By Emily Huizenga

News Correspondent

An evasive British voice whispers “All children grow up. Except for one …” as periwinkle lights soften and a glowing London landscape evolves fluidly on the ceiling.
Performed in the world’s first 360-degree CGI (computer-generated imagery) theater tent, J.M Barrie’s classic “Peter Pan” came to Boston Oct. 18, bringing with it a 100-foot tent, over 15,000 square feet of hi-resolution video screen and a huge company of actors, dancers, puppeteers, choreographers, illusionists and flying consultants. The show first premiered in the original setting of the story, London’s Kensington Gardens, in 2009. It is now located in an unmistakable white tent on City Hill Plaza and will run every Tuesday through Sunday until Dec. 30.
Unlike any other theater in the round, the stage utilizes a new visual technique to create a 360-degree backdrop of scenery – three times the size of Imax screens – and project it onto a billowing tent above the audience. When Peter, Wendy, George and Michael ascend in the air, bewildered viewers fly with them – soaring over historic London, lush lagoons, enchanted forests and starlit skies. The setting is a perfect combination of movie and play.
The show itself is a fresh take on a sometimes frivolous story, ironically because it holds true to the traditional telling that is Barrie’s source material. Both Peter Pan and Tinker Bell radiate the sort of ecstatic recklessness characteristic of young children.
In the midst of these jaw-dropping visuals and a charming aesthetic, Neverland evolves as a place that, by the end of the show, every audience member is seriously considering quitting his or her day job and attempting to move to. Mermaids bound in tulle seaweed descend from the ceiling. Greasy pirates from all ends of the theater bellow in throaty unison. Indians and Lost Boys clad in extravagant furs romp playfully around – the actors seem to truly enjoy the make-believe world.
To a college student, “Peter Pan” makes a more relevant impact. One of the Lost Boys could really be any college boy: Scruffy, motherless and hopelessly endearing for the aforementioned reasons. Poor Wendy is continuously disappointed by Peter’s chronic immaturity, calling out “It’s Wendy!” every time he mindlessly forgets her name.
Lurking throughout the entire performance is the heartbreaking realization that as adults, we now not only recognize, but truly understand the symbolism, allegory and metaphor embedded within the story. When children, we simply watched and believed.
Tickets for Peter Pan are currently on sale online at www.peterpantheshow.com/boston, by phone at 888-PPANTIX (1-888-772-6849) and at the box office on City Hall Plaza. Individual ticket prices range from $35 to $75, depending on the performance.
Peter Pan is a classic story, one that anyone who has ever fought against growing up, getting a job and losing the freedom that is naivety can surely relate to.
As Peter says, “Instead of sleeping in your squashy bed, you could be out there with me – saying rude things to the stars!”