Character Study- Peter Pan

  Within this project, I am honoured with playing a character which perfectly encapsulates most of my self-appointed challenges for this academic year- a character that not only presents a romantic relationship within a stage setting, but also represents the ideology of motherhood; Mrs Mary Darling- who experiences the temporary loss of her three children, whose were a staple to all socially accepted Victorian women.

  Mrs Darling acts the prime parental figure to the three Darling children- Wendy, John and Michael; her primary essence within the play, especially within the opening act, is her motherhood, and how she fits into the traditional Victorian standard of a middle-upper class woman- and how their domestic duties of cleaning and cooking were often subsided with enough money to a lowly maid, so that she could primarily focus on her duties as a loving but fair parental figure to mould her children into the social standard. Mary Darling faces conflict, however, during the later half of Act Two, when she is confronted with the grief of having her children taken from her by the mysterious ‘Peter Pan’ figure, and forced to face the fact that she has failed to serve her singular purpose, and it is shown how to she unhealthily copes with this realisation, shifting the blame onto other family members, and begins to have delusion states of sleep talking, begging for her lost children to return- perhaps to silence her inner conflict ridiculing her for deviating from her traditional role, rather than other people who may or may not ridicule her at all, which I must show without becoming too much of a caricature of a melodramatic mother in a kitchen sink opera- I must carry this moment with weight without breaking the whimsical atmosphere of the entire show. 

  To create this ambience within the Darling household, I have to ensure that the atmosphere within the household is as natural and jovial as possible during Act One, to craft a false sense of security for my character of absolute control and security, despite the knowledge of something else happening behind the curtain- whilst maintaining my character’s fair discipline toward the children; this is best demonstrated within her entrance line; “Goodness me, Michael- what a lot of fuss you’re making! Now, be a good boy, and do what Nana tells you.”- which illustrates Mrs Darling’s tendencies as a character, and foreshadows her ways of grieving in the latter section of the play, by dismissal- through the family pet, Nana, she thrusts her responsibilities into this dog, which becomes pivotal to Mrs Darling’s character development in the later sections of the show, as Nana almost upholds the family mantle whilst Mrs Darling grieves seemingly day and night- I must deliver this line in a way that shows her character’s deep care for her children, whilst also showing her distracted mind focused on other activities, resulting in her seeming quite absent unintentionally; I plan to execute this through physicality and my stagecraft within this scene, leaning to Michael’s level whilst addressing him, then drifting away from the rest of the children to focus on her appearance for the night’s activities, of going out to dinner- which she knows she doesn’t feel inclined to do, which I will play on to show her dismissal of her own feelings to conform with social standards by not break eye contact with the mirror- this will hopefully portray her obsession with looking the part of looking like a pristine wife and mother, as well as literally and metaphorically reflecting on her feelings.

  Later into this very scene, once Mr and Mrs Darling begin discussing the changing behaviours of their children, I plan to implement a softer side of Mrs Darling, by creating a more vulnerable picture to Mrs Darling, showing her being more compassionate yet more defensive of what her children says as truth; she is quick to defend Wendy when she recounts what her daughter had told to her about ‘a young boy called— Peter.’- even after her husbands firm dismissal, showcasing Mrs Darling in a perfect balance of headstrong and compassionate for her family, which acts both a positive influence for women that, in some aspects, can still withstands modern expectation; I plan to show this through physicality and vocal infliction, taking down the stern motherly front and lowering her tone of voice, partly for secrecy from her children, in addition to her concern for her children’s safety, whilst also utilising the space to fill the space with my movement to and fro, to induce spikes of anxiety, especially when discussing the mystery boy’s shadow, which will be located in a chest on the opposite length of the stage, which I plan to slowly glide over to using Mrs Darling’s usual graceful distinction- yet, in contrast, I will hastily move away from the box once investigating with a lot less decorum and more speed- to show her true self when under feelings of panic- creating a human aspect to Mrs Darling that’s oils otherwise make her a very two-dimensional posh housewife, which would fail to stretch me in any substantial way- I must portray all aspects of motherhood, including the anxieties surrounding it, even when not in direct vicinity of the children.

  This ideology of anxiety and motherly concern is one I wanted to highly amplify with the latter end of this two act play- showing her grief for not only her children, but also the mother she believes she failed to be- specifically within her sleep talking segments in which she uses to ‘communicate’ with Peter; the phrases she calls out are phrases that are connoted to be ones she repeats often, yet a Peter doesn’t understand this concept, and responds to the disturbed Mrs Darling, which results in the window being left open, in order for the Darling children to return; I plan to emphasise the dream-like tendencies of these vocal apparitions through a hollow, soft tone of voice- much like that of her concern from the prior section of the play, yet amplified to sound more weak and defeated to her own thoughts (there is no distractions anymore, there’s nothing else to suppress- all that seeps through is grief). In addition to the acting within the vocal sections, I plan to utilise my physicality to show the disturbed nature of the disappearance of her chi,Daren have shook her to her core, causing her movements in the her sleep to fluctuate from slow to spikes of speed to jolt side to side, to indicate unrest from her waves of guilt whilst dreaming, with the dream sequences concluding with a jolt forward, until she composes herself, to make it alone t she is trying to act like her highly present and respectable figure, but my movement’s sporadic nature will heighten with mention of her children being forever lost; she cannot hide her true feelings towards the situation, no matter how many times she shuts her eyes to escape reality, it will always face her, forcing her to cope with her grief head on in a constant battle.

  This battle, however, is subsided with a tsunami of relief once it is revealed her children are in her arms once more, seemingly unharmed and unchanged from when they were last in her arms; I would like to show this with fragile vocal inflictions as a wave of emotions hits her, almost overwhelming her, and subsequently breaking any upholding front she had left between her and her raw emotion- within her physical attributes, I would like to have a intimate moment with each member of the family, so that the audience and the character can really experience the emotions of relief play whilst Mrs Darling scans her children’s eyes, to see the same glimmer she saw she she last saw them with her- they are happy, leading to Mrs Darling to resolve her grief temporarily to appreciate the new people in front of her, still the same childlike happiness, but somehow matured into more independent individuals. In spite of this, Mrs Darling cannot have too long of a moment to dwell on this reality, of how much of the children’s livelihood she has failed to be a part of- as she becomes tasked in continuing raising the Lost Boys that Wendy had just begun to raise, based on her mother’s actions, which leaves her overwhelmed at first, but once seeing an opportunity to make up for lost time, she accepts gleefully- I must portray the acceptance Mrs Darling has for her new found family, whilst also keeping her reactions realistic, including the confusion and grief; I believe during this part of the play, Mrs Darling cannot act the same she did in the beginning- her persona must change to a more gentle parent with more presence in juxtaposition to the beginning when she was stricter but not fully present; which will be told through her stagecraft especially- involving herself with more actors on the stage, rather than just staying in a singular corner of the stage with the actor of Mr Darling: although Mrs Darling isn’t present for most of the show, her presence is still necessary and her reactions are imperative to the motivations of the Darling children, the same way their reactions motivate hers.