ABOUT THE SHOW
J M Barrie
Scottish playwright, journalist and author Sir James Matthew Barrie (1860-1937) left a considerable literary legacy. His magnum opus was Peter Pan, the enduring legend about the boy who never grew up.JM Barrie's Early Childhood
Born to conservative Calvinist parents, Barrie's early existence was marred by a tragedy. When he was 7 years old, his older brother (and, by all accounts, his mother's favourite child) died in an ice skating accident. This plunged the boys' mother into a deep depression. The young James attempted to ease his mother's torment by dressing up in his dead brother's clothes. Much of the inspiration behind Peter Pan comes from Barrie's obsession with the brother who would remain a child forever, unable to grow up.
JM Barrie's Career
At the age of 13, Barrie left home for school in Dumfries. It was here he acquired a passion for reading and storytelling. The young student eventually took an MA at the University of Edinburgh, where he honed his skills as a journalist. After working on a newspaper in Nottingham, Barrie started writing fiction and received considerable success with his novel, The Little Minister. This novel was dramatized and after this, Barrie focused his attention on writing for the stage. It was the stories about Peter Pan, who first appeared in a section of a novel called The Little White Bird, that brought Barrie lasting fame. The character's best-known adventure debuted on 27 December 1904 in the stage play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up. This story was adapted and expanded as a novel, published in 1911 as Peter and Wendy, and later as Peter Pan and Wendy.
Barrie and the Llewelyn Davies Family
Barrie's friendship with Arthur and Sylvia Llewelyn Davies' family was perhaps the most profound relationship of his life. A regular in London's Kensington Gardens, Barrie became acquainted with the Llewelyn Davies family while walking his dog, Porthos. He entertained the family's 5 boys with his lively tales and a quirky ability to waggle his ears and eyebrows. Barrie was affectionately dubbed "Uncle Jim" and became a close friend to the children throughout their youth and beyond. It was these boys who inspired him to write the Peter Pan stories.
The Peter Pan Statue in Kensington Gardens
Barrie paid for a Peter Pan statue to be secretly erected in Kensington Gardens in the dead of night in 1912. The statue's patron had hoped his sculpture would resemble one of the Llewelyn Davies boys, Michael, posing as his mischievous hero. The next day brought disappointment however, as the sculptor had used a different model for the final statue. Despite the author's initial reservations, the statue still stands today and adds a touch of Neverland enchantment to Kensington Gardens.
Great Ormond Street Hospital Connection
In 1929, Barrie announced that the copyright of his literary success, Peter Pan, would go to Great Ormond Street Hospital for children. Barrie's copyright gift has made a significant and lasting financial legacy to the hospital's work.
Barrie's Death
Barrie died of pneumonia in 1937. His final resting place was Kirriemuir cemetery in Scotland. The vast bulk of the author's estate was inherited by his secretary, Cynthia Asquith. Peter Pan
Did you know?
There are many weird and wonderful facts surrounding JM Barrie and his stories of Peter Pan.
Did you know JM Barrie was only about 5 foot 3 inches (1.6m) tall?
Not Always Neverland
In early drafts of Barrie's play, Neverland is called Peter's Never Never Never Land. When the play was first performed, the island was referred to as the Never Never Land. In the 1923 version, it was shortened to the Never Land. In the 1911 novel, it was spelt as one word: the Neverland.
The Seven Peter Pan Statues of the World
There are seven statues of Peter Pan playing a set of pipes, cast from a mould by sculptor George Frampton. The statues are in
- Kensington Gardens in London, England
- Liverpool, England
- Brussels, Belgium
- Camden, New Jersey, USA
- Perth, Western Australia
- Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
JM Barrie: Bringing Wendy to the World
JM Barrie is often credited with popularising the name Wendy, which was really rare before the Peter Pan stories became famous. It's thought Barrie took the name from Margaret Henley, a young girl who used to call Barrie her "friendy-wendy."
JM Barrie: Inventor of the Wendy House
The name Wendy House for a small play house comes from the house Peter Pan and the Lost Boys build for the injured Wendy when she arrives in Neverland.
CGI
Watching my six year old son in the early noughties playing a computer game I saw that he was wandering over a digital landscape and I thought to myself, what if you could take 1200 people on a journey like that, but in a theatre? I decided then to learn about 3D software as quickly as I could – one-to one teaching, all in a hurry. It"s not film, it"s CGI – so you can do anything you like with it. It"s where the virtual world steps out from a flat screen. Imagine looking at a great painting, and having that moment where you think "I wish I could walk right into that right now". Well with 3D you can.Peter Pan is the world"s first fully 360 degree projected movie for live theatre. When I first met the producers of the show the 360 degree lens system had only just become available, which was very fortuitous and enabled us to do it in the round. My response to first seeing the technical drawings was that we had a 360 degree view with no obstructions – it"s a perfect cylindrical forum. The 360 degree lens is a recent technological development and prior to this the nearest that all my team had got was 220 degrees, so this was a huge leap forward.
We used a wide filled lens to shoot the model of London that we fly over. It is a scale model of 400 square miles. We took a vast slice of London to give a sense of space from any angle at all times. It"s a complex technique that took nearly three weeks for a roomful of super computers to convert our instructions into finished images. A hundred of these machines chugged away day and night and they didn"t stop until the task was done. This rendering of the images was done out in California by the same machines that did Spiderman.
Peter Pan is the most famous flying show in the world, so to do any version of it the starting point has to be how are we going to fly? What we"ve tried to do is fill in the difference between Barrie"s original production at the Duke of York"s Theatre in 1904 where they would simply bring a cloth down (or they"d have a roller cloth rolling past the actors creating the illusion of movement) and a fusion with what modern cinema has to offer. It gives the entire audience something big to see, instead of tiny figures a long way off in the distance.
What we have aimed for is a fusing of some very different theatre styles. This is still a theatre production. We have live actors to tell the story and we also have puppetry of a charming and surreal style, aerobatics, singing and sword fighting. What we also have is this other very special element. We take the audience up in the air and give them the feeling that they"re soaring through the sky with these very familiar characters. It"s a lovely feeling.
Cast & Creatives
threesixty° Entertainment
Charlie Burnell Producer
Charlie has been producing theatre in London since the premier of Anthony Minghella's Cigarettes and Chocolate in 1996. In 2003, he produced One Knight Only, starring Dames Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Diana Rigg and Eileen Atkins, with Kevin Spacey and Zoe Wanamaker at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. His other productions include Honour (Wyndham's Theatre), What the Butler Saw (Criterion Theatre), The Shape of Things (New Ambassadors Theatre) and Peter Shaffer's Black Comedy for the Colorado Festival of World Theatre.
Mat Churchill Producer
Mat is a theatre and events producer who specialises in tented or site-specific events. In 1998, Mat financed and created the theatre tent for the National Theatre's touring production of "Oh, What a Lovely War!" He also converted the St Andrew Holborn crypt into a temporary theatre, producing Steve Tiller's sellout production Warcrime in the space. In 2005, he produced the Trade Justice event at Westminster Abbey for Christian Aid: performers included Ronan Keating, Beverly Knight, Jools Holland, Damian Lewis and Pete Postlethwaite. In 2007 Charlie Burnell and Mat Churchill formed Threesixty Entertainment to present re-imagined classic texts for an adult and family audience on a worldwide stage. Peter Pan, Threesixty's launch production, was a smash hit in London's Kensington Gardens in the summer of 2009, playing to 150,000 people over 16 weeks and holds its USA premier in San Francisco in May 2010. Productions are presented in a stunning, specially commissioned state-of-the-art temporary venue in which 360 degree video, light, sound, set, music, actors, dancers, aerialists and puppeteers are all involved to tell the story. Threesixty seeks the finest creative teams in order to deliver some of the greatest stories ever written as they have never been seen before. A well told story appeals to everyone so, in addition to regular theatre goers, it is Threesixty's intention to attract people who have never been to live theatre before be they five or a hundred and five. From the global landmark locations surrounding the theatre, to the sound and video surrounding the audience, the stage and the performers, the experience is all-encompassing - Threesixty.
Creative Team
This magical version of Peter Pan has been brought together by an award-winning creative team.They have created a bold, visually stunning reappraisal of J M Barrie's classic story that has proved compelling for adults and children alike.
Ben Harrison
Director
Ben Harrison is one of the world's leading exponents of site-specific theatre having staged productions in locations ranging from a City Morgue to an International Airport. A former Associate Director of the Almeida Theatre where he created the acclaimed Participatory Projects Programme, Ben is currently Artistic Director of the multi-award winning Grid Iron Theatre Company. He is also Artistic Advisor and Regisseur of the Dutch Muztheater company for whom he has directed five productions. He has pioneered numerous overseas projects and is currently developing the new Lebanese piece Bint Jbeil with the National Theatre of Scotland.
William DudleyDesigner
William Dudley is one of the UK's leading theatre designers. During his 40 years in the business, he's won seven Olivier Awards, and worked regularly at the National Theatre, Royal Court, and in the West End, with numerous play and opera designs to his name. William has an international reputation for his work creating 3D virtual environments, used in both theatre design and in commissions outside the theatre. He's worked with Trevor Nunn, Peter Hall, Peter Gill, Jonathan Miller and Howard Davies.
Tanya RonderWriter
Tanya has a reputation for outstanding adaptations of classic works. These include the award-winning adaptation of Vernon God Little (DBC Pierre) for the Young Vic, Saint Exupéry's Night Flight, Lorcas's Blood Wedding for the Almeida Theatre, Ionesco's Macbett, and Lope de Vega's Peribanez, also for the Young Vic. Her original works include Chain Play II for Indhu Rubasingham at the Almeida Theatre (a five-link play written by Neil LaBute, Abi Morgan, Tanya Ronder, Richard Bean and Stephen Adly Guirgis), The Boy, and the short film, King Bastard. Also in development are adaptations of Eduardo de Filippo's Filumena, and an adaptation of Dracula.
Benjamin WallfischComposer
Multi award-winning composer and conductor Benjamin Wallfisch has received over 50 commissions, including those for the BBC Proms, Bath International Festival, Rambert Dance Company, the Hallé and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. He is Associate Composer of the Orchestra of St John's and is exclusively published by Edition Peters. His debut film score (Dear Wendy) was nominated as "Discovery of the Year" in the 2005 World Soundtrack Awards. His most recent score for Rupert Wyatt's "The Escapist" was nominated for an Ivor Novello Award (Best Original Film Score). Benjamin orchestrated and conducted Dario Marianelli's Oscar-winning score for Atonement and his Oscar-nominated score for Pride and Prejudice and to date has worked on 22 other feature film scores. Benjamin also maintains an international conducting career, working with BBC Symphony, Philharmonia, Sydney Symphony and Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestras.
