Rigby's Peter Pan Will Land at NYC's Theater at Madison Square Garden Nov. 30-Dec. 30 | Playbill

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News Rigby's Peter Pan Will Land at NYC's Theater at Madison Square Garden Nov. 30-Dec. 30 The New York perch for Cathy Rigby in her farewell appearance in Peter Pan will be The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Nov. 30-Dec. 30, according to TheGarden.com and Ticketmaster.

Broadway was announced as a goal when the tour launched in fall 2004, with Tony Award-nominated actress Rigby starring in the Carolyn Leigh-Moose Charlap musical version of the James M. Barrie play. The Theater at MSG isn't Broadway, but it's close. Tickets range $35-$99 in the capacious hall where A Christmas Carol played for several seasons, a few block south of the Times Square theatre district.

The touring revival coincides with the 100th anniversary of the creation of J.M. Barrie's boy who wouldn't grow up. Rigby, a former Olympic champion, was Tony-nominated for her work when a previous tour came to Broadway.

Tiny, nimble and acrobatic, the fiftysomething Rigby earlier announced this would be her last time in the green tights. Her Capt. Hook in the current tour is Howard McGillin, a veteran of Broadway's Anything Goes and The Phantom of the Opera.

The 1954 musical by Carolyn Leigh (lyrics), Moose Charlap (music), J.M. Barrie, Jule Styne (additional music), Betty Comden and Adolph Green (additional lyrics) first starred Mary Martin (who also starred in a popular TV version of the show). A 1979 revival starred Sandy Duncan. In the 1980s and 1990s, however, Rigby was most identified with the role, playing it on tour and on Broadway.

* Critics have embraced Rigby's athletic work as Peter. The creativity of the production — put together in recent years by McCoy-Rigby Entertainment, La Mirada Theatre, the Nederlanders and other producing partners — has also been well-reviewed. Under the direction of Glenn Casale and choreographer Patti Colombo, scenes from the original Barrie play were added to the McCoy-Rigby staging, some conventions of the original production (like dancing animals) were cut, the Indian number known as "Ugg-a-Wugg" was reinvented as a percussive dance that trimmed out offensive "redskin" references.

For many children, the musical Peter Pan represented a first brush with the magic of musical theatre; the combination of singing, dancing and flying on wires makes the show unforgettable for some children.

For more information, visit www.thegarden.com.

 
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