Brittany Church's love affair with Peter Pan began 14 years ago.

"I went to Walt Disney World when I was 6 years old and Peter Pan blew me a kiss" during the theme park's daily parade, she recalled. "It was great. It all started there."

Now 20, Church is playing the title role in Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse's production of "Peter Pan," which begins this weekend and continues through late August at the downtown Rock Island theater.

Church is between her sophomore and junior years at Belmont University in Nashville, majoring in theater.

"It's been a dream role of mine for a very long time and I'm having so much fun," she said after demonstrating the character's flying techniques during a recent rehearsal at Circa.

She is the daughter of an executive with Kone Inc., which has its North American headquarters in Moline. She was born in Chicago, but lived in Missouri, both of the Carolinas and the Kansas suburbs of Kansas City, where she graduated from high school.

"Peter Pan" is not the first time she's played a boy - she also did so at Belmont in the musical "Ragtime." Her credits also include "The Secret Garden" and "Oliver!"

After the petite redhead's initial flirtation with Pan, she became even more enamored with the "boy who never grew up," including being a big fan of the animated Disney movie.

"Growing up is scary, you know?" she said. "Part of the reason I love to be an actress is that you never do get to grow up. You're always playing pretend and make-believe."

Church eventually would love to be on Broadway, but she wants to go on the road with a touring production of a musical in the next few years.

"I'd just be happy anywhere I can earn enough money to live off doing what I love to do," she said.

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