PLANET OF THE GRAPES - And Epic Live Toy Theater Experience

"Planet of the Grapes" is pandemic performance pioneer Peter Michael Marino's latest endeavor to keep live theater alive during stay-at-home circumstances. This comedic homage takes audiences of all ages on an epic, 60-minute adventure that fuses the Victorian era's Toy Theater movement with the 1968 Charlton Heston/Rod Serling classic, "Planet of the Apes." Previews begin Friday, January 29, 2021 with an official opening Monday, February 8, 2021 - exactly 53 years after the groundbreaking film hit movie screens.

In "Planet of the Grapes," an astronaut crew crash-lands on an unfamiliar planet in the distant future and are enslaved by a society where grapes have evolved into speaking creatures with human-like intelligence. The original "Planet of the Apes" is credited as one of the most groundbreaking science fiction films of all time. The film's themes of science vs. religion, biased class systems, and mankind's self-perceived entitlement to everything on Earth strongly resonated with Marino who peppers the script with excavated passages from co-screenwriter Rod Serling's original screenplays.

What is Toy Theater? The early 18th century ushered in Europe's Toy Theater movement, where adults and children assembled mass-produced paper replicas of over 300 popular plays that included the script, stage, scenery, and characters. These DIY kits were sold at the concession stands of opera houses, playhouses, and vaudeville theaters to be performed for family members and guests. Toy Theater literally brought theater into homes.

Last year, Peter Michael Marino presented nearly 75 performances of his ongoing, interactive, digital live shows "Show Up, Kids!" and "Desperately Seeking the Exit" which have been nominated for Best Zoom Show Performed in Real Time (BroadwayWorld), and Outstanding Achievement In An Individual Performance (No Proscenium).

Created by Peter Michael Marino

Directed by Michole Biancosino

Music by Michael Harren

Co-Produced by Project Y Theatre Company & PM2 Entertainment

The show runs January 29 - March 5, 2021 (Fridays - Sundays).

Tickets are $15-$40 and available at www.planetgrapeshow.com