By Kendra Hill
This weekend I had the privilege of (even though I am a full grown adult) being whisked away to Neverland by the jovial Peter Pan, care of Hale Center Theater Orem’s newest production Peter Pan! Peter Pan has enough fun to keep the kids entertained through the whole show so the whole family can enjoy it.
Peter Pan is a show is about a boy, Peter, who loves to be a kid and having fun. He lives in Neverland with his fairy Tinkerbell and the Lost Boys. There are also others on the island with them, including Indians and Pirates. Peter meets Wendy, John, and Michael Darling and teaches them to fly with him to Neverland where they go on an entertaining adventure, and learn about what it means to grow up.
Director/choreographer Dave Tinney used all of his remarkably talented actors well. If you’ve never been to Orem Hale, it is a smallish theater-in-the-round space and it requires finesse to use the space wisely. Tinney is a pro at this and also getting the best out of his cast. Each actor was fantastic and I didn’t feel that there was any individual less talented or perfect in their part than any other. Josh Valdez did an amazing job in the title role of Peter Pan. His vitality was off the charts, and he did some great acrobatic tricks and really kept the energy of the show high. Captain Hook (played by Ben Henderson) was a great villain. He was very silly, yet malicious at the same time. The Darling children, Wendy (Marissa Smith), John (Caleb Tinney), and Michael (Nick Gledhill) were great fun to watch. Wendy’s did a fantastic job trying to woo Pan, as well as showing her emotion and vulnerability while still being childish. I do wish John and Michael had more lines, but the ones they did have were great! The other actors complete the story and make everything wonderful. Each of the characters had me giggling with glee during various parts during the show.
They had a lot of movement with such a small theater. Sometimes I was worried someone in the front row might get whacked with so many people dancing, running, and flipping on such a small stage, but the night went without incident. Peter in particular often awed us with his fun aerial tricks. There were times where the actors were a little winded during the songs, but it’s clear that music director Rob Moffatt prepared his singers for this. As I’ve said before, this is a very high energy show! Trying to sing some of these songs is probably like trying to sing at the top of your lungs at the 20 mile marker while running a marathon. Kudos to these actors for keeping up this energy the whole time! I think the auditions must have required the actors not only to sing and dance, but to lift, flip, jump, roll, fall, skip, and all manner of other physical things.
The costumes by Maryann Hill were really great and they had a lot of detail (just try to count how many uses there are for ties). One particular thing that I noticed was the wing detail on Peter’s vest is SAFETY PINS! You won’t believe it, but it’s true. Check it out. One of the costumes that I was a little disappointed with though was Nana. The actor was great, but the costume was lackluster compared to the others, and you had to be told she (he, ironically she’s played by a man with a beard) was a dog.
The set design by Bobby Swenson was impressive. I was interested to see how they would do this particular show in such a small area and with the audience surrounding the stage. I do wish that on occasion you didn’t have to use as much imagination as they used the same trunk for various things that didn’t always seem to fit, and the kids beds were the wooden planks with quilts on them. But, it all still worked. That is just getting a little nit-picky.
One thing that I found a little bothersome was that in the Darlings’ house they have a circular metal window that they hang in the audience. In my seat I had a metal bar cutting through my view of the stage during the entire beginning and end of the play. They tried to make it so it was as unobtrusive as possible, but certain seats still have it in their view. This is only an issue if you sit in the south-east corner, so if that would bother you, get seats elsewhere and it won’t be a problem.
There were a couple of small technical glitches that evening. The most noticeable being at the end the trapdoor in the stage fell down a few inches as the entire cast was running around the stage and it got a little worrisome wondering if they would trip on it, or if it would fall through. Nothing happened though.
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Again, those negatives are slight and I am being very nit-picky. This is not a show to miss, and it is perfect for you, your children, and your children’s children! Take the whole family and enjoy a night of childish glee in Neverland!
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