Lost Girl

by Kimberly Belflower

Long after returning from Neverland, Wendy decides that she must find Peter in order to reclaim her kiss and move on with her life. Along the way, she meets other girls who went to Neverland and learns she is not alone. A coming-of-age exploration of first love and lasting loss, Lost Girl continues the story of J.M. Barrie's beloved character - the girl who had to grow up.

Genres: Plays, Drama, School, Theatre

84 pages, Paperback

Published March 8, 2019

Reviews

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This feels simultaneously trite and fresh and I think seeing it rather than reading it would take it further for me.

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lost Girl is a stunning work.

I was lucky enough to watch it staged 4 times in the week after reading the play, and to see it in motion and hear Kimberly Belflower's beautiful dialogue coming from the mouths of actors I know and love (my beautiful daughter played Wendy in three of the four performances -- along with many of her friends who feel like our extended family -- so I am a little biased, but only a little), was a fantastic experience. A real treat.

Wendy, all grown up but still living in her old nursery, is a mess. She's been waiting for Peter to return from Neverland, and along the way she realizes she needs to get her kiss back from the boy who wouldn't grow up. Yes, Peter Pan is the inspiration and the background, but the story is a contemporary exploration of so much more than J. M. Barrie ever achieved. Wendy is a tragic figure teetering on the edge of a breakdown, but she finds her way to wholeness and it is utterly convincing and earned.

I cried every single time I watched. If there's a staging of Lost Girl where you live, make sure you go. You won't have any regrets.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cried impossibly hard. This play is spectacular.

[Becca (beccas_bibliophilia) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite plays and I actually have the opportunity to participate in it soon! I love particularly love the Greek Chorus and what it brings to the story. The writing is beautiful and I just love it.

[abby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want to see this live so badly

[Alyssa Hinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story so many women can relate to. It was recommended to me by a friend who is deeply passionate about Wendy from Peter Pan. A boy who never grows up promising a young girl he will find her later.

Tay song is obviously Peter

[Edie Walls · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this because my local theater is doing this in the spring, and I really enjoyed it! I'm really excited to see it staged!

[rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

devastating. i love kimberly belflower

[Stephanie Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could make an entire playlist of Taylor Swift songs that explain how this play makes me feel.

Honorable mentions:
- Right Where You Left Me
- You All Over Me
- Haunted
- Perfectly Good Heart
- Cardigan
- Clean

(Dates read 3/7/23 - 3/9/23: this is a placeholder for STAY WITH ME AWHILE, which is a different play by different playwrights and not available here. ISBN 978-1-61959-206-3)

[Gi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve personally been on a really long and tiresome journey of growing up and for the past few years been dreading having to let go of those younger parts of myself. Saying goodbye to the Nursery.

Kimberly captured oh so beautifully and sensibly this coming of age journey. I am in love with the nuances of this story and just really want to put it up and play with it.

Gosh, this is everything!

[elizab · Rating 5 out of 5]

nina! <3

We easily did more than 11 read throughs of the full show. Not letting that time go to waste.

[Michael Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

After Wendy’s return from Neverland she struggles to move on with her life. Growing up turns into the greener pasture on the other side. She seeks to find Peter again and retrieve her kiss from him. The kiss being played almost like Peter’s shadow. A discovery of other girls that had been to neverland and her mother moving her out of her childhood bedroom cause a strain on her mental health. A look at coming of age structure with a look at relationships and the staying power of loss. The repetitive nature of dialogue and the use of a Greek chorus can really grate on the reader after a while. If you’re looking for a Peter Pan type play with magic and whimsy, this is not that play. More like Hook, but just the opening minutes of it.

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5.
Such interesting sentences - so clipped. The whole time I imagined a brown noise drone or something like that over the whole thing. It was just so grimy. Peter is such a slimy character. Not a villain, just a boy. Eight minutes a day, she says. But she's gone all the time. I understand what Wendy is going through even though I have not personally gone through the exact same thing.

[Olivia Moffa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The whole interaction about how “there are no grades for growing up” and Nibs says “there actually kind of are” and then proceeds to list all of the things I feel pressured to do daily- really had my inner child shook.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A curious and rather sad tale of irony, loss and growth. I am not a fan of riffing on classics, so it isn't by choice I read this. The characters are classic-but apparently not in any grown up ways...

[bea · Rating 5 out of 5]

i have had the privilege of studying this play to prepare for my role as wendy the past couple of weeks. this play is strikingly poetic and even after reading it dozens of times i am overcome with a sense of wonder.

yayy!

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

i can't say enough about the beauty of kimberly bellflowers writing. my highlighter was going crazy. is this the best story ever? no but the one liners in this made up for what the actual plot lacked. (plus i got a sick new monologue sooo)

[meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-3.75 rounded up

oh, wendy darling…

more “poetic” than the few plays i’ve read in the past, which isn’t something i usually gravitate towards but i liked it! i found an entire production of it on youtube and i think i’d appreciate it much more after watching lol

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spring play! This will be fun!

[emeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

a perfect play <3

[Jennifer Ropella Saul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great play for high school or college with great female lead

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another teacher is directing this at my school next year. Looking forward to seeing what the kids do with it!

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this destroyed me a little?

[Doug · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following what happens to Wendy Darling in the years after her return from Neverland is rather an inspired idea - it's just not terribly well-executed in this iteration of such.

https://dctheaterarts.org/2023/03/11/...
https://www.artsatl.org/kimberly-belf...

[scotia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Something about this just felt off to me. I think Belflower perfectly harnessed her whimsy in the end of JPITV, but this was just a little too much.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

💔

[Emily Odegard · Rating 3 out of 5]

good! just a tad sad and slow for me.

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Wendy Darling Syndrome” is my new favorite term lol. I cried reading (and rereading) and can’t wait to see this brought to life by our wonderful directors, cast, and crew.

[Jules Bella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kimberly Belflower, you have done it again.
I cried incredibly hard, thank you <3

[Laura Forner · Rating 5 out of 5]

i would read this woman's grocery lists and still give them five stars