For Peter Pan on Her 70th Birthday

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Victoria Davis

Forward Theater produced a stunning production of Sarah Ruhl’s In the Next Room, or the vibrator play in 2010. Now the company is diving back into Ruhl’s substantial catalog with this semi-autobiographical story of siblings dealing with their complicated relationships, before, during and after their father’s death. Expect Ruhl’s elegant language and abstract images to permeate the play. The Wisconsin premiere features many of Forward’s founding members in the cast, including James Buske, Celia Klehr, Sam White, Susan Sweeney, Michael Herold and Norman Moses.

press release: Ann and her four siblings gather at their childhood home to crack jokes, argue politics, and share stories. For Ann, each reminiscence brings her back to a favorite childhood memory: her star turn as Peter Pan on their hometown stage.

Soon, these brothers and sisters hear the call of Neverland, a magical place where the refusal to grow up does battle with the inevitability of growing old. A loving mixture of deathbed vigils, marching bands, the aches and pains of aging and the miracle of flight, For Peter Pan on her 70th Birthday celebrates all the magic that theater – and life – have to offer.

“Sarah Ruhl imbues the fantastical with a singular logic that is only hers but becomes yours during the course of the evening. She gives a map to a kind of preternatural joy; only when the curtain comes down do you remember that we cannot fly, time travel, or conjure our departed loved ones.” – Mary Louise-Parker

Post-show talkbacks follow every performance.

Pre-show lectures on the following dates:

• THU, NOV 7, at 6:30 PM
• SUN, NOV 10, at 1 PM
• THU, NOV 14, at 6:30 PM
• SUN, NOV 17, at 1 PM
• THU, NOV 21, at 6:30 PM
• SUN, NOV 24, at 1 PM