This muscial adaptation of Peter Pan is something that would delight younger audiences like children, but for the adults who have long given up on flying and who do not believe in fairies, this musical may disappoint.

The music and songs in this musical composed by Mark Charlap and Jule Styne are forgettable and not even fairy dust manages to sparkle them to life. Average songs include "I Won't Grow Up", "I'm Flying" and "Neverland". Bad ones include "I Gotta Crow" which involves Peter Pan teaching the other members of the cast how to crow and make a normal song sound irritating. For audiences looking for a memorable score for a Peter Pan musical, the adaptation music by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe is definitely much better.

This production follows in the 1954 tradition set up by Mary Martin where the role of the boy who never grew up, Peter Pan, is played by a woman. Cathy Rigby, the first American woman to win a medal in the Olympics for World Gymnastics in 1968, plays the title character and her agility and nimbleness from years of training as a gymnast comes out strongly in her Peter Pan's athletic movements. She proves her versatility by singing, dancing and acting (the triple-threats) well and there is little surprise that she was honored with a nomination for Best Leading Actress at the 1991 Tony Awards. Incidentally, Rigby will be reprising this role one last time in the upcoming U.S. National Tours from September 2004 to July 2005.

As in most other Peter Pan stage productions, the fairy Tinklebell is played by a laser ball of light. Unlike the other productions, this musical actually makes an attempt to ensure this Tinklebell interacts with the props on stage. With the aid of some special effects and some members in the production team, this ball of light manages to open and close drawers and even drink a glass of poison to save Peter Pan in one scene.

What makes this musical soar isn't the songs that it has but the magical feel of the show. Characters like Pan and the Darling actually do fly with the aid of fairy dust. The making-of-the-musical special on the DVD edition reveals that pulleys and wires are just as important as fairy dust but the actual recording of the musical from the Broadway stage was done so well that the use of such harnesses and cables was scarcely detected. The DVD also includes a Sing-Along version of three of the songs and a short feature on the Peter Pan Children Fund - A non-profit organization in support of children's hospitals.

In one breathtaking sequence that leaves some members of the audience gasping, Peter Pan actually flies into the audience. Rigby's acrobatic display in "flight" with summersaults and spins allows her to flesh out a character at great ease with flying.

Paul Schoeffler does a capable job as Captain Hook, the evil pirate who makes his band of pirates dance waltz or tango numbers without any plot-advancing reasons. Once again, no one really understands the role of the Indians and Tiger Lily (Dana Solimando) in the musical, besides being the ones who are perpetually being caught by Captain Hook. However, the Indians do  take part with the Lost Boys, the Darling children and Peter Pan in the fantastic dance sequence in  "Ugg-A-Wugg" which is greeted by rapturous applause by the audience at its end.

This production of Peter Pan probably plays out better as a pantomime than as a musical. In one scene, audience participation to revive a dying Tinklebell is required and like any other pantomime, the nefarious evil-doer (Captain Hook in this case) is greeted by boos and hisses. This would be an excellent production to bring children to, but for those looking to watch a musical, it barely passes off as one with such a forgettable score.

 Reviewed on 27 June 2004