New Victoria Theatre, Woking – until Saturday 18 January 2020
Reviewed by Alexandra Sykes
5*****
Peter Pan Goes Wrong has crashed into Woking and things started to go wrong, in a good way, from the start.
First of all, stage manager Tessa (Ava Pickett) couldn’t find a hammer and then had to help reroute a cable to enable the electrics to work, and this was before the show started. Once the show got underway, it was clear things were never going to go smoothly. With dodgy electrics, Nana the dog (Oliver Senton) getting stuck in the door and the Darling children’s bunk bed collapsing with the children in the bed, laughs were a plenty. Although Chris (Tom Babbage) keeps remind the audience that it is not a pantomime, there are plenty of shouts of “he’s behind you” and the ever popular ” oh yes it is/oh no it isn’t” which annoys him and prompts him to remark that this is what happens when the theatre is inside a shopping centre.
The set is impressive, set on rotating platform which shows the Darling children’s nursery, Peter Pan’s hideout and Captain Hooks ship. However it does have its downfalls as the cast keep saying it uses a lot of electricity and it doesn’t always work when it is meant to, which becomes clear when it constantly spins whilst the cast are trying to have a sword fight.
The cast work well together, even with some understudies having to step in but the true star of the show was Fred Gray, who played Michael Darling and the crocodile. He captured the audiences hearts when it is revealed he is in love with the shows leading lady (Katy Daghorn) and he was only given a part in the show due to his uncle donating money to the production. Although things don’t always go his way he does end up with the girl of his dreams in the end.
All in all a very good show with lots of laughs for all the family, this is a show that will never be the same twice and will leave audiences laughing for days.