The story of Peter Pan asks its audience to believe in fairies and magic, and in a sense that is what the team of Dreamworks Entertainments do in bringing the story to life on the stage of the Gladstone Theatre. Director Laura Newnes and choreographer Jamie-Leigh Christian must have found some industrial strength fairy dust, because they manage to pull off a show that succeeds in being greater than the sum of its parts, largely thanks to an enthusiastic and experienced cast.
The show opens by introducing Tasha Rowson’s Tinkerbell, who is about as mischievous as the character gets. Rowson plays Tink with feisty rebellion, and could give Hook a run for his money in street smarts. Hook himself, arriving well in to the action, is played by Darren John Langford, who pitches the role somewhere between evil pirate and wisecracking uncle. There is just enough menace in his delivery to get the kids booing, but he tones down the scariness so that the show retains its child-friendly status.
Darcy Blake’s Wendy is inexplicably dressed in Cinderella mode, complete with diamante tiara, when woken from her slumber by the arrival of Peter Pan, but she soon loses this disguise and joins in gamely with the quest to find the Lost Boys, with her two siblings in tow. Before any sniff of Hook’s arrival, we meet his bubbly henchman Smee, played here by Michael Alan Bailey in full Buttons mode, and it is he who helps jolly the story along with some witty narration.
Lewis Pryor, who is no stranger to the role of Peter, returns following his stint as Buttons here last year (although the programme perplexingly suggests that this is his first outing with the company). Pryor does most of the heavy lifting in the show, with his natural ability to engage with the audience, and he executes a pretty impressive flying routine, which is remarkably effective for a stage of this size. He also engages in some fine swashbuckling with Langford.
Whoever is responsible for the script hides coyly behind the identity ‘Fortina Stone’, who is given quite a back story in the programme note. The effort could perhaps have been better expended in giving as much attention to the story of Peter Pan, because the background to the boys being lost, Hook’s involvement in the affair, and the reason why a crocodile ticks and strikes fear into the burly pirate, are all left entirely to the imagination. Just as well therefore that most of the audience already seem familiar with the plot.
The extraordinary Michael Chapman takes the role of Dame Tootles. Chapman is capable of comedy gold but his part here is thinly written and poorly integrated into the story , which is a sadly missed opportunity.
Despite the storyline creaking like a pirate ship in full sail it manages to hold together sufficiently well as a framework on which to hang the various set pieces. The professionalism of Pryor and Bailey smoothes over the cracks in the script’s hull and ensures it is never in danger of sinking. There is absolutely splendid choreography for both the senior and junior dancers, and the energy on stage both in the dance and the musical numbers is maintained well throughout. I am not sure whether the significance of ‘6-7’ will ever become clear to the older members of the audience, but it puts in an appearance here (as it seems to be doing in almost every panto this year) along with several other contemporary cultural references, in particular in the choice of music, which gives a conspiratorial wink to the children reassuring them that it is their show.
This Peter Pan is a lot of fun, with its sights set very firmly on keeping the kids on side, and what it lacks in cohesive storytelling it certainly makes up for in enthusiasm. The excellent cast, both principals and the supporting ensemble, are its real strength.
Peter Pan is at the Gladstone Theatre until 31st December and tickets are available here.
Star Rating 3½ stars
The cast of Peter Pan - Picture by Dreamworks Entertainments
This review was originally written for publication by Good News Liverpool
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