Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up

This is the way playwright J.M. Barrie originally envisioned his most famous story

Comments (0) By Olivia Flores Alvarez Thursday, Sep 30 2010

The Alley Theatre describes its production of Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up as “the rarely seen original fantasy.” The darker, more adult story is a very different version of the adventures of Peter, Wendy and Tinker Bell than most audiences know. There’s still a large, colorful cast, a pirate ship and characters that fly, but several other elements are different. For one thing, Peter (who will be played by an adult male, instead of the traditional female actor) is less carefree and instead more conflicted and self-aware. Oh, and there’s no magic fairy dust. Alley Theatre Artistic Director Gregory Boyd explains that the fairy dust wasn’t in the original version of the play, and only added later by playwright J.M. Barrie in a failed effort to keep children from trying to imitate Peter and Wendy (no fairy dust, no attempted flying, Barrie reasoned).

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Asked why the Alley chose the rarely produced version to open its 2010-2011 season, Boyd answers, “I think it was (British critic) Sheridan Morley who called Peter Pan ‘the most important British play of the 20th century.’ I don’t know if it is or it isn’t. It certainly is one of the strangest. I don’t think most audiences think of it in quite that way. So it is a chance to try to open our minds as to what Peter Pan is.” 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, and 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sundays. Through October 31. 615 Texas Avenue. For information, call 713-220-5700 or visit www.alleytheatre.org. $21 to $70.

See our review ofPeter Pan, or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up here.
Tuesdays-Sundays. Starts: Oct. 1. Continues through Oct. 31, 2010