“All children, except one, grow up.” That child, of course, is Peter Pan. And this past weekend, Peter Pan flew over to Lenape to perform several spectacular shows.

Every year, our school’s drama club performs an amazing fall play. This year was no different as they reenacted a childhood classic: Peter Pan. With everything from a flying Peter Pan to laugh-out-loud moments, this fall play has to be my all-time favorite. 

Summary:

Lenape’s reenactment of Peter Pan was fairly similar to the movie we all grew up watching. Peter, wanting to find his Lost Boys a mother-like figure, brings Wendy and her two younger siblings to Neverland. Here, the Darling siblings spend a few days with Peter, Tinker Bell, and the Lost Boys before deciding they must return home. To Peter’s dismay, his Lost Boys decide to join the Darling siblings in leaving Neverland so they can be adopted and find parents in the ‘real world’. Now, of course, the mischievous Captain Hook and his pirates try to interfere with the Darlings and Lost Boys’s return home and even try to kill Peter Pan. But, it all works out in the end and the Darlings and Lost Boys arrive at the Darling household and live there while Peter returns to Neverland. 

Fan-Favorites:

While all of the characters were amazing, there were a few fan favorites. One character that everyone loved was Captain Hook, played by sophomores Hannah Brodt and Koba Bissey. While he may be the villain of the story, he is a hilariously foolish villain who never fails to make the audience laugh through his outrageous plans, random screaming, and running away from the crocodile.  I don’t think there was a single moment when he was on stage that I was not bursting with laughter – and I can say the same for the rest of the audience. 

Speaking of the crocodile, this voiceless character (played by senior Max Hann and freshman Dylan Wilson) who only appeared on stage a couple of times stole the show. Every time he came out, strutting sassily across the stage as Captain Hook frantically ran away from him, the audience was hysterical with laughter. It was especially funny considering Captain Hook was terrified of a crocodile who looked like a green Barney. 

Of course, people absolutely loved Peter Pan, played by senior Darcy Serenbetz. Darcy did an amazing job of portraying Peter’s childish and stubborn nature, as well as his soft and sadder moments. Also, something that no one expected, was that Peter Pan flew! They attached Darcy to a harness and lifted her in the air during Peter’s flying scenes. Especially, at a high school performance, no one was expecting such a thing. At the performance I watched, there were several gasps the first time Peter flew. 

Production

Of course, we cannot forget about the efforts of the production team and stage crew. The lighting, costumes, props, backgrounds, and all of their other efforts truly made the play come together. They did a great job performing as Tinker Bell. For those of you who may not know this, Tinker Bell was played by a green light and a bell sound via the production team rather than an actual person due to her very small size, and even without an actual person performing the fairy, the production team did a great job of conveying Tinker Bell’s attitude. 

Overall, this year’s fall play was fantastic. It’s my favorite Lenape production so far, and it is definitely one I would watch again. In fact, I know a few people who did watch more than one show! Congratulations to the cast and production team for another great performance. I can’t wait to see what they put together for the spring musical! Spoiler alert: It involves an ogre and many fairytales.