Page 2 - SaintNorbertYearbook2017FINAL

A Letter from the Director

I believe that imagination is stronger than knowledge. That myth is more potent than history. That dreams
are more powerful than facts. That hope always triumphs over experience. That laughter is the only cure
for grief. And I believe that love is stronger than death."
- Robert Fulghum

There is no show written for the stage that I feel better grasps Robert Fulghum's quote than Peter and the
Starcatcher. In fact, this quote genuinely sums up the entirety of the morals and lessons woven into the
magical and whimsical pages of this show. Too often we get caught up in a world that throws us into the
eye of the storm and watches as we struggle to survive, coming out unsure of who we are or what
purpose we provide. But if Peter and the Strarcatcher teaches us anything, it is that we are limited only by
our own minds and our willingness to accept the realities presented to us without exploring what we are
truly capable of doing.

"Childhood means simplicity. Look at the world through a child's eyes - it is very beautiful."
- Kailash Satyarthi

In a world that remains constantly advancing forward in an era of technological wonder, the simplicity of
imaginative thought and play is gradually becoming more and more lost on us and our future generations.
One thing I wanted to do with this production of Peter and the Starcatcher was take a trip back to the
simple world of childhood creativity and imagination and allow the audience and actors to live once more
in a realm where anything was possible and fairy tales were as much a realistic fact as the sky being blue.
Where a playground became anything you and your friends could imagine it to be, when there was no
need for an electronic to think for you. Where everything and anything existed simply because you
believed it was so in your own mind.

"Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matter of rosy cheeks, red lips, and supple knees;
it is a matter of the will, quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions, it is a freshness of the deep
springs of life. "
- Samuel Ullman

Too often as we grow up, we slowly begin to neglect the inner child within us and instead lock that child
within the dark cage of adulthood. We grow up and figure that because we are no longer a child, we
cannot allow ourselves to enjoy the simple things we did as children. For some reason, we allow ourselves
to believe that once we hit a certain age our childhood days are gone and forgotten. But Samuel Ullman
reminds us of one of the most important aspects of life - keeping that inner child active and thriving is the
secret to living a meaningful and fulfilling life. With my production of Peter and the Starcatcher I wanted
to create a cross-generational ensemble in a show that traditionally uses an all-adult cast and set the story
on a school park playground where children and adults play together and use their collective experiences
and imaginations to create the story of how Peter became Pan. We are as young as we allow ourselves to
be and we are never too old to simply play and let our imaginations run wild.