Peter Pan – Whitley Bay Playhouse
7th December 2024
Invited| Review by Stephen Stokoe
Pantomime is the time for the whole family to get together, have a laugh, cheer for the good guys and boo and hiss at the baddies. This is all the more important when the weather is dreadful. Today, I battled through the wind and rain of Storm Darragh to fly to Neverland with Tinkerbell and the newer generations of Darlings to thwart, once again the menace of the dastardly Captain James Hook.
If the shocking weather and atrocious driving conditions had dampened my mood then it was soon lifted as the curtain rose on a wonderful and uplifting pantomime from Blue Genie at Whitley Bay Playhouse. The story is set right from the start as we meet the new Darling generation, a feisty Jessica (Sophie McKinnon) and her younger sister Angela, played this afternoon by Charlotte Walls being cared for by their Aunt Patsy (Daniel Mawston) who reminds them of their Darling heritage and the wonders of Neverland and the boy who never grows up.
Tinkerbell (Maria j Proud) then arrives and tells the young girls that Captain Hook (Darren Day) is back on the scene and they need to fly to Neverland to help Peter Pan once more. She sprinkles her fairy dust and the three of them head for the second star on the right and straight on till morning.
I am something of a stickler when it comes to pantomime and their traditions but I was very much impressed at the writing team for scripting realistic dialogue for the new generation of Darling children. Their interaction with Aunt Patsy at the start was a joy and the younger members of the audience lapped up their impudent jibes at their elder Aunt’s expense.
Once into Neverland we learn that Smee (Steve Walls) is now a captain, in name only, and is running a leisure business providing pirate themed cruises for tourists. He has his own band of former pirates including the wonderfully ludicrous Starkey (Luke David Martin) assisting him.
All manner of mayhem ensues as Captain Hook captures the roller-bladed Tinkerbell and her merry band of fairies in a bid to lure Peter Pan (Harry Downes) to his intended doom.
Day is wonderfully camp as Captain Hook and draws very much on Dustin Hoffman for his wicked but beautifully eloquent Hook and he is in top form. Walls, back for the 14th time at the Playhouse really gets his gang onside as the loveable Smee. Mawston thrills in providing the more adult jokes peppered throughout the performance and Downes, McKinnon and Proud are there to hold the whole thing together lest it fall apart into comedic anarchy.
The ensemble is made up of some younger performers who share the roles and are in four different teams. Steve Walls was delighted to say that his daughter, herself a veteran already as a dancer has taken the step up this year into the role of Angela Darling which she shares with India Rutherford and Marta Cooper-Jarzynka.
You cannot stage Peter Pan without some flying and we saw several cast members ascend into the flies and there is an interesting addition to close the first half – another element with which a story of Peter Pan would be as naught.
I would love to pick out geordie and returning favourite Luke David Martin as my star of the show but as I know him I may be accused of favouritism – You were a star to me, Luke. I will pick Rory Betts as my star of the show because he is living and breathing his performance as a dancer and really has his work cut out in one scene in act two.
The lighting (Dan Stratford) is particularly impressive with a very animate proscenium arch. The costumes (Caitlin Brown) are colourful and appropriate with a beautifully co-ordinated finale. The pace of the show skips along and there is no mushy love scenes to have kids squirming in their seats. The final number before the marvellous finale seemed a little tacked on and superfluous.
Blue Genie has produced another fantastic pantomime with all the elements needed for success. It is fun and frolics for all ages and runs at Whitley Bay Playhouse until 4th January. There is a British Sign Language relaxed performance on 4th January at 1pm.