Starring: Rosemarie Akwafo, Jamie Birkett, Jake Burgum, Clark Devlin, Matthew Howell, Jack Michael Stacey, Ciara Morris, Gareth Tempest, Theo Toksvig-Stewart, Jean-Luke Worrell, Romeo Mika, Clare Noy, Consuela Rolle, Phil Yarrow
Creators/Writers: Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields
Director: Adam Meggido
Production: Mischief Theatre
Date/Year: 2023
Despite their work starting life in the theatre, I think a lot of fans like me are more familiar with Mischief Theatre from their BBC shows. So when I found out Peter Pan Goes Wrong was getting another theatre tour, now with a brand new cast, I was really excited to see the play in person.
In Peter Pan Goes Wrong the cast play fictional members of the equally fictional Cornley Drama Society who are putting on their first performance of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. Essentially it is a play within a play but, as the title suggests, things do not go well for the Society. There are plenty of hilarious ‘mishaps’ throughout the show; ranging from: forgotten lines, missed cues, flickering lights, unsafe sets, and an explosive love triangle.
The Society includes: directors and actors Chris (Jack Michael Stacey/Phil Yarrow in the performance I saw) and Robert (Matthew Howell); actors Dennis (Clark Devlin), Sandra (Ciara Morris), Jonathan (Gareth Tempest), Max (Theo Toksvig-Stewart), and Annie (Jamie Birkett); narrator Francis (Jean-Luke Worrell); reluctant replacement actress Lucy (Rosemarie Akwafo/Consuela Rolle in the performance I saw); and stage manager Trevor (Jake Burgum). When not playing one of the main characters, understudies Yarrow, Rolle, Romeo Mika, and Clare Noy can choose to join the fun as part of the ‘stage crew’.
Minor point but I really recommend buying the programme for this show. It contains both the real information about the cast and crew of Peter Pan Goes Wrong and funny fictious anecdotes from Cornley Drama Society and their Peter Pan rehearsals.
Even before the play started the audience got the witness the pre-show ‘shenanigans’ of cast members appearing to arrive late and the crew trying to jump start the electric lights needed on stage. These enjoyable little extra moments helped to set the entertaining tone for the rest of the night.
I believe a large part of the play’s success is due to how self-aware it is. The characters frequently interact with the audience and the usually hidden stage crew are often visible.
A great example of audience interaction is set up at the start of the play. Chris informs the audience that we will be watching a serious adaptation. He is immediately contradicted by Robert who is convinced the show should be a pantomime and frequently encourages the audience to call out like in a real pantomime. Special shout out to Phil Yarrow who was able to improvise his way around some over-enthusiastic heckling during his part of Captain Hook.
Even though I remembered a lot of the gags from watching the albeit shorter BBC adaptation, that didn’t stop me from enjoying every moment of the show. If anything seeing the performance in person made everything funnier due to the shared experience of being in an audience. I went to see the show with a friend who didn’t have any prior knowledge of Peter Pan Goes Wrong and it was great getting to see her reaction and enjoyment too. This proves that the play can appeal to everyone, regardless of whether you know what to expect or not.
I completely enjoyed Peter Pan Goes Wrong. The whole cast was amazing and the revolving stage set was genius! I thoroughly recommend going to watch it if you can.
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