A live production streamed to our living rooms from Cirencester's innovative and very much upcoming Barn Theatre for the Christmas period... the evergreen and much-loved story of Peter Pan.
J M Barrie's novel has been adapted here by Alan Pollock in order to conform with current coronavirus guidelines, and has in fact, made it a 60 minute non-stop one-man show. When I first read that that was what I was about to watch, I simply could not imagine the story of Peter Pan as a monologue; however, the premise for this is set up beautifully, as he is a businessman miles away from home and his daughter, with whom he chats via computer video call wants to hear him tell her her favourite bedtime story. (We hear the voice of young actress Georgia Dibbs).
Directed by Kirk Jameson with original accompanying music by Nick Barslow, protagonist and only actor Waylon Jacobs is an enigmatic and watchable storyteller, as he becomes more and more involved with the story and his own fantasies become caught up in his narrating, almost forgetting that he is actually doing this for the benefit of his daughter miles away.
The haze worked well, as did the effective lighting (Joe Price); and I loved the shadow work, which was imaginative and creative. The sketched projections worked less well for me. They were at times very intrusive, being shown mostly to the rear of the action, but sometimes also in front of it too, and the sketches were mostly quite hard to distinguish and define. And I didn't understand why Captain Hook was given many different personas in rapid-fire succession. Sadly, for me at least, Benjamin Collins's creative doodlings marred the whole, which was otherwise faithfully, fancifully, and fantastically realised. Perhaps more realistic and recognisable images on a projected screen would have fared better, although sometimes, there is nothing better than allowing us to use our own imaginations.
Jacobs proved to be both a sympathetic and enagaging actor, and despite not making perhaps quite enough distiction at times between characters, we still were able to follow and understand everything. I was uncertain however why the voice of Captain Hook had to be a voice-over off stage and not Jacobs as well.
My only other concern was that I was uncertain who the target audience for this production, as well-produced and creative as it certainly was, would be. I can't imagine either my nephew (age 8) nor my neice (6) sitting through this and enjoying it, and it certainly isn't something adults would come to alone; so I left the livestream a little confused by this.
My only other concern was that I was uncertain who the target audience for this production, as well-produced and creative as it certainly was, would be. I can't imagine either my nephew (age 8) nor my neice (6) sitting through this and enjoying it, and it certainly isn't something adults would come to alone; so I left the livestream a little confused by this.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 11/12/20
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