Peter Pan Goes Wrong – Liverpool Empire

If you haven’t already heard of Mischief Productions and their work, then look them up, they’re brilliant. You can find some of their TV work on BBC also.

Writers Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Sheilds do a fantastic job at making a beloved classic work as a slapstick comedy production. Think lights flickering, props being misplaced, set falling apart and performers being injured. This is the kind of show that you could watch with friends and family old and young and they’re sure to love it.

The concept for Peter Pan Goes Wrong is just like the title says, Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society presents J M Barrie’s timeless classic Peter Pan and things don’t go quite to plan. The show officially begins as the audience are still taking their seats. With actors weaving in and out of the seats and asking audience members for help with the last minute finishing touches. We see a sound technician having issues with overloaded power cables. We can see the panic on the directors face as he struggles to get the show started on time. We then get the director and co-director welcome us all to tonight’s performance and give us a brief overview of previous productions and how some actors are either suffering from stage fright or hoping to have learnt their lines (all pretend of course). We are reminded that it is NOT a pantomime which of course gets a heckle from an already invested audience. This becomes a running joke throughout when the director later plays Captain Hook telling us all too shut up when we continue with all the pantomime heckles. Later in this scene there is an incident with one of the cast members getting electrocuted, trying to still save the show he asks the wonderfully expressive narrator played by Jean-Luke Worrell to stall and entertain the audience. In a panic he begins to slowly start ‘It’s raining men’ before fully getting into it and committing to the song with the audience clapping along in encouragement. My favourite moment of his was playing a pirate a few scenes later and awkwardly trying to find all the different props he was required to give to Captain Hook.

There was a moment however when the show did have to be momentarily stopped. It took a moment to realise when the real co manager came out on stage to state they were experiencing some technical difficulties and that there would be a brief intermission whilst they worked on the issue. Special shout out here to the real stage technicians and crew involved here. Simon Scullion did a great job at set designer the most noticeable was the revolving stage for the climatic finish. Captain Hook is seen going from the children’s bedroom to Peter pans hideout to his rocking back and forth pirate ship all whilst characters recover from their concussions, struggle with the flying wires, or deal with the aftermath of backstage romance. Lighting design by Matt Haskins cleverly gives the impression that things are going wrong too. A couple of moments they pull house lights on to stress that this isn’t part of the plan.

All of this is choreographed to every little detail to give the illusion. Matthew Howell was hilarious playing peters Bob fosse inspired dancing shadow, Starkey the pirate with a thick accent and of course Nana the dog who gets stuck in the dog flap and has to be cut out. Typical British humour throughout with slapstick comedy and physical comedy elements from all actors involved. For anyone familiar with their work in the BBC or previous productions there are new faces in this UK Tour but all deliver that farcical quality you expect to see. Constant chuckles from those around me. My one critique is that my cheeks began to hurt from all the smiling!

Catch it at the Liverpool empire till the 21st October before the UK tour continues straight on till morning to the second star to the right.

Reviewer: Emma Lambe

Reviewed: 17th October 2023

North West End UK Rating: