BWW Reviews: PETER PAN: THE NEVER-ENDING STORY, The Hydro, Glasgow, January 10 2014

Although I prefer my theatre to be slightly more intimate, I am not opposed to shows on a much bigger scale. From the likes of The War Of The Worlds arena tour I have seen that sometimes special effects and big screens can add something to the mix. However with Peter Pan: The Never Ending Story this is not quite the case.

The setting is incredible. The 360-degree stage in the middle of the arena is well designed to look like storybooks that change along with the script. There is a cinema screen at the back to show close-ups of the actors (which in a venue of this size is necessary). The special effects are good but anything that complex opens itself to more problems which is certainly the case when they need to take an unscheduled break during act one due to a technical hitch.

It is a show that doesn't quite seem to know what it is doing. There are some strong voices but the music choice - a mix of chart songs from the late 90s and the likes of Rod Stewart's Sailing and trying to shoehorn them into the script - does not work. During a scene that was meant to come across as emotional and heartfelt, breaking into Angels by Robbie Williams cranked up the cheese factor to the point where it was just embarrassing. The acrobatics are impressive but they seem to grow old quickly.

The show has been heavily promoted in the UK as "starring Stacey Solomon as Tinkerbell". She is the off-stage narrator but only appears onstage around 15 minutes before the end of Act Two for one song. While her vocal ability was perfectly pleasant I once again found myself cringing at the song choice - You Raise Me Up while suspended in mid air was just too much.

Another gripe I had was the nature of the venue. Theatre etiquette did not apply here and there seemed to be a lot of flash photography from the audience. There was a lot of chatter during the performance and some of the children who may have been expecting something a little more child friendly got quite restless. This is a very visual show but that is not enough to sustain a two-hour performance.

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