Dance Academy students, grads and dads in ‘Peter Pan’
More than 100 Vashon Dance Academy (VDA) performers fill the cast of ‘Peter Pan.’
This weekend, Dance! Vashon will present “Peter Pan,” featuring Vashon Dance Academy dancers from pre-schoolers to “dance dads,” to almost-graduates and even Academy alums who will take guest-starring turns on the stage.
More than 100 Vashon Dance Academy (VDA) performers fill the cast, with seniors Lisee Crayton, Lila Perez, Isa Sanson-Frey, and Amelia Spence anchoring the show. Sanson-Frey will dance the lead roles of both Peter Pan and Tink, which she will share with Lorien Buffington and Isabella Peani. Spence will dance the lead of Hook, along with Gerritt van Roekel. Crayton will share the role of Wendy with Marina Gill, and Perez will dance Tiger Lily, along with Kate Spranger.
Other Academy dancers will fill roles as varied as baby crocodiles, young teddy bears, and a tropical forest that has come to life. Artistic Director Cheryl Krown said that this group of dancers is particularly suited to such a “giant adventure, as it covers so many styles of dance and music along the way.”
She also said that she and assistant artistic director Julie Gibson have filled the production with “sword fights, pirates, battles and near-escapes, sure to enthrall all those supportive brothers and cousins and neighbors sitting in the audience.”
As audiences have come to expect from VDA performances, a group of dancing dads is currently hard at work learning choreography that never fails to elicit big laughs, Krown said. Many more parent volunteers have contributed to the production’s set design, costumes and lighting.
The show will have its opening bow at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 17, at Vashon High School. Additional shows take place at 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 18, and 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 19.
Advance tickets are available in the Vashon Dance Academy lobby as well as at the Burton Coffee Stand. They will also be sold at the door, if available.