Fleur DarkinChoreographer
Jerwood-nominated choreographer Fleur Darkin formed her own company Darkin Ensemble in 2003. In 2006, she developed the critically acclaimed Augustine, which toured extensively in the UK in 07-08. Fleur is currently working with eight artists to produce DISGO, an immersive dance event which tours internationally in 2010. Fleur's new choreography credits include Disgo The Place Prize; Parabolic, Bristol Old Vic and London Big Dance; Hotel, Cosmopolitan, Stories, The Sound Clash. Darkin has been the in-house choreographer at Glastonbury festival for three years choreographing for acts including Scissor Sisters, Kelis, Sister Sledge and Chemical Brothers. Fleur's film work includes Stories (Wag) and the three part science musical Dr Tatiana (Channel 4/Discovery). Fleur's theatre work includes Beauty and The Beast, for the Dundee Repertory Theatre; Low Fidelity, ROH/Dance SW; Helter Skelter, Tramway; Jenny on the Block, Birmingham Repertory Theatre; Jack and The Beanstalk, Cinderella, Dick Whittington for the Liverpool Everyman; Debutantes, C-Scape Dance; Virgins, Company of Angels. Her work with Ben Harrison includes Bint Jbeil, Roam, Grid Iron, and You Tell Us What Was, We Tell You What Is (National Theatre of Scotland). Darkin has enjoyed international residencies at PARTS Brussels, Meiningen Theatre Germany and Theatre Mono, Lebanon. Darkin is Associate Artist of Bristol Old Vic and is choreographer in residence at Laban International summer school 2009.
Mark HendersonLighting Designer
Mark Henderson has lit more than 50 West End productions, including West Side Story, Grease, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Carmen Jones. He's worked as Lighting Consultant with the Almeida Theatre, and has also worked with the ENO, the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Old Vic and the Donmar. As an Associate of the National Theatre, Mark Henderson has lit productions such as The History Boys, Hamlet, A Little Night Music and Anthony and Cleopatra. He won the Olivier Award for Best Lighting Design in 1992, 1994, 2000 and 2002, and the Tony Award for Best Lighting in 2006.
Gregory
Clarke
Sound Designer
Credits: The Philanthropist (American Airlines, Broadway); New Electric Ballroom (Riverside Studios); For King And Country (UK Tour); Loot (Tricycle Theatre); The Little Prince, Lucky Seven, In The Club, Everything Is Illuminated, Clever Dick, The Schuman Plan, What the Butler Saw, When the Night Begins, Abigail's Party, (Hampstead Theatre); Where There's A Will, Love's Labour's Lost (The Rose Theatre); The Vortex (Apollo), Ring Round The Moon (Playhouse), Cloud Nine (Almeida), Pygmalion (American Airlines, Broadway), Equus (Gielgud and Broadway); Journey's End (London, UK tour and Broadway, New York Drama Desk Award winner for Outstanding Sound Design); A Voyage Round My Father (Wyndhams); The Philanthropist (Donmar); Hayfever, Lady Windermere's Fan, The Royal Family (Theatre Royal, Haymarket); Honour (Wyndhams); The Home Place, Whose Life is it Anyway? (Comedy); The Emperor Jones and The Chairs (The Gate); And Then There Were None, Some Girls (Gielgud); Waiting For Godot (New Ambassadors); What the Butler Saw (Criterion); The Dresser (Duke Of York's); Amy's View, You Never Can Tell (Garrick); National Anthems (Old Vic); Betrayal (Duchess); Abigail's Party (New Ambassadors); Mum's the Word (Albery); Song Of Singapore (Mayfair); No Man's Land, Tristan and Yseult, The Emperor Jones (National Theatre); Great Expectations, Coriolanus, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Tantalus and Cymbeline (RSC). The New Electric Ballroom (Druid, Galway and Edinburgh), Troilus and Cressida (European tour), The English Game (UK tour), Blackbird (UK Tour), Crown Matrimonial (UK tour), Uncle Vanya (The Rose, Kingston), A Dolls House, Portrait of a Lady, Born In The Gardens, Pygmalion, Little Nell, Measure For Measure, Habeas Corpus, Miss Julie, Private Lives, Much Ado About Nothing, You Can Never Tell, Design for Living, Betrayal, Fight for Barbara, As You Like It (The Peter Hall Company); The Changeling (Barbican); Nights at the Circus (Lyric Theatre Hammersmith and tour); Insignificance (Sheffield Lyceum); My Boy Jack (UK tour); 6 Seasons at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park; Seven Doors, Semi-Detached, Pal Joey, Heartbreak House, A Small Family Business, I Caught My Death in Venice, Nathan the Wise, Song of Singapore, Nymph Errant (Chichester); Office Suite, Present Laughter, Old Times, How The Other Half Loves, Victory (Theatre Royal Bath).
