I loved this book when I was reading it and I loved the play when I was watching it. I couldn't stop smiling the whole time. It's no wonder Peter and the Starcatcher has won Tonys.

My first cred has got to go to the set people. It can't be easy turning a small stage into large ships and islands, but Starcatcher did it beautifully. I think my favorite moment was when they used ropes as stairs. 

My second cred goes to the writer in turning a 451 page paperback middle grade book into a two and a half hour theater production. The book definitely had plenty of material to work with and the show pretty much stayed true to the story, with the exception of naming Peter "Boy". This is more towards the Disney version when Wendy calls Peter "Boy" in the nursery. In the book, Peter is actually named Peter with no last name, but in the show, he is called Boy until Molly helps him come up with a real name to call him by. A minor change that didn't effect my loving of it. Peter is also the leader of the group in the book always taking command and making himself older than the oldest boy in the orphanage. In the show, they portrayed Peter as more of a loner, a quiet type until he meets Molly. I'm okay with that too.

When I watch any kind of book adaption (TV, Movies, Theater), I always look for the core values of the book. If the basic principle, what makes the book good and likable by it's readers are still there, then I'm generally happy with it. I also base it on my personal feelings toward the story. If the book made me feel like a kid again, then I want the adaptation to make me feel the same way. As for Peter and the Starcatcher, it made me never want to grow up, both book and show.

Over labor day weekend, my best friend and her husband took me to see the Harry Potter parody show called Potted Potter.  The show is performed by Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner and the premise is "7 books in 70 minutes."  My review: freaking awesome.

I laughed the entire time.  What was great about the show was not only the fact that it was hilarious, but that no two summaries were alike.  The 3rd book was done with PowerPoint, the 7th was a song and the 4th was a large quiddich game.  How you ask?  They placed two quiddich rings on either side of the audience, split the audience in two and we had to hit a beach ball back and forth to try to get it inside the rings.  Then there was the snitch.  They called upon two kids to play the Gryffindor and Slytherin seekers, had Jess dressed as the snitch and the two kids chased him around the stage.  The Gryffindor seeker was this little girl who tackled Jeff to the ground.  The crowd went wild.  And as the comedians that they were, Dan and Jeff played it up for the rest of the show.

Unfortunately, the run ended on September 2nd otherwise I would advise everyone to go see it as soon as possible.  Instead, I will say, if they ever do come back, catch the show as fast as you can.

Before I go, one last photo of me at the show.  Boy was I happy.