do you believe in fairies

the sophistication of barrie's  peter pan is enviable:

lost innocence, abandonment, kidnapping

pirates, american indians, fairies

edwardian london, neverland

battles, flying, disablement

lagoons, dens, boudoirs, ships, nurseries

dogs, ostriches, crocodiles

envy, love and grief

swashbuckling adventure

playing and playgrounds

the imaginary

and telling stories

and this presents many challenges

for actor and producer and director and stage manager alike

and challenges that are so very achievable

if you believe in fairies

if you can 'believe-in-the-barn': in

wonderland

narnia

middle earth

neverland

and this is where the real excitement lies:

the redskins were defeated?

wendy and the boys captured by the pirates!

i'll rescue her

i'll rescue her!

oh, that is just my medicine...

poisoned?

who could have poisoned it?

i promised wendy to take it

and i will as soon as i have sharpened my dagger

why, tink, you have drunk my medicine!

it was poisoned and you drank it to save my life

tink, dear tink: are you dying?

her light is growing faint

and if it goes out

that means she is dead

her voice is so low

i can scarcely tell what she is saying

she says

she says she thinks she could get well again

if children believed in fairies!

do you believe in fairies?

say quick that you believe!

if you believe: clap your hands!

oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!

and now to rescue wendy!

Act IV, Peter, Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie (1904)