THEATRE REVIEW: Slapstick Picnic's Peter Pan ★★★★

A tale to capture imaginations from minds old and young, J.M Barrie’s story of heroism, and the story of a boy who never wants to grow up, will always resonate with every individual; no matter how old we become, we are still at times those younger selves, and watching Slapstick Picnic on a drizzly Thursday evening at The Actors Church in the heart of Covent Garden, you couldn’t help but be whisked away on this silly journey and be enthralled by the storytellers on stage.

Charlotte Driessler, Lucy Green, and William Ros-Fawcett multi-role with extraordinary precision to embody these childlike characters we know and love; Driessler’s Punk Style Tinker Bell was a real highlight amongst adult in the audience, with Gibberish language (and a few recognisable words) making her a standout character, claiming a deserving standing ovation in a pivotal scene. Sticking with Driessler for a moment, the enjoyment on her face when the bells of St Paul’s Church in the background chimed with the exact moment the figure of Big Ben appeared on stage was perhaps the most incredible theatre to real life timing I have ever witnessed. Lucy Green’s ability to act the innocence of Wendy, but then create the most deviousness of Captain Hook shows the versatility of Green; the moments where Wendy is forced into becoming the mother figure to the lost boys, at the start of act two in particular, you can’t help but laugh with, especially with the dead-pan expression, plus as Captain Hook, the breathless delivery of ‘Peter Pan’ was also never lost on the audience, as we chuckled away to ourselves.

William Ros-Fawcett took on the titular role with great bounce and childlike charisma, messing around with the chemistry dynamic between Peter and Wendy, plus using Ella Barraclough’s stage design as a playground to become the energetic, larger than life boy. Nel Crouch’s direction brings us a real laugh-a-minute, with some choreography thrown in from Jennifer Fletcher that heightens some brilliant comedic moments for Ros-Fawcett and Droessler as we transitioned to scenes set aboard the Pirate ship. The response from the show had children enraptured by the story, sitting quietly and taking in the whole atmosphere, despite the murky weather, and adults too where relaxed and just enjoyed the company of others, where Picnics were out and everyone was having a great time.

A first time attendee to a Slapstick Picnic show, I was amazed by the defiance of the small cast taking on such a show with many characters, but I have now instantly made myself aware to the company’s past productions and those to come, because I will absolutely be making sure a return is on the cards, to leave my worries at the door, and enjoy the little pleasures in life we get to witness when our imagination is captured with top quality productions like those being brought to life by a company such as Slapstick Picnic.