Tinker Bell

by Patrick Flynn

Everyone thinks they know Peter Pan. But until you have heard Tinker Bell’s side of the story, you really have not heard it at all. When all the fairies in Neverland start dying, Tinker Bell comes to London to find a friend. There she meets a young boy named Peter Pan who has just run away from his family so he can be a little boy forever and have fun. When Tink takes Peter to Neverland, all sorts of wonderful and amazing things happen: flowers grow, animals appear and pirates arrive. But as Peter brings more Lost Boys and the Darling children back to her island, Tink finds she doesn’t like sharing her friend with anyone else. Especially that Wendy girl. This fresh and intensely theatrical adaptation of the classic story emphasizes play and fun as well as the complicated nature of friendship. A new, twinkling light shines on all the characters you love as J.M. Barrie’s story is reborn from this feisty fairy’s point of view.

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About the author

Patrick Flynn is a Helen Hayes Award-nominated playwright & award-winning filmmaker based in Washington, D.C. Plays include The Ferberizing of Coral (winner, Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival), Tinker Bell, The Velveteen Rabbit, Giant Box of Pr0n (“Best of Fringe,” DC Metro Theatre Arts), Sheila and Moby (Helen Hayes Recommended), Where in North Dakota is Carmen Sandiego? (Awesome Con 2018). His podcast The Original Cast was named one of the “7 Standout Theatre Podcasts” by Playbill. His films made for the 48 Hour Film Project have won over 30 awards including 2 Best Film Awards. He is a professor at American University & Catholic University and a member of the Dramatists Guild.

Reviews

[Marc Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

This play felt so fresh and fun! I personally am a big fan of reading adaptations of classics told from a different point of view (especially a female one) Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl is another example of this. I appreciated that Flynn dug deeper in the J.M. Barrie's work to learn more about the nature of his "fairies" instead of going into the traditional tropes of the Disney movie. I loved how the play addresses friendship issues and how we can overcome rough patches through forgiveness. I never felt like this play talked "down" to kids in the audience, rather the play talks directly "to" kids in a mature way while still keeping in plenty of humor. I'm a big fan of plays that break the fourth wall. Here the character/storytellers are talking to the audience not above the audience and there even is a fun moment of audience interaction that helps to advance the story. I hope to produce this show someday!