UK Theatre Network

Peter Pan
Northern Ballet Theatre
Reviewed 20th April 2010




First and foremost this is a beautiful production. David Nixon's artistic direction has never failed to impress. Since his arrival in 2001 the NBT has been revitalised and is now known for producing new works including the stupendous Wuthering Heights that toured last year, as well as productions such as Madame Butterfly, Dracula, and The Nutcracker to name but a few. What makes these productions so special is the creative choreography  - Nixon's area of expertise. This production does not disappoint. It is quirky, contemporary, dynamic, poetic and very, very moving in places. It is undeniably recognisable as Nixon's work.
Nixon is also reponsible for the costumes, which in this production are very faithful to the traditional images of the Peter Pan story. Tinker Bell's attire has a slight twist in that it is rather sexy; short and with a fabulous pair of french knickers!
So, this production is very faithful to the original story and nothing unfamiliar or new is introduced. 
Composer, Steven Warbeck, has produced a quite lovely score. Warbeck has an interesting history. Among the films he has scored are Shakespeare in Love (for which he won an Oscar), Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Mrs Brown, and Billy Elliot. Nixon's choreography and Warbeck's composition sit very well together.
Peter Mumford's staging is inventive and the lighting is particularly effective. The nursery set though was rather shaky and rickety at times.
The flying is, of course, magical and the scene, The Stars, when all the children fly over London and the sea is stunning. 
Overall the performances are strong and in some cases exemplary - Pippa Moore has a true gift for expression and bringing a character to life. As Wendy she needs to be completely believeable as a young girl and her performance is utterly absorbing. Her brothers, John (Sebastian Loe) and Michael (Jeremy Curnier) are equally charming, and believable in their cheeky, mischievous depictions. They are responsible for some of the 'laughs' but the majority of these go to Nana (Victoria Sibson) and the Crocodile (Daniel Clarke). David Ward as Peter Pan is charming if perhaps a little too 'manly' for the part.



There are two weak areas with this particular production. Firstly, the pirates and Captain Hook (Kenneth Tindall) and secondly, the use of spoken language.
First to the pirates and Hook; they are not at all menacing. Tindall also plays Mr Darling and this character is rightly played as benign, loving, kind and gentle. The problem for me was that he really wasn't scary or even dynamic enough as Hook. His face was impassive throughout. I can't believe this was the way he was directed as the other pirates were fairly animated facially. If we are in the world of dreams and fantasy then perhaps the 'baddies' are intended to be portrayed as fairly one dimensional characters. However, in terms of what an audience expects from a traditional recounting of the tale I see Tindall's Hook as somewhat lacking. His choreography was demanding but Tindall just did not seem to be engaged with his character. I am a fan of Tindall but perhaps he is just not suited to this part. It was all rather 'soft' and lacklustre. There seemed to be no power behind his character. 
The second area is the use of speech in a couple of areas. In particular when Tinker Bell, who is brilliantly portrayed by Michela Paolacci, drinks the poisoned medicine and begins to die. Here, suddenly, Peter Pan turns to the audience and asks 'Do you believe in fairies?' and 'If you believe in fairies clap your hands'. Of course, being an obliging British audience we do and Tinker Bell comes to life. This moment is incongrous. Up until now we have been observers of a magical story. To be suddenly forced into panto mode is really quite bizarre. Perhaps it was expected that there would be a majority of children in the audience but I appeared to be the only one with a child in tow. It was a school night and there must be a higher quota of children in the audience at weekends. However, we don't need audience participation and it did not sit well with the production overall.
Overall, though, this production is well worth a visit and I would recommend it as an ideal introduction to the ballet genre for young children.

Peter Pan plays MK Theatre until Saturday 24th April (box office 0870 297 5454/www.ambassadortickets.com. Booking fee applies)

Norwich Theatre Royal 27 April - 1 May