Pippa Ailion
O2 Casting
Pippa has cast over 100 productions for West End, UK, US and internationally. Seasons at Chichester, Crucible Theatre Sheffield & West Yorkshire Playhouse. She was Resident Associate Director and cast three seasons of 15 European Classics for Jonathan Miller at The Old Vic between 1987 and 1991.
West End / London includes: Legally Blonde, The Importance of Being Earnest (Regent's Park), The Fairy Queen (Glyndebourne), Been So Long (Young Vic), Spring Awakening, Billy Elliot, The Lion King, We Will Rock You, Marguerite, Chess In Concert, The Drowsy Chaperone, Porgy & Bess, Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks, Generations, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Blue Man Group, Follow My Leader, Enchanted Pig, Acorn Antiques, Tonight's The Night, Simply Heavenly, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Japes, Wit, Rent, The Magistrate, Hair, Into the Woods.
Current Europe: The Fairy Queen, Tarzan, High School Musical, We Will Rock You, Blue Man Group.
UK Tours: Quadrophenia, We Will Rock You, Riverdance, Jerry Springer The Opera, The Gingerbread Lady, Golden Boy, Slamdunk, Five Guys Named Moe, Tonight's the Night, Acorn Antiques.
Future: Into The Woods (Regents Park), Jack & the Beanstalk (Lyric Hammersmith) Assistant Casting Director: James Hopson Casting Co-Ordinator: Natalie Gallacher
Alison Chard
CDG Original Casting Director
Alison Chard has extensive credits for stage and screen over a 20-year career. She has cast dozens of productions for the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, where she was Head of Casting. She has worked with many leading directors like Richard Eyre, Nicholas Hytner, Adrian Noble, Sam Mendes and Matthew Warchus. Alison's career highlights include the world premiere of The Madness of George III, the UK premiere of Angels in America, The Wind in the Willows, Ian McKellen's Richard III and Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet. Alison has also cast TV series for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 in a wide variety of genres such as M.I.T., Real Women and Neverwhere, and since 1996 has been particularly associated with casting The Bill.
Sue Buckmaster
Head of Puppetry
Sue has many years experience as a Director and Puppetry Specialist. She has worked with Complicite on the Caucasian Chalk Circle at the National Theatre, Bartholomew Fair with the RSC, The Nativity with David Farr at the Young Vic plus productions with Sadler's Wells, the South Bank Centre, the Lyric Hammersmith, Leicester Haymarket, Opera Circus, Graeae, Tara Arts, Theatre Centre, Pop-Up Theatre, Roundabout TIE, the Crafts Council and the Puppet Centre. She is also the Artistic Director of Theatre-Rites; she's directed eight site-specific productions for the company. Sue trained at Middlesex University and has an MA in Contemporary Theatre Practice from Essex University.
Cast
Jonathan Hyde
Mr Darling / Captain Hook
Jonathan’s many film credits include Titanic, Jumanji, Richie Rich, The Mummy, Anaconda, Tailor of Panama, Derek Jarman’s Caravaggio and An Indecent Obsession. For television: Ancient Rome, Sherlock Holmes, Midsummer Murders, Peak Practice, Bliss, A Touch of Frost and Shadow of the Noise.
Theatre credits include (among others), for the RSC 2007-2008, Ian McKellen’s King Lear, The Seagull, Romeo & Juliet, Richard II, Richard III, The Merchant of Venice, Julius Caesar, As You Like It, Macbeth and Anthony & Cleopatra. At the Royal National Theatre: Jumpers, The Duchess of Malfi, The Real Inspector Hound and The Cherry Orchard. In the West End: Les Liaisons Dangereures, The Rehearsal and Antigone. In Edinburgh, Glasgow and at the Almeida: Macbeth, The Importance of Being Earnest, Hamlet, The Government Inspector, and Coriolanus. Opera/Music performances: A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Strange Case of Charles Dexter Ward. Jonathan directed In and Out of Love, starring his wife Isobel Buchanan (Almeida) and Missing Marilyn (King’s Head).
Ciaran Kellgren
Peter Pan
Ciaran graduated from LAMDA in 2007. Theatre credits include: Twopence to Cross the Mersey at the Liverpool Empire, Eric’s – a new musical, Macbeth and A Christmas Carol at the Liverpool Everyman. Ciaran’s television credits include: Shameless, The Unsinkable Titanic, Doctors and Cold Blood.
Abby Ford
Wendy Darling
Abby graduated from the Drama Centre in the summer of 2000. Abby recently filmed The Queen in which she plays Princess Anne and has been involved with The Pasolini Project The Pasolini Project (role of Girl) at The National Theatre Studio dir Lucy Bailey, Burial at Thebes (Nottingham Playhouse & Barbican), Closer (Northampton), Man of Mode & Coram Boy (National Theatre), The Skin of our Teeth (Young Vic), Playhouse Creatures (West Yorkshire Playhouse , Falling (The Bush), Girl on the Sofa (Berlin’s Schaubühne theatre / Lyceum Edinburgh), Les Liaisons Dangereuses & A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Theatre Royal, York), The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe for the RSC(Sadlers Wells). Film includes: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Shackleton, and Michael Winterbottom’s Wonderland and I Want You.Television includes: The Queen, Lewis III, Raising Baby Rio, Fear of Fanny, Footprints in the Snow, Life Begins series 1&2(as Samantha), Tipping the Velvet, My Family, Casualty, Holby City, Close & True, Dangerfield, The Bill, Game On and Royal Celebration. Radio includes: The Blotting Book, Brideshead Revisited and Coram Boy.
