| Wendy & Peter Pan | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Ella Hickson |
| Based on | Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie |
| Date premiered | 10 December 2013 |
| Place premiered | Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon |
| Setting | Winter 1908, London and Neverland |
Wendy & Peter Pan is a play by Ella Hickson, adapted from the original play and novel Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie. The play is a re-telling of the classic children's story which features Wendy Darling as the protagonist who flies away with Peter Pan to Neverland.
Playwright Ella Hickson was commissioned to write a new adaptation of Peter Pan for the Christmas show in Gregory Doran's first season as artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company for winter 2013.
This version of the classic children's story is told through Wendy Darling's perspective as she meets Peter Pan, the boy who never grows up. She and her brothers, John and Michael, fly away with Pan and Tink to Neverland where they meet with the Lost Boys and battle the evil Captain Hook. This feminist re-working of the story prominently discovers some of the darker themes within the original story and introduces some new characters, such as Tom, a fourth child of the Darling family.
The play had its premiere on 10 December 2013 where it ran at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-Upon-Avon until 2 March 2014. The production was directed by Jonathan Munby, designed by Colin Richmond, music by Oliver Fox and Jason Carr, lighting by Oliver Fenwick, sound by Christopher Shutt and fights by Terry King.
For Christmas 2015 the production was revived by the RSC at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre where it began on 25 November 2015, with previews from 17 November, and ran until 31 January 2016. The play had received some changes from the 2013 production, such as new changes to the score by Oliver Fox and Jason Carr, new script and scene changes including flying and fighting scenes. Many members of the cast had also changed from the previous production. [1]
A new production directed by Eleanor Rhode, starring Isobel McArthur as Wendy Darling and Ziggy Heath as Peter Pan, ran at the Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh from 29 November 2018 to 5 January 2019.
A revival was commissioned as part of the Christmas 2022 season at the Leeds Playhouse, with original director Jonathan Munby returning. It was previously performed as part of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo at the Bunkamura in summer 2021. [2]
The Bunkamura/Leeds production is set to open as part of the RSC's Autumn season at the Barbican Centre, London from 21 October to 22 November 2025, with original director Jonathan Munby again returning. Toby Stephens is set to star as Mr Darling/Captain Hook. [3]
| Character | Stratford-upon Avon | Leeds | London | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2015 | 2021 | 2025 | |
| Wendy | Fiona Button | Mariah Gale | Amber James | Hannah Saxby |
| John | Jolyon Coy | James Corrigan | Corey Montague-Sholay | Fred Woodley Adams |
| Michael | Brodie Ross | Jordan Metcalfe | Stefan Race | Kwaku Mills |
| Tom | Colin Ryan | Sam Clemmett | David Carpenter | Alexander Molony |
| Mrs Darling | Rebecca Johnson | Amy Rockson | Lolita Chakrabarti | |
| Mr Darling | Andrew Woodwall | Partick Tomboy | David Birrell | Toby Stephens |
| Skylights | Jason Battersby | John Sodiq Akanmu | ||
| Doc Giles/Crocodile/Shadow | Arthur Kyeyune | Leon Smith | Harrison Claxton | |
| Peter Pan | Sam Swann | Rhys Rusbatch | Pierro Niel-Mee | Daniel Krikler |
| Tink | Charlotte Mills | Hope Kenna | Charlotte Mills | |
| Tootles | Josh Williams | Lawrence Walker | Callum Balmforth | Kyle Ndukuba |
| Curly | Dafyyd Llyr Thomas | Douggie McMeekin | James Steventon | Tom Xander |
| Slightly | Will Merrick | Harry Waller | Richard Leeming | Max Lauder |
| Nibs | Jack Monaghan | Cavan Clarke | — | — |
| Captain Hook | Guy Henry | Darrel D'Silva | David Birrell | Toby Stephens |
| Smee | Gregory Gudgeon | Paul Kemp | Brian Lonsdale | Scott Karim |
| Doc Swain | Guy Rhys | Dan Wheeler | Cassidy Little | Guy Rhys |
| Knock Bone Jones | Richard Clews | David Langham | Hadley Smith | |
| Murt The Bat | Dodger Phillips | Ramône Dale-Cruickhank | Marcello Walton | |
| Martin | Jamie Wilkes | Adam Gillen | Thomas Pickles | Joe Hewetson |
| Tiger Lily | Michelle Asante | Mimi Ndiweni | Ami Okumura Jones | Ami Tredrea |
| Peter's Shadow | Martin Costane | Simon Carroll-Jones | Jason Battersby | Christopher Jeffries |
| Shadow | Simon Carroll-Jones | Jay Webb | Peter Losasso | Joe Anthony |
| Shadow | Susan Hingley | Kelvin Ade | James Berkery | |
| Shadow | Emily Holt | Laura Prior | Simone Lewis | Kazim Borrer |
| Shadow | Jack Horner | Richard P. Peralta | Lili Evangeline-Bryden | |
| Shadow | — | — | Leon Smith | Alexander Kranz |
| Shadow | — | — | Xolani Crabtree | Meg Matthews |
Since the 2021 Leeds production, Mr Darling and Captain Hook are played by the same actor.
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