Picture: Mihaela Bodlovic
Club NVRLND continues at Checkpoint at Assembly Checkpoint until 24 August 2025.
Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
In Club NVRLND, the party never stops and no one ever has to grow up. Except now Peter Pan is turning 30, Wendy is getting married, and the Club is in trouble.
Designed as a quasi plunge into the noughties, Club NVRLND is a unique, high-energy, fully immersive musical. The party is already bumping when the audience arrives and gives the impression that it continues long after everyone has gone.
Writer Jack Holden and director Steven Kunis set out to reimagine Neverland for the “Peter Pan Generation” by creating a world in which to “escape”, to “celebrate being alive” and to “remember who you are under the noise of the modern era”. This they have achieved. The overall design, song choices and choreography perfectly reflect the era, transporting the audience back to a more “carefree” time.
JM Barrie’s beloved characters, so long known they are like old familiars, or childhood idols, are perfectly reimagined, each from familiar millennial subculture personas.
Pop princess Wendy (Martha Kirby) and emo kid Peter, performed with depth by Thomas Grant, are “spot on”. While go-go dancer, bad boy Captain Hook (Matthew Gent) and Mr Crocodile (Jad Habchi) are as beguiling as they are villainous.
Carrying the show through with phenomenal stage presence, Le Fil’s portrayal of Tigerlily is inspired. Simultaneously fiery and soft, Tigerlily is a friend from the word go.
The way the cast considers the audience of “Lost Boys” is intrinsic to the success of the atmosphere. The cast welcomes all with genuine warmth and they encourage throughout, creating a sense of belonging. Vital in this way are Nana (Becky Bassett) and breakdancer Smee (Joel Ekperigin) who subtly move and interact with individuals with kindness.
Through this unfolds a story, simple but fun and relatable, with peaks of excitement and softer moments of tenderness among the ‘banging’ tunes. Drama and peril ensue to bring the audience together and give them something to fight for. Finally it leaves with a reminder that growing up in the modern world is hard, but we are in it together and that whenever you need some respite Club NVRLND will be there, just as the original Neverland was there for us as children.
Full of joy and excitement , the show is dazzling and absorbing, keeping the audience invested in the story through the characters and the performers’ unwavering energy.
The NVRLND ensemble includes a well-oiled production crew, who solve technical issues with slick professionalism.
This show is a coming of age story, which speaks to the heart of any adult who ever found growing up hard. It’s niche but effective. If you’re a millennial looking for relief, take a trip back 20 years and come clubbing with your childhood Neverland friends to your favourite noughties tunes.
Molly Glenn
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