Madeleine Worrall
Mrs Darling / neverbird
Madeleine studied at Cambridge University before training as an actor at LAMDA. Previous London theatre credits include Irina in Michael Blakemore’s production of Three Sisters with Kristin Scott Thomas, Cinderella in Stephen Fry’s brand new version for the Old Vic, The Anniversary with Sheila Hancock, Gone With The Wind at the New London and Cocoa for Theatre 503. Her extensive regional credits include Annie in The Real Thing and Lady Teazle in A School for Scandal for Salisbury Playhouse, Sonya in John Byrne’s Uncle Varick for the Royal Lyceum, Lucy Bailey’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night and Tonight At 8.30 for the Royal Exchange and Chichester Festival Theatres and Martirio in The House of Bernarda Alba for Gadi Roll at the Belgrade. Film credits include Stage Beauty and Paul King’s debut feature Bunny and the Bull and her TV work includes Foyle’s War and Midsomer Murders. As a singer she has performed as a soloist for the London Sinfonietta and Parliament Choir. Her first film was a finalist in the 2008 Friends of the Earth short film competition and her first poems were recently published in Agenda.
Sandra Marurana
Tinker bell
Sandra trained at La Escuela de Juan Carlos Corazza in Spain. She moved to London in 2007 in order to complete an MA at RADA. Her credits include Epidemic (Southwark Playhouse, London & Athinais Theatre, Athens), Darkness Cycle (The Place), Danae (Sadler’s Wells), Love of Don Perlimplin (Albany theatre), Dead Squad (Tis Theatre, Spain). Her film and TV credits include Trio de Ases, Lo que me contaron los muertos (TVE), Ondamania( Onda 6 TV) and Viva la Blanca ( Localia TV). She has also directed plays at Tara Arts, Forest Café and BAC among others.
Arthur Wilson
John Darling
Arthur trained at the RSMAD. Since graduating, his theatre credits include, If I Were You (Library Theatre, Manchester); Resurrection (Oran Mor); Tom’s Midnight Garden (Library Theatre, Manchester); A Whole In The Fence (White Bear Theatre); Home: Edinburgh (National Theatre Scotland) and The Borrowers (Citizens Theatre). TV credits: The Academy (2act); Sea of Souls (BBC),
20 Anything (Comedy Unit). Film credits: Opus (Tall Tale Productions).
David Poynor
Michael Darling
David trained at The Drama Centre in London, going straight from sixth-form college in Stratford on Avon. He is originally from Nottingham, now London based. His first job was a three year contract with the National Theatre playing Lockwood in The History Boys, directed by Nicholas Hytner, at the Wyndhams Theatre and on tour. At Salisbury Playhouse he was Johnny in Touched directed by Rebecca Gatward. For Salmon Productions he played Absalom in David - The Musical. He is delighted to be reprising his role as Michael Darling in Peter Pan at the O2, the production that originated last summer in Kensington Gardens.
Mohsen Nouri
Nana / Ostrich / Crocodile / Illusions
Mohsen graduated from The Central School of Speech and Drama. Credits include Gods, Mortals and Mayhem!, Tsar Sultan, Romeo & Juliet, King Arthur and the Quest for the Grail, The Secret Garden and Karagoz (Little Angel Theatre). Doctor Dolittle (David Ian Productions). In One Ear, Unfolding Anderson, The Thought That Counts, Lighten Up,
Salt and the award winning Mischief (Theatre- Rites). The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (Mostly Harmless Productions).
Mohsen can also be seen in Beth Orton’s music video Conceived (Black Dog Films). He also appeared in Charlie & Lola’s Best Bestest Play (Polka Theatre) as well as having also appeared in the original hit London production of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (PPKG Ltd.). Mohsen can currently be seen in the much acclaimed In The Night Garden (Ragdoll Ltd) for the BBC.
Lee TurnbUll
Slightly
Lee Trained At Anna Scher Theatre School. Film Credits Include: Zebra Crossings (Lead Role) (This Won the Raindance Award at The British Independent Film Awards and won ‘Best Feature’ at The European Independent Film Festival), Cass, Outlaw, Clockwork Mice, Willies War (Lead Role).
TV Credits: Magic Grandad, The Street, Waking The Dead, Holby Blue, Wire In The Blood, The Bill, Hope And Glory, The Railway Children, Holby City, Silentwitness, The Famous Five and a BBC Drama called Missing. Film credits include A Boy Called Dad, to be released in Cinemas in March 2010.
Theatre Credits Include: The Liberation Of Skopje (The Moving Theatre Company), 1953 (Almeida Theatre), The Wake (Soho Theatre), Snake (Hampstead Theatre), Cherry Picnic (The Old Red Lion) and most recently he appeared in Peter Pan at Kensington Gardens as Slightly.
Ciaran Joyce
Tootles
Ciaran made his professional debut at the age of 11 when he played ‘Gaveroche’ in Cameron Mackintosh’s production of Les Miserables in London’s West End.
