Friday, Oct. 10, 2008

Flower Mound Marcus High Sets Sail to 'Treasure Island’

Sword-play over a "dead man’s chest" showcased in time-honored pirate tale

Staff Report

The Messenger

The Marcus High School theatre arts department’s production of Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson and adapted by Ken Ludwig, promises to have lots of adventure and swash-buckling pirates.

The action in the fight scenes has been elevated to a new level with the training cast members have received from the experienced performers from Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament.

Stevenson’s most famous novel, Treasure Island was published in 1883. The hero and narrator is Jim Hawkins, son of a guesthouse owner on the west coast of England, who gets his hands on a map of Capt. Flint’s treasure chest and the story is off and running.

Stevenson based much of this classic novel on fact. While there never was a pirate named Long John Silver, there was a real pirate named Israel Hands who was second-in-command under Blackbeard. He was crippled when Blackbeard suddenly shot him in the leg for no apparent reason.

Performances are Thursday through Saturday evenings, Oct. 16, 17, and 18, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 19, with a 2:30 p.m. matinee. Encore performances are on Nov. 14 through 16 with corresponding show times.

Tickets prices at the door are: adults, $12; students/seniors, $8; and children age 10 and under, $5. Performances are in the Larry L. Siegler Auditorium at Marcus High School, 5707 Morriss Road, Flower Mound. For details, see: www.mhstheatre.net.