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Centrestage Youth Theatre is fundraising for a flying machine for its upcoming show of Peter Pan Junior, which will run from July 13-20.
“You can’t put on a Peter Pan show without flying,” Centrestage vice president and Youth Theatre coordinator Sarah Searle says. “We want to make the experience as authentic as possible to add to the magic of the show.”
Magic comes at a price, however, as renting the flying machine and hiring its technician costs $10,000.
The cast, which includes 50 people aged six to 18-years, has already raised $5000 in just over a month through various fundraisers, including selling chocolate, and sausage sizzles.
The show’s five main cast members will use the machine, which works by harnessing each member to Centrestage’s fly towers. A control panel will enable the actors to fly across the entire stage and in multiple directions.
A mid-air fight scene has been planned, which will be choreographed by New Zealand Stage Combat School owner and Pop-Up Globe fight director Alexander Hollaway.
Alexander has already been rehearsing with the cast creating all of the show’s fight scenes.
“It will be such a special thing for our cast members to fly in the show, they are all really excited about it,” Sarah says.
“This is the first time Centrestage has ever used a flying machine, so it will also be a great opportunity for our tech team to get new experience, too.”
Sarah says they are running an in-house competition whereby whoever raises the most money for the machine will also get to fly.
Centrestage’s Youth Theatre puts on two shows per year, one strictly for the younger kids and an all-ages show like this one.
“Our shows for all-ages have a really positive impact on the cast, as the older members become mentors for our younger ones. It creates a real sense of belonging and becomes like a family,” Sarah says. Info and tickets: www.centrestagetheatre.co.nz/
