Pan

Review by Sam

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Closing out their 50th Anniversary celebrations is Chickenshed’s Christmas adaptation of the J.M Barrie classic.

Telling the story of the boy who never grew up, this festive adaptation follows Peter, Wendy and Captain Hook on a classic adventure that audiences all know and love. However, directors Michael Bossisse, Louise Perry and the Chickenshed team have given this classic story a fresh coat of paint, with an original score whilst ensuring the show remains inclusive for all audiences to enjoy.

Despite knowing of Chickenshed, this was my first time seeing one of their shows and I found the experience utterly heart-warming. The team work tirelessly to ensure that their productions have the same care as a West End show, deep rooting them inclusivity with the aim of making theatre more accessible and welcoming to all. It’s a beautiful celebration to see, and as amateur dramatic theatre goes, it doesn’t get much better than this.

The gorgeous set design from Andrew Caddies was the stand out star of the show. This was incredibly grand in scale and transformed the stage with the seamlessness of a high-end production. However, sadly the lighting design and score was quite the opposite, with largely forgettable songs and a lighting set-up that did not work for this show as intended.

There are five rotating ensembles, and the press night saw the green cast take to the stage. This group of performers were fun and engaging, with the giddy joy emitting from the entire cast enchanted the crowd. However some lead cast members were sadly noticeably weaker vocalists than others and as a result did pull the show down. That’s not to say that there were no good performances, as Jonny Morton played an excellent pantomime-ified Captain Hook alongside Jimmy Adamou and Ashley Driver as Smea and Smee.

This Christmas production is a fabulously inclusive festive celebration for all the family. It may not be the best version of Peter Pan, but it will warm your heart with nothing but love as the Chickenshed team really know how to make you believe in fairies… they do, they do!