Theatre Roles include; Vince in new play Two Princes for Clwyd Theatr Cymru. Scot in Clwyd Theatr Cymru’s production of Brassed Off directed by Terry Hands. Ciaran also returned to the role in the same production of Brassed Off a year later when it toured. On Television Ciaran is best known for is portrayal of Lol in BBC’s The Story of Tracy Beaker a role he played for 4 years. Other Television Credits include, Holby City, Torchwood, Young Dracula, After You’ve Gone (BBC), Beacons (Chanel 4). During 2008 Ciaran also tried his hand at presenting for the CBBC Channel.
Film roles consist of Short film, Oscar for Digital Visions and Feature Film Summer Scars where Ciaran plays the supporting lead role Bingo. Other Work includes Colin in BBC Radios 4’s My Best Friend’s the Prime Minister a TIE Project Off the Streets and this year he plays the regular role of Travis in the new internet series po5t (www.po5t.co.uk), produced by Mia Jupp and Joss Agnew for Barking Angel, directed by Joss Agnew. Ciaran was a presenter on the CBBC Channel all last year.
Ciaran is looking forward to returning to the stage as Tootles in this exciting and innovative production of Peter Pan.
Benjamin Chamberlain
Nibs
Benjamin trained at LAMDA on the three-year acting course (graduating Summer 2009). Theatre credits at LAMDA include: Tommy, Comedy of Errors, Party Time/Celebration, Nina (Jacob Gremislavski), Pennies ‘n’ Beggars (Gaoler), Three Sisters (Fyodor Kulyghin), A Trip to Scarborough (Tom Fashion), Midsummer Night’s Dream (Quince), Agamemnon, ‘Tis A Pity She’s a Whore (Bonaventura). Other theatre includes: Titus Andronicus directed by Steven Jameson, The Crucible directed by Luke Stanley, Offensive Shadows (No.5) at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Ian Street
Curly
Ian trained at East 15 on the three year acting course. His theatre credits include Michael Rosens Pinocchio where he played the role of Pinocchio (Polka Theatre), Office Party (Underbelly and Assembly Productions) Invisible Town (Hoipolloi/ National Theatre Studio) Beauty and the Beast (Newbury Corn Exchange/ Hiss and Boo) The Deadline (Shifting Sands) The Bitches Ball (Penny Dreadful Theatre) Happy End (Wilton’s Music Hall). Theatre whilst training includes: Ghetto, Man and Superman, The Rimers of Eldritch. (Corbett Theatre). For Bare and Ragged Ian played The Little Prince and traveled to Moscow to workshop the production with Russian students at Moscow City Pedagogic University.
Paul Bigley
Smee
Theatre: Factors Unforeseen by Michel Vinaver, directed by Sam Walters and The Ring of Truth by Wynyard Browne, directed by Auriol Smith both at the Orange Tree Theatre 2009. Jimmy in the world Premiere of After The Accident by Julian Armistead. The Lady in the Van, playing Alan Bennett opposite Susan Hampshire for Bath Theatre Royal, Breaking the Code with Derek Jacobi, Jonathan Millers production of One Way Pendulum at the Old Vic. The Madness of George Dubya, Arts Theatre. Much Ado About Nothing, Royal Exchange Manchester. Alan Ayckbourns Confusions at Salisbury. Our Countrys Good, Colchester. Falstaff in Merry Wives of Windsor and both Dromios in A Comedy of Errors for Wild thyme Theatre Co. The Good Times Will Come and Baal for The Sturdy Beggars. Stan Laurel in Tom McGrath’s Laurel and Hardy. Television: Doctors, Hustle, Vanity Fair (BBC), Fast Show, Men Behaving Badly, Maigret, Grange Hill. He has filmed on arctic ice floes in C4s Shackleton with Kenneth Branagh and in Russia and Ukraine in Sharpe with Sean Bean. He played opposite Tony Slattery in the comedy series Just a Gigolo and recently as a serial killer in Sky TVs sketch series No Signal. Film: The Oscar winning Shakespeare In Love, Martha meet Frank Daniel and Laurence, Highlander 4, and Piccadilly Jim.
Darrell Brokis
Starkey
Darrell Brockis trained at The Webber Douglas Academy. His previous stage work includes: The BFG (Fiery Light - national tour), Messenger (Shunt), Alice In Wonderland (Sixteenfeet), Little Wolf’s Book Of Badness (Hampstead Theatre), The Arcade (BAC), The Taming of The Shrew (Creation), Hamlet, Chimneys, Summer Lightning, The Grapes of Wrath (Pitlochry Festival Theatre), A Number, Dead Funny (Theatre by the Lake, Keswick), Romeo & Juliet (TNT - World Tour), the Dick Barton series (Warehouse), The Jew of Malta (The Rose), Hamlet, As You Like It (Holland Park Opera House), Othello (Southwark Playhouse), The Real Hans Sachs (Linbury Studio - ROH), Equiano, Flow My Tears the Policeman Said, The Focus Group, Crash, Henry IV pts I and II (Fifth Column), The Glass Menagerie (BAC and tour), Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew (Leeds Shakespeare Festival). For radio: The Death of Grass (BBC R4).
