| Peter Pan Goes Wrong | |
| Premiere: | 10 December 2013 |
| Place: | Pleasance Theatre, London |
| Orig Lang: | English |
| Genre: | Comedy |
| Web: | http://www.peterpangoeswronglive.com/ |
Peter Pan Goes Wrong is a comedy play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields of the Mischief Theatre company, creators of The Play That Goes Wrong (2012).
The fictitious Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society attempts to stage a production of the 1904 J. M. Barrie play Peter and Wendy, which is repeatedly ruined by the amateurism and personal rivalries of the cast and crew and the insistence that the director believes it is a serious play rather than a pantomime.
The play made its premiere at the Pleasance Theatre in London in December 2013 before touring the UK in 2014. The production transferred to the West End in London at the Apollo Theatre for a Christmas season run in 2015, running from 4 December 2015 to 26 February 2016.[1] It featured the original cast of The Play That Goes Wrong reprising their cast and crew characters from the original production, with the addition of Daisy Waterstone as Robert's niece Lucy.
It returned to the Apollo Theatre the following year for another Christmas season run from 21 October 2016 to 29 January 2017, making it the third show running in the West End from the Mischief Theatre Company after The Play That Goes Wrong and The Comedy About A Bank Robbery.
Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity benefited from royalties of the play, in accordance to the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 which granted them a right to royalty in perpetuity from adaptations of the story of Peter Pan on stage, publication and film in the UK.
It was announced in April 2019 that the show would embark on a UK Tour starting in October 2019 at The Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham before visiting Cardiff, Cambridge, Brighton, Salford and stopping in London at the Alexandra Palace for a Christmas run from 13 December 2019 till 5 January 2020.
It was announced in January 2022 that the show would have its North American premiere starting 8 September 2022 at The Citadel Theatre in Edmonton, Alberta with an all Canadian cast. The show ran from 26 February - 20 March 2022.[2]
It was then announced in August 2022 the show would play at The Arts Club Theatre Company in Vancouver, Canada with the same cast. The show ran from 8 September - 16 October 2022.[3]
It was announced on 5 January 2023 that the show would transfer to Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre for a limited sixteen and a half weeks beginning 17 March 2023, with an opening night set for 19 April 2023, featuring the majority of the original cast.[4] On 3 April 2023 it was announced that Neil Patrick Harris would be joining the cast for a limited engagement. [5] On 8 June 2023, it was announced Ellie Kemper would join the cast for a limited engagement.[6] [7]
After the conclusion of its limited engagement, the production had its West Coast premiere in Los Angeles, California at the Ahmanson Theatre for another limited five weeks, once again featuring the majority of the original Mischief cast. Performances began 8 August, 2023 with an opening night of 11 August and special guest Bradley Whitford as the Narrator until 20 August. On 30 August, Daniel Dae Kim took over as the Narrator until 10 September.[8] On 25 August a one-week extension was announced with Neil Patrick Harris returning to the role of Francis until its official closing night of 17 September, 2023.[9]
The play was adapted into a one-hour television special which was broadcast on 31 December 2016 on BBC One, guest-starring David Suchet as the narrator, and featuring the original cast, with the exception of Rob Falconer. It was filmed in front of a live audience at dock10 studios and featured additional footage of other BBC television sets being accidentally invaded.
| Character | Off-West End | Pre-West End Tour | West End[10] | BBC Broadcast[11] | UK Tour[12] | Edmonton[13] | Broadway[14] | West End Revival[15] | 2nd UK Tour[16] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 | 2023-24 | |||
| Trevor Watson Stagehand | Rob Falconer | Chris Leask | Ethan Moorhouse | Sebastian Kroon | Chris Leask | Jake Burgum | ||||
| Chris Bean Hook / Mr Darling | Henry Shields | Laurence Pears | Henry Shields | Connor Crawford | Andrew MacDonald-Smith | Henry Shields | Harry Kershaw | Jack Michael Stacey | ||
| Robert Grove Nana / Shadow / Pirate | Henry Lewis | Cornelius Booth | Henry Lewis | Oliver Senton | Chris Cochrane | Henry Lewis | Matthew Howell | |||
| Max Bennett Crocodile / Michael Darling | Dave Hearn | Matthew Cavendish | Dave Hearn | Tom Babbage | Oscar Derkx | Matthew Cavendish | Theo Toksvig-Stewart | |||
| Francis Beaumont Narrator | Harry Kershaw | Tom Edden | Patrick Warner | April Banigan | Harry Kershaw | Jean-Luke Worrell | ||||
| Sandra Wilkinson Wendy Darling | Charlie Russell | Leonine Hill | Charlie Russell | Katy Daghorn | Alexandra Brynn | Charlie Russell | Ciara Morris | |||
| Dennis Tyde John Darling | Jonathan Sayer | James Marlowe | Jonathan Sayer | Romayne Andrews | Alexander Ariate | Jonathan Sayer | Clark Devlin | |||
| Annie Twilloil Mrs Darling / Tinker Bell | Nancy Zamit | Naomi Sheldon | Nancy Zamit | Phoebe Ellabani | Belinda Cornish | Nancy Zamit | Jamie Birkett | |||
| Jill | Bianca Horn | |||||||||
| Jonathan Harris Peter Pan | Greg Tannahill | Alex Bartram | Greg Tannahill | Ciaran Kellgren | Jamie Cavanagh | Greg Tannahill | Gareth Tempest | |||
| Lucy Grove Tootles | Daisy Waterstone | Rosie Abraham | Ellie Morris | Georgia Bradley | Rochelle Laplante | Ellie Morris | Rosemarie Akwafo | |||
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Play | ||
| Outstanding Scenic Design (Play or Musical) | Simon Scullion | |||
| Outstanding Director of a Play | Adam Meggido | |||
| Drama Desk Awards | Unique Theatrical Experience | |||
| Outstanding Costume Design of a Play | Roberto Surace | |||
| Outstanding Direction of a Play | Adam Meggido | |||
| Drama League Award | Outstanding Production of a Play | |||
| Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards | Favorite New Play | |||
| Favorite Featured Actor in a Play | Matthew Cavendish | |||
| Favorite Featured Actress in a Play | Nancy Zamit | |||
Peter Pan Goes Wrong received positive reviews, including WhatsOnStage.com rating it five out of five stars.
The original West End run was nominated for the 2016 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy but lost to Nell Gwynn.[18]