Peter Pan Lives On At Park Theatre
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The language and props have been updated a little — Mr Darling has a smart phone, Wendy’s special mini-house is a pop-up tent, and the nursery has a spray painted planets on the walls — but beyond that, this evergreen tale of the Darling Family, Tinkerbell and the Lost Boys remains true to J.M Barrie’s original script.
Nickcolia King-N’Da shines as a warm and elegant Peter, who flies effortlessly and delivers some impressively acrobatic stage fighting. His adversary Captain Hook, played by Alexander Vlahos, is suitably frightening. Clad in a leather duster coat, butcher's apron and wellies, he looks more like a serial killer than a pirate. Some of his evil grimaces are so realistic that they draw cries of terror from the young audience. His hapless sidekick Smee, played by Natalie Grady, delivers comic relief that lightens the sometimes sad themes of loneliness and abandonment.
The family’s dog/nanny is an ingenious maple-leaf covered sheepdog puppet, masterfully operated by Alfie Webster. Rosemary Doyle plays Wendy as a self-conscious teenager whose adolescent advances are forever rebuffed by the boy who, frustratingly, refuses to grow up into a man.
Peter Pan, Park Theatre, Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, N4 3JP. Tickets £15-32.50, until 5 January 2019.
Last Updated 13 December 2018
