Did Peter Pan jump the shark?
Thankfully, unlike the now infamous shark-jumping sequence in Happy Days, Henry Winkler’s casting was more than just a cheap ploy for popularity as he delivered a bravo performance as the villainous Captain Hook.
The cast were universally expert, particularly Jeremy Legat who played Peter Pan.
There were the usual seemingly mandatory topical references to Strictly Come Dancing and X-factor.
Although, there was some nice variation in pop culture references with one to Monty Python’s ‘flesh wound, Blackadder’s ‘cunning plan’ and Mary Poppins’ ‘spoonful of sugar’.
Numerous Happy Day references were expected and were well integrated but sadly there were no references to Henry Winkler’s character, Barry Zuckercorn, in cult favourite Arrested Development.
The biggest sign of the times were not the references but the presence of adverts before the start of the performance and at the end of the intermission.
They were mercifully shorter than at any cinema but it is safe to say the release of Shrek the Musical on Blu-Ray and DVD was hammered into the skulls of the audience.
Overall, though the cast was excellent, the musical numbers were good and the audience participation was decent.
4.5/5
Airchance 