A regular highlight of the Town Hall’s August programme is Twin Productions’ summer musical, and next week sees Seán and Brian Powers’ company stage Piers Chater Robinson’s captivating musical version of Peter Pan, running from Wednesday August 21 to Sunday August 25.
JM Barrie’s timeless classic has been delighting audiences ever since its first stage production, over a century ago, in London, in 1904. There is an interesting Irish connection with that production as the role of Peter Pan was played by Nina Boucicault, the daughter of famed Irish dramatist Dion Boucicault.
That first production was an instant success; it ran for more than 150 performances and became an annual fixture on the London stage thereafter in every year up to the 1950s, excepting only 1939 and 1940, during the Blitz. The Peter Pan story has also been played out again and again on stage, in novels, on film, and television, its appeal and magic undiminished down the generations.
Piers Chater Robinson’s Peter Pan the Musical was first staged in London’s West End in 1994. Robinson has composed a string of hit musicals adapted from classic stories like The Wind in the Willows, A Christmas Carol, Alice Through the Looking Glass, and Around the World in 80 Days. His version of Peter Pan was yet another major hit and the show has since gone to enjoy numerous productions all over Europe, breaking many box office records in the process.
Highlights of its upbeat and melodic array of songs include ‘What Happens When You’re Grown Up’, ‘Rich Damp Cake’, ‘Braves to War’, ‘You Gotta Believe’, ‘Wendy’s Song’, and the finale ‘Don’t Say Goodbye’.
Now, Twin Productions will enable Peter Pan, the boy who is determined never to grow up, to take centre stage at the Town Hall with the story’s much loved cast of unforgettable characters, heroes and villains.
The cast features students from the Power Performance Academy, as well as from other talented performance groups from Galway city and county. The director is Seán Power; the musical and chorus director is Eoin Corcoran; choreography is by Declan J Gardiner; set design by Aidan Mannion; and the projections were designed by Mattie Burris.
Galway audiences can join Peter Pan, Wendy, Michael, and John - their allies like Tinkerbell, and their fearsome enemy, Captain Hook - in this high-flying musical that will be sure to thrill young and old alike in a feast of family entertainment and a theatrical summer spectacular.
Peter Pan - The Musical runs from Wednesday August 21 to Sunday 25 at 7pm, with 3pm matinees on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25. Tickets are €21/19 via 091 - 569777 or www.tht.ie
