When it comes to squeal-inducing spectacle, the North American tour of the new production of Peter Pan has all the bases covered, melding wires and other practical effects with slick projections to create a thrillingly immersive flying experience, for instance.
But in matters of the heart, this show, like Peter himself, tends to come up a little bit short. Not that audiences at Broadway in Chicago’s Nederlander Theatre will care overly much about some streamlining of the underlying sentiment–though I would have liked to see a longer pause during the famous moment when Peter exhorts the audience to applaud in an effort to revive a poisoned Tinkerbell through sheer force of belief.
That heart still beats, becoming intermittently apparent like the ticking of a clock inside a malevolent crocodile, thanks mainly to Hawa Kamara, impressively empathetic and engaging in her professional debut as Wendy Darling, and adorable scene-stealer Reed Epley, alternating with Jayden Guarneri as baby brother Michael.
But adventure’s the main attraction in this production directed by Lonny Price with additional book by playwright Larissa FastHorse (whose The Thanksgiving Play will soon go up at Steppenwolf) and sprightly choreography by Lorin Latarro, currently basking in well-deserved accolades for The Who’s Tommy, which recently transitioned to Broadway after its Goodman Theatre production.
The swashbuckling spirit is in the capable hands of dashing teen Nolan Almeida, who plays a Peter so allergic to familial and romantic affection that he refuses to accept even a hug from Wendy; Raye Zaragoza as a spirited Tiger Lily who makes an able adversary and then loyal defender of Peter and his Lost Boys (with a great assist from FastHorse, who gives the tribe a moving storyline even as she banishes the problematic native stereotypes); and Cody Garcia as an insouciantly hammy Captain Hook ever on the lookout for the croc who ate his hand and now wants the rest of him for dessert.
Beyond the astonishing flight sequences (the projections are by David Bengali with flight choreography by Paul Rubin and fight direction by Rick Sordelet and Christian Kelly-Sordelet), the show serves up a delightful scene of Peter interacting with his impish shadow as well as gorgeous sets and smart renditions of favorite numbers including “I Gotta Crow,” “I’m Flying” and “I Won’t Grow Up!”
The many young children experiencing their first Broadway in Chicago show at Wednesday’s opening were clearly captivated by the goings-on, from the moment Peter and Tinkerbell show up in the London bedroom of Wendy, John and Michael to the riotous pirate-ship showdown with Captain Hook complete with confetti cannons, though utterly bereft of any sense of even slapsticky danger in what is ultimately a friction-free romp.
It’s left to us adults to appreciate the fine orchestra, nicely showcased via an extended opening overture that’s reprised coming out of intermission. We might even join the kids on the way up the aisle in pocketing a sparkly speck of fairy dust or two. You never know when that stuff will come in handy.
Peter Pan runs through April 7 at Broadway in Chicago’s Nederlander Theatre.
For a full roundup of reviews of this show, visit Theatre in Chicago.
Photo by Matthew Murphy
