Review: PETER PAN GOES WRONG, Wolverhampton Grand - Tour

Photo credit: Pamela Raith

The critically acclaimed Peter Pan Goes Wrong has returned to UK shores after thrilling American audiences over on Broadway. The comedy play is setting sail on a UK tour ahead of playing in London’s West End this Christmas season.

Peter Pan Goes Wrong follows Cornley Drama Society staging their version of J.M Barrie’s Peter Pan, reminding us that this is a serious piece of theatre and definitely not a pantomime. As the title of the play suggests, anything that could go wrong does go wrong. (Oh yes it does!)

Following on from the success of The Play That Goes Wrong couldn’t have been an easy feat, however Peter Pan has experienced longevity within the industry and rightly so. The Mischief comedy collective have had huge success with their other ventures and Peter Pan on its current UK tour will be no different.

Director Adam Meggido has created the most chaotic of performances whilst masking the intricacies and the immaculate detail needed to pull off performance after performance each evening. During our performance, due to a suspected technical element malfunctioning, we had a show stop. The magic of the ‘Goes Wrong’ theatre meant audiences were still not exactly sure if this was genuine or part of the play.

The initial set (designed by Simon Scullion) resembles the Darling’s bedroom where the chaos commences and cleverly takes us on a journey to the other worldly Neverland. The elaborate and impressive design begs belief on how this is a touring set as the way in which it is designed is complex and sophisticated. A particular highlight which uses every aspect of the technical staging is the closing sequence. No spoilers here but it truly is a sight to behold, which has the audience howling with laughter and applauding throughout.

Prior to the show beginning, the actors interact with audience members giving us a sneak peek of the calamity that is about to ensue. The cast have the audience in hysterics of laughter before the performance has even begun and once the performance does eventually start, there is no let up either. From Peter Pan signing autographs to actors running cables through the stalls, it is well worth getting to the theatre early in order to ‘participate’ in a small part of the performance. It’s worth noting how incredible the ensemble of actors are making the performance natural and effortless with the level of organised chaos this piece of theatre produces.

Each cast member compliments the story and each other’s performance with their impeccable comedic timing which draws bigger laughs than the stage ‘mishaps’. Whilst all the actors deserve to be commended and recognised for their commitment to each and every role, a special mention has to made to Clark Devlin. Devlin plays the iconic character of Mr Smee and John Darling and whilst you may be wondering why a more minor character in John Darling is the stand out performer, throughout the performance he is ‘fed’ his lines through a headset. Naturally there is interference from other channels on the headset as he relays the farcical backstage antics. With this ‘theme’ running throughout the play, the comments he repeats get more and more outrageously absurd as the play progresses with audiences chuckling throughout.

Without revealing too many details of what actually goes wrong, this is a piece of theatre that has to be experienced in person for the comedy to land fully. The slapstick type of comedy will not be to everyone’s liking but audiences will see something within the play that they will surely enjoy. Whilst the show has been seen on BBC1, Peter Pan Goes Wrong takes everything audiences loved from the TV special and extends the chaos even further with added audience participation throughout.

The Olivier nominated Peter Pan Goes Wrong is the perfect antidote for anyone who doesn’t want to grow up. The play is pure pandemonium that will have audiences hooked! 

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Jordan Potts

Peter Pan Goes Wrong plays at Wolverhampton Grand until 4 November before touring. To book tickets for select touring venues and the show’s London run, please click here.