Reviewing a Reviewer

Reviewing a Reviewer

This is likely to turn into a slight rant and if it does I apologise as it is my intention to keep it objective, unlike the reviewer im about to speak of.


The show in question of which I had a minor technical role was Paul Hammonds Pantomime - Peter Pan - Performed at the Pavillion Theatre in Worthing 2011


*It should be noted Peter Pan is my favourite story of all time, and im an avid collector of JM Barries books and therefore this is my defence for my non bias rant.


let start with a review from What's on Stage which can be found at the following link


http://www.whatsonstage.com/reviews/theatre/london/E8831323785986/Peter+Pan+(Worthing,+Pavilion+Theatre).html 




Peter Pan (Worthing, Pavilion Theatre)
Venue: Pavilion Theatre
Where: Worthing
Date Reviewed: 12 December 2011
The Pavilion Theatre in Worthing may be an end-of-the-pier venue but its festive presentation of Peter Pan is more in the style of a West End musical than the usual seaside Christmas offerings. All the usual pantomime set pieces are there – but add in the stunning sets, sumptuous costumes and dazzling lighting effects as well as a couple of Vegas-style song and dance numbers and you get a production that ticks all the boxes.
Darren Day provides the celebrity lead, initially as Mr Darling and later as a very villainous Captain Hook. In no time at all he whips all of the children, and most of the adults, into a frenzy of boos and hisses and then, in the musical numbers, he leaves all that behind and unleashes an incredibly powerful voice quite capable of lifting the rafters.
Following a series of reality television style auditions, Hook’s nemesis, the boy who never grew up, is played with great confidence by local guy, James-Royden Lyley. With a background mainly in dance, at which he excels, he also possesses a great singing voice and tops it off with loads of innocent boyish charm. Making his entrance high above the stage, he also displays consummate grace and skill on the wires.
Linking scene after scene, and providing most of the interaction with the audience, is [Sean “Rollo” Rollason] as Smee. Showing his credentials as a very accomplished children’s entertainer, he gets the best of the many one-liners. Breakfast radio presenters Tom Evansand Jack Hayes add another local angle. Evans is every inch the dashing pirate Starkey and Hayes, as th voluptuous Cookie the Cook, proves that he has the perfect face for radio!
The rest of the adult cast, the lost boys and the other juveniles all work very hard, and help to make this production simply wonderful. Sarah Brown as the roller-skating Tinkerbell andRachel Gray as Wendy Darling both perform excellently in the leading female roles and the wonderfully-named India Cabezuelos-Lambourne raises the roof as Mertha Mermaid when she belts out “It’s raining men”.
A special mention also goes to Julian Riley. As one of the team of very talented senior dancers he is constantly required to change costumes for the many musical numbers and, not content with that, he also appears, on several occasions, as the children’s enormously cute nursemaid, Nana the dog.
After the rapturous applause during the curtain calls, the 70s disco encore has the audience on its feet and dancing in the aisles, which provides a perfect ending to this stunning, slick, spectacular show.
- by Paul Lucas-Scott


Obviously written by someone who understands theatre, Pantomime, Peter Pan and ultimately what the show was trying to achieve.


and now onto the next review from the Stage Newspaper which does beg the question were you watching the same show? It annoyed me so much, that I wrote this blog. 


Peter Pan
Published Monday 12 December 2011 at 12:31 by Sheila Tracy
In 1904, JM Barrie’s Peter Pan was described as a “kind of poetical pantomime”. Today it often is a pantomime but this production concentrates more on the action in Neverland than on flying over the rooftops, although James-Royden Lyley, as Peter Pan, takes to the air occasionally.

At the start, Darren Day is the well spoken Mr Darling, before taking on the role of Captain Hook and announcing ‘ook is ‘ere, which is a trifle puzzling. Sean Rollason as Billy Smee hooks the audience and carries the show along at a cracking pace, having made his first appearance as the butler in the Darling household with a helping paw from Nana the dog, the human variety, not credited in the programme. Rachel Grey as Wendy and Sarah Brown as Tinker Bell are occasionally inaudible and need to project more.
The Neverland scenes, complete with wigwams, are good as is the action on the Jolly Roger, although the introduction of a Dame character as the ship’s cook comes as something of a surprise. That combined with the rock music and the appearance of the gorilla in the “he’s behind you”, “no he isn’t” routine is a long way from JM Barrie’s original concept.

So lets just look at a few key factors of this review
1) "this production concentrates more on the action in Neverland than on flying over the rooftops, although James-Royden Lyley, as Peter Pan, takes to the air occasionally."

What you may not of noticed is that all the cloths in the Pavillion did not fly out - they are swiped across, due to the fact there are no fly rails - this obviously makes flying Peter Pan Incredibly difficult and yet his opening where he fly's in 20ft in the air is quite a spectacular sight, he and Wendy then Fly to Neverland. There is also a scene where the Dame flies before the finale where Peter Pan and Hook sword fight, whilst Peter ...Fly's.

It should also be noted that the first 30 minutes of the show are spent in Bloomsbury, before heading of to Neverland, which as anyone who knows the Pantomime version is actually quite along time, and pretty close to Barries original play, where he wanted to get to Neverland .... (this is where the children in the audience want to be)

2) At the start, Darren Day is the well spoken Mr Darling, before taking on the role of Captain Hook and announcing ‘ook is ‘ere, which is a trifle puzzling.

Whats a good way of explaining this... Ah yes, go watch the Wizard of Oz - Lion, Tinman and Scarecrow are all from Kansas there her friends and family - Miss Gulch in Kansas  is the Wicked Witch of the West in Oz - The Wizard is Mr Marley. Same applies to Pan. 

To prevent any future confusion this is possibly a good time to also mention traditionally men play women and women play men in Pantomime.

3) with a helping paw from Nana the dog, the human variety, not credited in the programme. 

The reason Nana's not in the programme? same reason we don't say who the fat man  in the Santa suit is, to keep just a small amount of magic for the children, in that nana is real, just like the Tweenies, Noddy, Mickey Mouse and Father Christmas

4) "Rachel Grey as Wendy and Sarah Brown as Tinker Bell are occasionally inaudible and need to project more."

Really? is this an objective review? this probably annoys me the most... there is a possibility that there mics were not turned up fully but is this the most objective thing you can find to say. These are two talented actresses who give outstanding performances, with stunning LIVE vocals who deserve a little more credit than mentioning sound problems.

5) "although the introduction of a Dame character as the ship’s cook comes as something of a surprise."

I give up!!! It's Pantomime

6) "the appearance of the gorilla in the “he’s behind you”, “no he isn’t” routine is a long way from JM Barrie’s original concept."

Actually its not, he just didn't have a Ghost Gag Gorilla, but he did have fairies, flying boys and a great imagination.


Finally to quote James Barrie in the correct context

“Always be a little kinder than necessary.”

Gary Starr
13/12/11