We laughed and laughed and never stopped laughing. Sight gags and pratfalls and scenic backgrounds spinning out of control and Peter Pan crashing to the floor in a heap, causing him to face his duplicitous relationship with Tink — add in an actor whose grandfather donated the money for the show and another with incurable stage fright. And don’t forget electrocution.
The result is curtain-to-curtain mayhem, but don’t get comfortable because the curtains are certain to fall down too.
Who’s the star here? Our favorite might be Renee Rogoff (far right, above) whose various roles include Ms. Darling and Liza the maid, often at split-second intervals, as well as Tinkerbell herself. We love Patrick Russell who tries gamely to be Peter Pan's Shadow and also plays the cute-as-a-tennis shoe Nana the dog. And Captain Hook! Jomar Tagatac, who doubles as Mr. Darling, is the perfect admiral for the idiocracy known as The Cornley Dramatic Society.
We love Joe Ayers, the money boy, who plays four-year-old Michael and reprises as a fabulous crocodile riding a skateboard. Oh, phooey: we love everybody. They all deserve a raise.
Even Hook.
Susi Damilano has turned into the Farce Accompli of San Francisco Playhouse. Her Direction somehow manages to keep everyone alive and in one piece, and this is no minor accomplishment.
Tick. Tick. Tick. Get your tickets quick, before the croc gives you the hook.
RATINGS ★★★★ BANG
The San Francisco Theater Blog Awards Division grants "Peter Pan Goes Wrong" Four Stars with a Bangle of Praise for Matt, the audience member forced to open the bottle of poison for Captain Hook because, see, Hook's got a hook.
All Four Stars shall be made of a really tough material that even these clowns can’t destroy.
“Peter Pan Goes Wrong”
San Francisco Playhouse
450 Post St., San Francisco
(2d Floor of Kensington Park Hotel)
Through Nov. 28, 2026
$52-$145
