About the Play:

Peter Pan was one of Royal National Theatre of Britain's top 100 plays of the 20th century.

Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up is a full-length fantasy by J.M. Barrie, adapted for the stage in this version by John Caird and Trevor Nunn. Ever since Peter Pan flew in through Wendy Darling's nursery window and took her off to Never Land, Barrie's classic adventure story has thrilled and delighted generations of theatre-goers. Adapted by Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) directing duo John Caird and Trevor Nunn, this tale is packed with magic, mischief, adventure, danger, and heart.

Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up is a two-act comic drama based on J.M. Barrie's classic tale painstakingly researched and restored by John Caird and Trevor Nunn to Barrie's original intentions. This is the beloved story of Peter, Wendy, Michael, John, Capt. Hook, Smee, the lost boys, pirates and the Indians, and, of course, Tinker Bell, in their adventures in Never Land. In the words of John Caird: "A brief explanation of some of the decisions we took in revising the text may be useful to anyone considering their own production of this version…We were fascinated to discover that there was no one single document called Peter Pan. What we found was a tantalizing number of different versions, all of them containing some very agreeable surprises…We have made some significant alterations, the greatest of which is the introduction of a new character, the Storyteller, who is in fact the author himself. To a reader of the play, one of its most enjoyable ingredients is Barrie's unmistakable authorial tone. He tells the story of Peter Pan partly through dialogue and partly by means of his inimitable stage directions. In a whimsical, ambiguous and ironical manner he speaks here as clearly to adults as he does to children. Moreover, many of the play's complicated conceits are only comprehensible if Barrie's commentary can be heard in parallel with the voices of the characters. This device also allows us to prepare our audience with some essential background history of the Darling family in a brief prologue, and to extend the narrative at the end of the play to include Barrie's heartbreaking and heartwarming conclusion to Peter and Wendy's story."

J.M. Barrie wrote Peter Pan first as a work of prose and then adapted it for the stage. John Caird and Trevor Nunn adapted the original book and play, based on a wide variety of J. M. Barrie's original source material, for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC). It was first performed at the Barbican Theatre the Christmas season of 1982/83. The show was subsequently revived for the RSC Christmas seasons of 1983/4 and 1984/5 and has become a popular choice for school and community theatre productions.

Cast: 8 female, 22 male, 1 girl, 2 boys  (flexible casting)

What people say:

"…a national masterpiece." — The Sunday Express (UK)

"Lovingly rendered account of a great story." — The Times (UK)

"A feast of nursery nostalgia, wizard effects, Edwardian lingo and tinselled adventure." — Observer (UK)

"…we have a resonant and beguiling fantasy that boasts as much spectacle as any child could wish; and that, at the same time, touches on the double Barriesque tragedy of growing up into conformity or being marooned indefinitely in the Never Land." — The Guardian (UK)

About the Playwright:

Sir James Matthew Barrie (1860-1937), more commonly known as J. M. Barrie, was a Scottish novelist and dramatist. Most people remember him for inventing the character of Peter Pan, whom he based on his friends, the Llewelyn Davies boys. Peter Pan had its first stage performance on December 27, 1904.

John Caird is an internationally acclaimed theatre, musical and opera director and writer. He was born in Edmonton and spent his childhood in Montreal before moving and moved to to England at 11 years of age. He has had a distinguished career working at the prestigious Royal Shakespeare and National Theatre companies. He collaborated with Trevor Nunn on both Nicholas Nickleby and Les Miserables, sharing a Tony each time when those shows reached Broadway.

Sir Trevor Nunn is one of Britain's most well-respected and influential theatre directors. From 1968 to 1986, he was the youngest ever Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, directing over thirty productions, including most of the Shakespeare canon, as well as Nicholas Nickleby and Les Miserables. From 1997 to 2003, he was Director of the National Theatre.