Grant Stimpson
Mullins
Training: ALRA; mime and physical theatre with Desmond Jones; clowning at L’Ecole Philippe Gaulier. Theatre includes: Cinderella for Clwyd, Noah Babel’s Ark, Gold Rush and The Wife of Bath for the Rude Mechanicals, Cyrano de Bergerac (Basingstoke), Little Wolfs Book of Badness (Hampstead), Clockwork (National Theatre), On London Fields (Kali Theatre), BFG (Fiery Angel) , Twelfth Night (Bath) and Marriage and The Proposal (Peter Hall Company). Film and TV credits include: Warrior Princess , A Lady in Waiting, The Message , Tilted Love Young Americans and Shallowest Man.
Chris Tummings
Skylights
Chris’s most recent theatre credits include The Harder They Come (Theatre Royal, Stratford East and UK Arts Ltd.), Carnival Messiah (Harewood House), Fabulation (Tricycle Theatre), The Big Life (Theatre Royal, Stratford East) and Buddy (Strand Theatre) under the direction of Rob Bettinson. His TV credits include: The Bill on TalkBack Thames and Thames Television and on the BBC: Holby City, Doctors, Holding On and Boogie Outlaws. Film credits: Water (Handmade Films), Runners (Goldcrest) and Burning An Illusion (BFI). www.christummings.com.
Adam Speers
Cookson
Adam trained at the University of Wales in Aberystwyth and The Actors Centre, London. Theatre credits include: Herr Schultz in Cabaret & Friar Lawrence in Romeo & Juliet for Aberystwyth Arts Centre. Musician for Romeo & Juliet for No Nonsense Theatre Company, Duncan in Macbeth, Pierrot & Narrator in The Spirit of Piaf and Badger in Toad of Toad Hall for Troika Productions, Mr Roberts in Against the Wind for Shoebox Theatre, Orsino in Twelfth Night for Negative Equity Theatre, Gerald in An Inspector Calls for Sutton Arts Theatre. TV & Film credits include: Ian in One Day in July and a Mobster in Buena Vista’s Undertakers Paradise. Adam is currently appearing in Wilkinson Sword’s Butterfly Effect Internet Viral and was also in the Christmas 2008 John Lewis “From Me To You” Commercial. Adam plays Guitar, Ukulele & Mandolin.
Dan Wheeler
Alf Mason / Understudy John Darling & Lost Boys
Dan trained at LAMDA where credits included: The Cherry Orchard, Grace, Richard II and the new musical Otto Klump by Conor Mitchell. Since graduating, theatre credits include: Blair on Broadway (Arts Theatre), Rapunzel (Bowen West Theatre), The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (White Bear Kennington) and a national schools and venues tour of Precious Bane (for Interplay Theatre) playing the lead role of Gideon Sarn. Dan has had leading roles in several short films including Converse competition entry Shoephone (Brown Car Films) and Letizia Pezzali’s The Garden which was screened at the Saint-Petersburg International Youth Film Festival. Dan also plays guitar, mandolin and accordion. He was part of the original cast of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens.
Nasrine Hasnaoui
Tigerlily
Born in Ottawa (Canada). Nasrine studied classical Ballet with Lydie Brackeleer (Maurice Bejart) then got a full scholarship at “Steps on Broadway’’ New York City where she studied Modern dance (Horton) with Milton Myers. Theater dance (Bob Fosse) with Tony Stevens and Gary Flannery.
Nasrine’s recent theatre includes The Lion King at the Fortis Circus Theatre (Holland) and Mogadore Theatre (Paris) - Dance swing and understudy Sarabi.
Nasrine’s other credits include Julio Arozarena Company. Soloist dancer in L’air de rien Brussels. Nasrine has also featured in many Commercials such as Pepsi Cola, Danone, Ariston....and music videos.
Fiona Lait
Mermaid 1
Fiona trained as an aerialist at The Circus Space and in movement and physical theatre with Philippe Gaulier. She performs internationally on rope, hoop and silks as part of the duo Flightgirls and as a soloist, for numerous events, trade shows, galas and launches. She has devised several pieces for the Edinburgh Fringe and Channel 4, and whilst studying literature at Cambridge Univeristy performed in many shows, including Footlights. Variete: Hexen, Friedrichstadtpalast, Berlin (rope). Theatre: The Winter’s Tale, The Tempest, Pericles, Royal Shakespeare Company at The Roundhouse and Stratford-upon-Avon (rope and silks). Film: Batman Begins (rope).
Sophie Oldfield
Mermaid 2
New Zealand born and raised in England Sophie Oldfield trained at the renowned Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Leeds. After graduating Sophie was chosen to perform in the Millennium Show at the Dome, London, and through this experience her interest in aerial performance began. After the Dome show Sophie continued to develop her career in aerial, dance and physical theatre, touring the UK as a founding member of the Generating Company. Further productions include The Birds at the Royal National Theatre directed by Kathryn Hunter (Theatre de Complicite), and the Jerwood award winning Movements towards a Symphony. Sophie’s work also includes film, acting and commercial roles with performances for The Royal Opera, The Princes Trust, Honda and The London Science Museum. In 2003 Sophie embarked on a tour of North America with Cirque Du Soleil’s production of Varekai, performing triples trapeze. Since returning to the UK in 2006 Sophie has continued her fusion of dance and aerial performance. This includes large and small scale site-specific projects such as Nigel Jamieson’s Liverpool Capital of Culture, Scarabeus’ Dedicated for the Cultural Olympiad and Strings on Strings directed by Shunt artist Layla Rosa.
