It's time to follow the second star to the right, straight to Chapel Hill. This weekend, Chapel Hill Dance Theater will perform “Peter Pan” at Chapel Hill High School.
M’Liss Dorrance, choreographer and co-founder of Chapel Hill Dance Theater, said she is excited for this year's performance. She said the cast fits the production perfectly.
“We have quite a wonderful cast of dancers,” Dorrance said. “We actually took 'Peter Pan' ahead of another ballet we perform that was in rotation for this year's schedule because we felt we had such an ideal cast this year for 'Peter Pan.'”
Dorrance said the choreography is diverse, including ballet, modern and contemporary jazz — even a surprise tango.
"The story unfolds in a delightful way — each scene is its own little jewel,” Dorrance said.
For Dorrance, the biggest reward of putting on the production is not just the final performance, but watching it come together and seeing the dancers grow as performers.
“Watching the production come together is a joy for everyone involved,” Dorrance said. “It has always been most rewarding to see the young dancers rise to the challenge of their assigned choreography and grow both technically and artistically as they find their character's voice within and then interpret that in their dancing.”
Madeline Jensen, the lead dancer playing Peter Pan, says people should see the show because it is so unique.
“Most ballets do 'The Nutcracker' and that’s fun, but with 'Peter Pan' is even more fun," Jensen said. "Everyone knows the story of Peter Pan, and little girls love Tinker Bell. It really is a story for all audiences.”
