Bigger Than the Sky (DVD, 2005)

After being dumped by his girlfriend, Peter Rooker (Marcus Thomas) finds himself in a rut. Bored with his job and lacking any close friends, Peter spends his free time sitting on a couch parked in his front lawn in the company of several neighborhood cats. It is this sense of purposelessness that attracts Peter to the poster he passes every morning announcing auditions for the upcoming Portland community theater production of CYRANO DE BERGERAC. Wondering whether this might be the breath of fresh air he's been looking for, Peter hesitantly buys the play and starts reading it over. After days of deliberating, he finally forces himself into the audition room, where, despite his undeniably terrible reading, he is given the play's starring role by a director (Claire Higgins) who senses a fire and passion beneath Peter's dull exterior.In order to pull off Cyrano and stand up to the flamboyant, overwhelming personalities of the theater, Peter must become less of a pushover. Through rehearsals, and middle-of-the-night visits from eccentric cast members like over-the-top Michael Degan (SEX AND THE CITY's John Corbett), Peter is forced to come out of his shell and take on a more active role on the stage, and off. Aside from growing as an actor, the theater community encourages Peter to take a chance on people, forging relationships with the likes of Grace (Amy Smart), the play's leading lady, and shared love interest of Peter and Michael. This small film touches on the sense of community that small productions foster, and captures the strong personalities so often found in the theatre. A true theater lover's film, BIGGER THAN THE SKY is an uplifting story about finding one's own voice and believing in one's own potential.