequence without interfering with the dialogue and storytelling.

 

In act 2, when everyone is on the mysterious island, the natives are keepers of a great crocodile monster named Mr. Grin.  Mr. Grin would roar numerous times, scaring our heroes and delighting the natives.  For this, I used my own voice, creating several levels of moderate to fearsome growls and roars.  Twice, Mr. Grin needed to eat something, which was incredibly fun to create.  Mr. Grin was fearsome, but just enough to be mysterious and sinister, but also a bit humorous.

 

Plays set with a neutral backdrop that allow me to create the worlds from nothing are among some of my favorite shows.  Balancing some lovely and fun songs with the rich soundscape is always fun and challenging.