The Sunday afternoon performance of "Peter Pan" opened its curtains to a sold-out crowd of children, parents and those young and old who just don't want to grow up.
The play begins with the Darling children, Wendy, John and Michael, getting ready for bed while Mrs. Darling frets to her husband about a dirty little boy she has seen in and around the nursery.
Mr. Darling dismisses her concerns but is forced to believe her when she shows him the "shadow" the little boy left behind - a surprisingly realistic, mesh-looking cutout.
The parents go off to their dinner party after making sure Nana, the family dog, the children's unofficial "nurse" and the only one who seems to actually care about the kids' safety, is chained up outside, unable to prevent any little boy intruders from breaking in.
After the parents are gone, Peter Pan, played by UF grad Loren Omer, predictably returns to the nursery in search of his shadow. Wendy wakes up, befriends Pan and the story that most of us know and love continues on routinely - flying to Neverland, meeting the Lost Boys and eventually defeating Captain Hook.
What is not routine is the way that director Erin Kleim executes J.M. Barrie's classic.
The sets, costumes and acting are much better than you would expect from a community theater. The dirty, exaggerated outfits of the pirates and the Lost Boys are a bit over the top, but it works. Pan's costume is classic and effectively hides the fact Peter is a woman. Hook's ensemble is more flamboyant, though, and makes it pretty hard to take him seriously as a villain.
I expected to wince every time someone spoke in the more-than-two-hour production, but the British accents also exceeded expectations - especially for Omer, who was not only pretending to be British but to be a young boy as well.
Overall, the production is well done and "Pan" fans will enjoy the retelling.
Though you should be prepared for mildly abrupt booing from the children (and some adults) in the crowd each time the pirates or Hook appears on stage.
"Peter Pan" will be performed at the Vam York Theatre, 4039 NW 16th Blvd., through Aug. 9. Showings are Wednesday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.
