'Shiver We Timbers!' show set in Pleasanton

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A choose-your-own pirate adventure is coming to Pleasanton with “Shiver We Timbers!” serving as the theme of the program. The Pleasanton show will be performed next Sunday (July 22) at 5 p.m. at the Firehouse Arts Center on 4444 Railroad Ave.

Shiver We Timbers! will be performed on FluxWagon, the Peripatetic Players’ folding mobile stage that is set up by the ensemble shortly before each show.

The Idiot String Players will interact with the audience before, during and after their show. Shiver We Timbers! is based on pirate stories from history, pop culture, and myth, and features a structure inspired by “Choose Your Own Adventure” books and original songs.

The adventure begins when the players set theatrical sail on the high seas, but when they can’t decide what course to take, it’s up to the audience to decide. The audience is asked to “choose their own adventure” at key points in the narrative, which will alter the story and outcome so that each enactment is unique and interesting. Shiver We Timbers! runs about 60 minutes, pending the adventures chosen.

Shiver We Timbers! is devised by the ensemble and directed by Rebecca Longworth, with music direction by Casey Robbins.

“The Peripatetic Players … are fascinated by pirates,” said Longworth. “While we know that real-life pirates were violent outlaws, their fictional counterparts, beloved by millions in (fiction and film), have captured our imaginations throughout the ages. We revel in the tales of intrepid pirate crews banding together to create their own communities. In our fantasies, pirates are larger-than-life characters who lived the way they wished. When you ‘pick-ye-own’ pirate adventure, you’ll get to honor this spirit of bold individuality.”

Idiot String, a peripatetic players acting troupe founded by producers Joan Howard and Longworth, announced the full 11-performance schedule for their fifth annual summer touring production, a pirate-themed, participatory play entitled Shiver We Timbers! A Peripatetic Pick-Yer-Own Pirate Adventure. The production will perform on Saturdays and Sundays from July 7 to Aug. 12 at parks and public spaces throughout the Bay Area. The tour will visit San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Santa Clara, Niles (Fremont), Pleasanton and Port Costa.

Shiver We Timbers! is presented in association with San Francisco Recreation and Parks and Berkeley Parks and Recreation. The production is sponsored by a variety of local nonprofit and civic organizations, including the city of Pleasanton.

For more information about other performances and venues outside of Pleasanton, visit http://peripateticplayers.org/schedule.