This fall, The Oakton High School Theatre Arts Department will be presenting two renowned comedies, one a Shakespearean classic, and the other a prologue to well-loved fairy tale. Both will be performed, directed, and designed by Oakton’s junior and senior Theatre Arts and Technical Theatre classes.
Based on the children’s series by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, Peter and the Starcatcher (written by Rick Elice, music by Wayne Barker) tells the story of Peter Pan, the boy who wouldn’t grow up. Peter and his league of lost boys sail the seas; form a bond with a precocious, magical young girl; and face off against a poetry-spouting pirate. Amid adventure, romance, and pineapples, Peter’s quest for the magical starstuff will teach him how to become a hero, and a friend.
Peter and the Starcatcher is directed by seniors Emma Shacochis and Julia Ferri. Performance dates are Nov. 8, 9, and 10 at 7 p.m.
IN A GENDER-FLIPPED adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play, The Taming of the Shrew navigates the chaotic courtships of two brothers: the adored and desired Bianco, and the eponymous shrew, Kat. Set in the 1980s, when women strived to “Have It All,” the nontraditional casting satirizes the antiquated idea of male control over women’s lives by flipping it on its head. In order to allow Bianco to be wed, a set of smitten suitors send the surly, fortune-seeking Petruchia to marry Kat. The tempestuous duo spar as Petruchia attempts to “tame” her willful husband into being a typical subservient spouse. Amid false identities and gender politics, will abhorrence turn into affection?
The Taming of the Shrew is directed by senior Mena Dolinh and junior Emma Szczesniak. Performance dates are Nov. 29, 30, and Dec. 1 at 7 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.oaktondrama.org for $10.
For more information, visit www.oaktondrama.org.