Ross Petty and Toronto pantomime favourites take one last bow in the delightful ‘Peter’s Final Flight’

Peter’s Final Flight: The Pan-Tastical Family Musical!

Written by Matt Murray, directed by Tracey Flye. Until Jan. 7 at the Elgin Theatre 89 Yonge St. rosspetty.com or 416-872-1212

It’s the end of an era.

Ross Petty, the celebrated Canadian actor and producer whose pantomime shows have become a Toronto holiday tradition, is hanging up his Hook. After 25 years at the Elgin Theatre, his beloved annual musicals are coming to an end.

For lovers of pantomime — a cherished Christmastime tradition from Britain that was established on this side of the pond thanks in large part to Petty — the company’s last hurrah doesn’t disappoint. “Peter’s Final Flight: The Pan-Tastical Family Musical!” is the madcap concoction of campy comedy, raucous plot lines and playful songs that you’d come to expect from a Petty production.

Pantomime stalwarts Dan Chameroy, Eddie Glen and Sara-Jeanne Hosie are all scene-stealingly delightful in this romp. And Petty himself, who stepped back from performing in 2016, has come out of retirement for one final boo.

In director Tracey Flye’s colourful production, Petty plays the maniacal Captain Hook, one of several deliciously evil characters he has developed over the years. “Peter’s Final Flight,” set in the aftermath of the events in the original story, sees the spirit of the dead Captain Hook seek revenge for his killing.

Hook tasks his widow, the equally conniving Helga (Hosie, who deliciously milks every boo), to capture Peter Pan and avenge his death. In a case of pantomimic mistaken identities, however, Helga and her affable sidekick Smee (Glen, in winning form) have their sights set on the wrong Peter (a charming Alex Wierzbicki).

This Peter, in fact, is a Toronto actor who also happens to be starring in a production of “Peter Pan.” The hijinks begin after he’s whisked away to Neverland by Plumbum (Petty Production’s crowd-pleasing pantomime dame, portrayed by the hilariously over-the-top Chameroy) after she sees a production poster and mistakes him for the real boy who never grew up.

The script, by Matt Murray, is nonsensically whimsical, packed with topical references to newsworthy events from the past year (the Rogers outage, Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover and the FBI search of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, to name a few). Murray’s loose narrative doesn’t take itself too seriously — like the best pantos, its modus operandi is to generate some silly fun — but this production feels even zanier than most.

Its deus-ex-machina ending, propelled by audience participation, feels too much like an anticlimactic cop-out, and the character of Erika (Stephanie Sy), Peter’s social media-addicted co-star who plays Wendy in the show-within-the-show, is sorely underused and underdeveloped.

Despite the few shortcomings, there are many memorable scenes, particularly for the indomitable quartet of Petty, Chameroy, Glen and Hosie. As Plumbum, Chameroy is aptly hammy in his show-stopping rendition of “Eye of the Tiger.” And there’s an unforgettable gag in the first act involving a trio of social media-#obsessed Karsplashians, dressed like ostentatious mermaids. (The eye-popping costumes are designed by Ming Wong.)

Overall, Flye’s production is buoyant. Michael Gianfrancesco’s fantastical set, paired with Cameron Davis’s playful video designs projected upstage, magically captures the fairy tale world of Neverland. And the choreography, by Flye and Jennifer Mote, has an energetic hip-hop bounce.

Throughout the show, however, neither Murray nor Flye shies away from the significance of this production — the first live edition since the pandemic and what is likely the final Petty pantomime ever.

Slipped in are many self-referential and meta-theatrical nods acknowledging the bittersweet end to this journey. In some scenes, Petty even plays himself. (Sure, it doesn’t make sense dramaturgically — but if it means more stage time for the theatre legend, I’m all for it.) When Petty, still as Hook, breaks out to sing Frank Sinatra’s uber-nostalgic “My Way,” the waterworks start flowing.

For panto newbies, perhaps it comes across as a tad self-indulgent. But as someone who grew up with these pantos, I say Petty and the company have every right to relish this last run.

On opening night, the most moving moment came towards the end, when Plumbum, after returning from Neverland, bumps into Petty, now playing himself.

“I just can’t believe someone would choose to produce theatre in Canada,” Plumbum says in awe. “That must’ve been quite an adventure.”

To which Petty replies, “I can truly say it was the greatest adventure of my life.”

What followed was a rip-roaring standing ovation. (For the record, it was the first midshow standing ovation I’ve ever witnessed in my theatregoing career.)

It was an unrelenting wall of appreciation and gratitude. For the 25 years worth of memories. For the holiday fun. For sparking a lifelong love of live theatre among countless young kids.

For a guy who received boos for a living, that ought to be a special way to say goodbye.

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