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Peter Pan Hits the Dancefloor - The Joy of Never Growing Up

23 Jul 2025

James Macfarlane speaks to Club NVRLND director and creator Steven Kunis about creating such a magical show

Think of Club NVRLND as a place to go rather than a show to see


Club NVRLND reimagines Peter Pan as a Y2K-era club kid. What inspired the idea to turn Neverland into a late-night dancefloor?

The idea for Club NVRLND came to me during the winter lockdowns of 2020. It was while I was sitting with feelings of nostalgia that the show began to take shape in my mind. First came the idea of the dancefloor as a kind of Neverland – a place where time stops, where you can lose yourself in music and movement and the crowd. Then came the soundtrack: those towering pop anthems of the 2000s that my team and I grew up with. That era’s music is so saturated with pure and uncomplicated emotion – joy, heartbreak, rebellion, wonder. It really is the perfect sound for the world and story of Peter Pan – of this boy clinging to youth and terrified of growing up.

The show features massive 2000s hits from Britney to Justin Timberlake. How does the music power the story and what guided your choices in building the soundtrack?

Pop music carries memory in such a visceral way – you hear the first chord of an Avril Lavigne or a Panic! At the Disco song, and suddenly you’re 15 again: heartbroken, ecstatic, invincible, rageful, you name it. The songs are more than just nostalgic period pieces – they’re emotional lightning rods and an incredible shorthand for immersing our audience straight into the minds and experiences of our characters. It was thrilling to see how effortlessly the music slotted into the world we were creating.

Wendy is about to get married when she’s pulled back into Peter’s world. How does this story balance wild, nostalgic fun with deeper questions about growing up?

We’re not inventing anything new here – that tension is already baked into the core conflict of J.M. Barrie’s original story: Peter Pan refuses to grow up, but Wendy feels like she has to and struggles with what that really means. What Barrie does so brilliantly is hold those two forces side by side – the wild, exhilarating joy of staying young and the quiet ache of realising time won’t stand still. Translating Neverland to a nightclub – where Wendy’s a ragged runaway bride, Peter’s dreading his 30th birthday, and Hook’s a jealous, ageing ex–go-go dancer trying to take over the club – gave us the perfect canvas. It’s chaotic, it’s euphoric, it’s full of life, and it’s all wrapped up in deliciously camp fun.

Immersive musicals are rare at the Fringe. What can audiences expect when they step into Club NVRLND, and how will the Assembly Checkpoint space transform? What kind of theatrical experience are you aiming to give Fringe-goers who think they’ve seen it all?

Think of Club NVRLND as a place to go rather than a show to see – Tink’s up in the DJ booth spinning out all the hits of the Noughties; Tiger Lily is on stage with her entourage of dancers geeing up the crowd; and you’re on the dancefloor where you can drink, dance, talk, and experience the whole show happening all around you in real time – as if you really were in a nightclub. I won’t offer any more spoilers than that, but I think the work that our cast and creative team have pulled off will really challenge what people think is possible in an Edinburgh Fringe venue.

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