Year: Day to Day Men; December 27
Moss Green on a Field of Blue
The 27th of December in 1904 marks the theatrical premier of James Matthew Barrie’s play “Peter Pan”, also known as “The Little Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up”. The play was produced by Charles Frohman and opened at the Duke of York’s Theater in London. The lead character of Peter Pan was played by thirty-seven year old Nina Boucicault due to regulations regarding child actors. Gerald du Maurier doubled as Mr. Darling and Captain Hook.
Peter Pan first appeared in J. M. Barrie’s 1902 novel “The Little White Bird”. This original story focused on the fictional idea that all babies where at one point birds. The inspiration for the iconic scenes of Peter Pan flying can be drawn from that idea. Peter Pan actually appeared as a minor character in a few chapters of “The Little White Bird”.
The London play was met with positive reviews by both critics and viewers. In 1905, Frohman brought “Peter Pan” to New York where it premiered at Broadway’s Empire Theater. Maude Adams played Peter, a role she reprised in 1912 and 1915 theatrical runs. The Broadway role of Peter Pan was showcased by Marilyn Miller in 1924 and Eva Le Galliennne in 1928.
In 1906, Barrie published a second novel, entitled “Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens”, that expanded the character of Peter Pan through a series of adventures. Barrie continued to re-examine the character through multiple revisions of the play and, in 1911, wrote a third novel entitled “Peter and Wendy”. The story line for the novel was inspired by the revisions Barrie had made to the play.
“Peter Pan” made its first adaption as a musical in 1950 with music and lyrics by Leonard Bernstein. The play starred Jean Arthur as Peter Pan and horror icon Boris Karloff as Captain Hook. However, after its initial run, this adaption virtually vanished until 2018 when Bard College did a contemporary take on the show.
The best known “Peter Pan” musical is the 1954 adaption with Mary Martin as Peter Pan and Cyril Ritchard as Captain Hook. This play, directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins, won Tony Awards for the lead actors. Broadway revivals starred Sandy Duncan in 1979 and ex-gymnast Cathy Rigby throughout the 1990s. In 2014, a live NBC telecast of the stage show starred Allison Williams as Peter and Christopher Walken as Captain Hook.