Colfax High School to present “Peter Pan” April 8 – 10

By LeAnn R. Ralph

COLFAX  —  What’s 13 feet high by 31 feet long and designed to delight the audience?

The set for the Colfax High School play “Peter Pan” on April 8, 9 and 10, of course.

“There’s a big surprise with the set. There’s a lot going on (on stage) … since I’ve been here, it’s the biggest set piece we’ve used. And I think the audience will enjoy it,” said Brianne Link, the director of the play and a teacher in the Colfax school district.

The set is being built by Colfax native Tom Ferry.

In fact, Ferry has been building sets for the high school plays for a number of years.

Link says that Ferry’s talent and dedication have been nothing short of amazing, although this year, she thought she was going out on a limb when she described what she wanted for the “Peter Pan” set.

Ferry’s response was “no problem.”

“I think the audience is really going to be delighted,” Link said.

Other crew members also make the Colfax High School play productions possible.

Chris Olson of Colfax has been working on the sound system for the play since February.

And Jeff Gust of Colfax is in charge of lightning.

Colfax resident Judy Tweed is the lobby coordinator.

Play practice has been taking place from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. most days of the week from January until the play is presented in April.

During the school day, the set crew comes in to work.

“Then they leave, and we take over the stage. We’ve had our tech crew here, too. Jeff Gust and Chris Olson have been here setting up the lights and wiring microphones already (as of March17). There’s a lot that goes into it that has to happen early before we can even begin to start to put the whole thing together,” Link said.

In addition to practicing, the play cast also has been working on costumes and painting sets.

“We’ve been busy,” Link said.

“Our biggest challenge was how we were going to make the kids fly. But we found some ways choreography-wise to get around that, and I think everyone will enjoy it. No wires involved,” she noted.

Auditions for “Peter Pan” were held before Christmas break.

“They had a whole month just to study the script. A lot goes into it. It takes a lot of planning,” Link said.

Peter Pan

As many readers most likely know, Peter Pan is a mischievous boy who never grows up, who can fly, and who spends his unending childhood in adventures on the island of Neverland, the leader of his gang, the Lost Boys.

Peter Pan’s story includes mermaids, Native Americans, fairies and pirates — and sometimes ordinary children from the world beyond Neverland, such as Wendy, John and Michael Darling.

The character was created by Scottish playwright J.M. Barrie.

“The kids are great. They make it easier. We have really talented kids. Tate Russell is Peter. But this is not his first time in ‘Peter Pan.’ The last time he played John. This time he’s Peter, and he has taken it and run with it,” Link said.

“We have Leslie Ritenour as Wendy, and she is super talented. Both are underclassman. It’s nice to see some young talent popping up on stage because then I know I’ll get to hang onto them for a few years!” she said.

“Napoleon Nosker is our Captain Hook, and he’s new to the theater program. He has not done a show before, and he has blown us away with how talented he is. We’ve got a really good cast,” Link said.

Seniors

Unfortunately, in some cases, a good thing must end.

“We are losing some really good seniors this year, too. It will be really sad to see them go. We’ve got senior boys who have been here over time helping us paint and move sets and learning their lines. They know everything that goes into it,” Link said.

The high school play production is a passion for Link, who says that everyone who is involved with the play views it as a labor of love.

“There are so many volunteer hours that go into this. From the parents. From everybody. We couldn’t do it without the whole team,” she said.

“It’s really neat to see, too, that the kids come from all walks of life and different age groups and friend groups in school, and they all come together and end up being best friends through the play. There’s a special bond these kids have because they spend so much time together,” Link said.

“We’ve got some good middle schoolers (as well). Leslie and Drew. They are really talented, too,” she noted.

“We have kids who are very involved in sports. We have kids who this is their only activity. We’ve got kids who are involved in various clubs. We have busy kids. But it takes all kinds for the theater. You never know where your talent is going to come from,” Link said.

“For a small school, I’ve been so impressed, the last few years I have been directing, how much talent we have. I can’t get over it,” she said.

Cast members

In addition to freshman Tate Russell as Peter Pan, sophomore Leslie Ritenour as Wendy, and Napoleon Nosker (a junior) as Captain Hook, this year’s Colfax High School production includes 29 other cast members.

Andy Buckley (senior) will be Smee; Daniel Schneider (senior) will play Schneibly; Drew Gibson (seventh grade) will be John Darling; Wesley Kallstrom (eighth grade) will be Michael Darling; Hannah Yingst (junior) will play Slightly; Emily Evenson (sophomore) will be Tootles.

And then there’s Carrie Dworak (sophomore) as Nibs; Kaley Rieck (junior) as Mrs. Darling; Alex Hayes (senior) as Mr. Darling; Jezz Tweed (junior) as Tiger Lily; Joseph Verdon (senior) as Panther; McKenna Yingst (freshman) as Curly; Hunter Larson (eighth grade) as First Twin; Caden Erickson as Second Twin (seventh grade); and Angel Woodford as Omnes (sophomore).

In addition, Tiffany Tetzlaff (sophomore) will play Mullins; August Knaack (sophomore) will be Jukes; Aza Knaack (eighth grade) will play Cookson; Haley Seston (eighth grade) will be Noodles; Eddie Doerr (eighth grade) will be Cecco; Saville Wilson (eighth grade) will play Liza/Brave; Kayla Scholfield (eighth grade) will be Nana/Crocodile.

And last but not least, Kaylynn Olson (sophomore) will play Wibbles; Denae Buchholz (sophomore), Desirae Welk (freshman), and Elijah Mrock (seventh grade) will be Braves; and Olivia Bradford (junior), Abby Anderson (eighth grade) and Hannah Lemler (seventh grade) will be Mermaids.

Times

“Peter Pan” will be presented Friday, April 8, at 7 p.m.; Saturday, April 9, at 7 p.m.; and Sunday, April 10, at 2 p.m. in the Martin Anderson Gymnasium at Colfax High School.

General admission tickets are $5 at the door or are available at the Colfax High School office.

Doors open 45 minutes prior to the performances.

The Martin Anderson Gym is handicapped accessible.