Sophie is also pursuing a career in Pilates; developing the skills necessary to advise on physical health for those whose bodies are their livelihood.
Samantha Hopkins
Jane / Understudy Wendy / Mrs.Darling
Samantha Hopkins trained at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. Her theatre credits include Lucy Lampeter in Jesus: The Wasted Years (Hen & Chickens Theatre), Mira in Pluto (Blue Elephant Theatre) and Gemma in Involution (Pacific Playhouse and then Pleasance Dome, Edinburgh). Her film credits include Dulcie in The Most Important Question You Will Ever Ask and a number of student films for various institutions including London Film School and the Lighthouse Media centre. She was a finalist for the 2007 Alan Bates Bursary offered by the Actor’s Centre and assessed by a prestigious panel including Janet Suzman and Anton Lesser.
Curtis Jordan
Swing
Trained at Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Work since graduating includes: Lysistrata (Captive Audience), Magic Flute (Welsh National Opera), Sick! and The Late Henry Moss (Almeida), Cure at Troy (Floodtide), Swallow Song (Oxford Playhouse), Low Life and Real Man (Blind Summit), Madam Butterfly (ENO), Faeries (Royal Opera House), Pre-Raphaelites for Live Canon (Finborough Theatre) and Peter Pan (Kensington Gardens).
Zoot Lynam
Swing
Zoot’s first appeared on stage aged just five months, in the epic 22-hour play The Warp. since then he has improvised, devised and performed around the country in shows such as: The Odyssey (Icon Theatre), Grimms (Horla Productions, Trafalgar Studios), The Thought That Counts (Theatre Rites/Barbican), The Winslow Boy and Down Red Lane (Birmingham Rep), Fairytaleheart (Hampstead Theatre, and again for Unicorn). Television and film credits include: Holby City, Mud, Casualty, Half Life (BBC), The Secret Garden, Being Human.
QUOTES & REVIEWS
Press Quotes
"**** An immensely thrilling ride. A gem to be enjoyed whether you are 8, 18 or 80."
Express
"An awfully big adventure. Breathtaking."
Daily Mail
"**** Stunning. A thrilling experience."
Whatsonstage.com
"A joyous flight of fancy."
London Paper
****" The atmosphere is perfect, the costumes outstanding. The dream world of Neverland is sensationally complemented by William Dudley"s cinematic projections. How we cheered!"
Independent
"Fantastic. An absolute must-see."
Elaine Paige, BBC Radio 2
"A mesmerizing & spectacular family event"
Magic 105.4
"Awesome flying scenes."
Time Out
“Fantastic show, wonderful cast, brilliantly done!
Some of the most exciting visuals I"ve ever seen”
Simon Bates, Classic FM
"The most sparkly and magical evening imaginable."
Simon Bates Classic FM
Press Cuttings
Peter Pan
Variety | December 07 2009
Peter Pan flies higher than ever before
Daily Telegraph | June 09 2009
A grown-up adventure in 3D
Independent | June 15 2009
Peter Pan: Kensington Gardens
Daily Express | June 12 2009
Peter Pan at Kensington Gardens: now we
can all fly
The Times | May 25 2009
Peter Pan transforms Kensington Gardens
into Neverland
London Evening Standard | June 09 2009
Peter Pan
British Theatre Guide | 2009
Peter Pan flies into Kensington Gardens
BBC Online | June 02 2009
Peter Pan to return "home" to Kensington Gardens
The Stage | March 2007
Peter Plan Clip
Channel 4 (UK) | 06 May 2009
Peter Plan Clip
BBC London News | 01 May 2009
Celebrities who love Peter Pan...
"I hadn't imagined anything quite so breathtaking as the flight over London. What impressed me almost more however was how true I felt you had been to JM Barrie .It was a wonderful addition to my memories of Peter Pan. I don't really see how it could be bettered!" Laura Duguid (née Llewellyn Davies)
Goddaughter of JM Barrie
“We had a magical afternoon under the big tent, the production was fantastic. The visual effects that heightened the flying sequences had everyone around us ducking through archways as Peter and co zoomed off to Neverland. The cast was great, Tinkerbell was a hoot and the puppetry was masterful. We had a very special family experience and I suppose the highest praise came from my son Charlie aged five; the moment the show was finished, he turned to me and said, "That was great Dad, let's watch it again!"
Russell Crowe
"It's how Peter Pan should be! To sit with all these children who are just spellbound is just magical."
Barbara Windsor
"An absolutely magical production! 21st Century design faithfully reinventing the classic play. The only thing that surpasses the design is the wonderful cast."
Ben Elton
"Thanks to this wonderful production, I now believe in fairies."
Russell Brand
"What can I say? A fantastic piece of theatre. My mouth was just wide open. I was a child again. I wanted to be everything, Wendy, Tigerlilly, a mermaid and Tinkerbell. I hope it comes back every year!"
Alex Kingston
The Royal Gala Premiere of Peter Pan, Kensington Gardens in aid of The Prince's Foundation for Children & the Arts took place on 17 June.
The Royal Gala performance was one of the cultural highlights of the European Summer, with worldwide celebrities, VIPs and media in attendance. Here are some snapshots from the event..