A Neverlandic Tale

Marko Van Slyke as Peter Pan in Peter Pan and Wendy at First Stage. Photo credit: Paul Ruffolo.

A review of Peter Pan and Wendy

by Benjamin Earnest, age 13

Based on the original novel by J.M. Barrie, First Stage’s production of Peter Pan and Wendy is a very family-friendly show that welcomes imaginative characters and care-free personalities. While the more well-known Disney movie Peter Pan focuses on the adventures of the Darlings around Neverland, Peter Pan and Wendy centers on the brief relationship of Wendy and Peter during their short time together, sharing family-like friendships with each other and the Lost Ones. First Stage tells this story in a way that, in a short period of time, shows their use of talented young actors, thrifty special effects, and excellent fight choreography.

Most of First Stage’s shows mainly focus on the young performers and their talent, and Peter Pan and Wendy was no different since the main characters were kids. The cast definitely delivered magically. The Shadow Cast’s actors like Marko Van Slyke (Peter Pan), Everett Vogt (John Darling), and Luke Drope (Michael Darling) all showed how at a young age you can be care-free no matter how adults may describe how life will be. They also demonstrated how to own the stage in-character during scenes and how to make a moment, like through long monologues or stories. Also, the whole cast’s 1800s English accents were amazing, thanks to Todd Denning (Dialect Coach), especially for the amount of rehearsal time the kids were given.

Another aspect of the show that I enjoyed was their way of making all of the special effects, like Tinkerbell, characters flying, Nonna (the dog), and scene changes. I found this a very different approach to the effects that most theaters use, like harness mechanisms or drones. In this show, they used actors called Koken, which was most of the cast list besides the Lost Ones and Darlings. These Koken were able to make inanimate objects come to life without being fully distinguished from an audience eye, staying on stage and weaving through the audience for changes. The puppet designer, Nicki Kulas, did an amazing job making Nonna come to life like an actual character to the story, especially in the scene where she comes pouncing towards the parents to alert them of their kids’ disappearance.

Another really impressive job the cast did was their fighting choreography, also thanks to Todd Denning (Fight Director.) Although they only had that one major fighting scene against the pirates, they definitely delivered with mighty swings and clashes of the swords, designed to make that sound and not to hurt anyone under any circumstances. The scene between Captain Hook and Peter was phenomenal to see how the actors can weave in between saying their lines, flying, fighting, and also focusing on not hitting the Koken carrying them.

This show’s overall portrayal of this classical kids’ book was just a fun experience to see, and I hope that they will continue to succeed at this over the next show weekend. And if you can, check out both the Light and Shadow Casts through March 22nd at First Stage.