Photo Credit: Scott Rylander.
A dark sequel to Peter Pan reuniting J. M. Barrie’s characters as young adults on the eve of the First World War is heading to London’s West End after a successful run at the Finsborough. The production, entitled Lost Boy, will debut at London’s Charing Cross Theatre from Monday, 13th January to Saturday, 15th February 2014.
Peter Pan was the Harry Potter of the golden age of Edwardian children’s literature. Tickets to Barrie’s play and copies of the book sold in huge quantities with hardly a nursery in the Empire left untouched by the phenomenon. But when those children grew to adulthood, the world they encountered was a far cry from the utopia of Never Never Land.
How did exposure to J. M. Barrie’s masterpiece equip an army of frightened young men to deal with the horrors of trench warfare…and the complexities of grown up relationships?
The culture clash between the enchantment of childhood fantasy and real life provides a rich vein for humour and drama as this original story explores the hopes and dreams of one particular young officer on the eve of battle with a copy of Peter Pan in his pocket. As sleep begins to blur his dreams and reality, fact and fiction become entangled and he finds himself central to one final “awfully big adventure” with the grown-up Wendy, John, Michael and Tinker Bell.
Photo Credit: Scott Rylander
Willmott’s original songs – blending a contemporary music theatre style with music hall influences – have been arranged into a score with additional music by Mark Collins, Assistant Musical Director on the West End production of Billy Elliot The Musical whose recent work in new musical theatre writing includes Dougal Irvine’s The Other School , Wah! Wah! Girls and Rifco’s Britain’s Got Bhangra (Theatre Royal, Stratford East and UK Tour).
Charing Cross Theatre (formerly New Players Theatre), The Arches, Villiers Street, London WC2N 6NL, until 15th February
Tickets: £15.00 – £24.50 (note: slips at £15.00; balcony – £19.50 and stalls £24.50)
Box Office 08444 930650 (booking fee applies). Book online at www.charingcrosstheatre.co.uk (booking fee applies).
