Finding Neverland (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets

"The book moves the story along, but lacks any sustained dramatic tension. We never become seriously involved with most of the characters. The show mostly plods from scene to scene, rarely achieving magical heights...The score is a huge letdown...The songs fitfully spring to life, but only occasionally do they fly or hit a tender chord."
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"Harvey Weinstein made a bold and inspiring choice in hiring director Diane Paulus to helm his first Broadway musical...Unfortunately, Paulus' own genius is to blame for "Finding Neverland"'s lack of pixie dust. This production is good but not great...For a musical about the creation of and featuring Peter Pan, one would expect flying and all sorts of theatrical razzle-dazzle. Those moments of wonder and awe are few and fleeting, though."
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"Director Diane Paulus coaxes compelling character portrayals. But the work fails to live up to the story's promise. Sure, there are lovely sprinklings of golden fairy dust and actors who take flight. But the music and lyrics by Gary Barlow and Eliot Kennedy too often lean towards syrupy ballads riddled with clichés."
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"It seems to me that “Neverland” has a fair shot at becoming the kind of show that children drag their parents to...Within that spectrum, “Neverland” occupies its own niche, built on a blend of 21st-century easy-listening uplift, some timelessly inventive stagecraft and sentiments that would be unlikely to make even a delicate Victorian lady blush. "
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"Harvey Weinstein’s ‘Finding Neverland’ re-Boot is twee to the max. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. Well, a few things, maybe...In all fairness I stress that the show on display is very much a work-in-progress. That said, there’s very much work to be done...There are a few memorable moments but no memorable tunes; even the titles invoke other, better songs...However, [director] Paulus and her team of magicians do have some wonderful tricks up their collective sleeves."
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"The new play that J.M. Barrie is struggling to write — which would eventually become “Peter Pan” doesn’t come alive until he finds his villain in Captain Hook. The same can be said for the sometimes wan but sometimes wonderful new musical that is premiering at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Mass. Until that moment, the family-friendly tuner, is well-sung, occasionally charming and nicely staged — but bland. “Finding Neverland” still needs to find itself."
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“That doesn’t make “Finding Neverland” a fully fledged artistic success, if art is what you’re looking for at the A.R.T...It is an enjoyable musical, from start to finish. It’s well-cast, even better sung and marvelously choreographed...The set design is an elegant mixture of realism and fantasy. There’s very little not to like, despite the feeling, somewhere in the midpoint of the 2 ½ hours, that you might want to shout, “OK, I get the point. We should be more like children and play more.”
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"When “Finding Neverland” tries to state its themes out loud, in song or dialogue, it sometimes settles for upbeat platitudes about living in the moment and letting love lead the way, cliches that could nestle comfortably into any Disney musical. The show could have gone deeper...But this is a fun and touching show, gorgeous to look at and listen to, and the 2½ hours mostly fly by. How you feel about “Finding Neverland” will depend on whether you believe that’s enough."
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