Ric Evans Hooked on Peter Pan! Click photo for larger image. Related story: Getting to know Peter Pan Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's "Peter Pan" Where: Benedum Center, Downtown. When: Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets: $16-$78; 412-456-6666 or www.pbt.org.

It's only supposed to exist in my imagination.

But there it was, the outline of Neverland coming to life in a Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre studio. Peter was trying to rescue Wendy from the clutches of Captain Hook, while the pirates whirled around in a funky blend of the Keystone Kops and "Swan Lake."

When the initial fairy dust wore off, it was still a treat to watch a real Peter, Christopher Budzinski, appearing to fly under his own jumping power and that swiniest of swines, Christopher Rendall-Jackson, flailing his hook as Julia Erickson tried to escape his wrath.

It might not be so hard to get in touch with that inner child when Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre presents "Peter Pan" next weekend at the Benedum Center.

On top of all of the other many variations, J.M. Barrie's story of the boy who never grows up seems to be a perfect match for a ballet production. Dancers are always trying to escape the Earth's gravity, even without the benefit of lovely thoughts like fishing and candy and flowers and candy and Christmas.

In PBT's production, choreographed by Washington Ballet's Septime Webre, Peter will fly (with the help of the Flying by Foy system). But he will be one of the regular guys from PBT's male ensemble.

Webre went back to the original source material for his version. Even the Lost Boys, here actually three boys and three girls, are called Tootles, Slightly (Soiled), Nibs, Curley, first Twin and Second Twin.

While developing the characterizations, Webre began to imagine on another choreographic plane. How would a crocodile dance? That led to the dance jokes that pepper the production, including a toothy "croc" of a tango with Captain Hook and movements that the MTV generation might recognize.

Robin Rombach, Post-Gazette Nurlan Abougaliev as Captain Hook and Christopher Budzynski as Peter Pan rehearse a fight scene at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's studio in the Strip District. Click photo for larger image.

Webre, who admits to having a "wicked Peter Pan syndrome," set out to target "adults and kids who are connected to our childhood." He wound up concocting a recipe for a ballet geared to family entertainment, with "a little something for kids, a little for the parents and a little for the dancers themselves."

"Peter Pan's" essential style revolves around contemporary ballet, but Webre calls it "a fusion," from the Lost Boys with their "goofy and dense choreography" to Tiger Lily and her Indians, who perform a kind of Neoclassicism reminiscent of George Balanchine. "It's all over the map," says Webre.

But it's the battle where everything breaks loose.

"The dancers always have a great time with it," says Webre. "The characters are larger than life so they have to perform with complete abandon and without a shred of cynicism."

He particularly likes the "technical challenges" he was able to give the dancers in the battle. Discerning patrons will be able to recognize remnants of not only "Swan Lake" but also "Giselle" and "La Sylphide," all performed with a muscular bravado.

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of "Peter Pan" is the flying, where the dancer feels as if he's pitched forward and has to fight just to stay upright.

"I don't like to ask dancers to do something that I haven't done," Webre reveals. That was easier said than done, because most of the characters use a point harness, the kind that takes them up, forward and back or sideways.

But Peter wears a double hook at the hips, more like a gymnastic harness, that enables him to do back flips as well. While Webre couldn't muster that acrobatic feat, he did test out the choreographic air space.

"It was a little scary at first," Webre says. "But then it was graceful and freeing."

He makes it sound easy, but this kind of flying isn't a science. Peter and company will have several hours to learn to fly at the Benedum Center tomorrow, followed by a technical rehearsal the next day, two full rehearsals and a student performance on Friday before opening night.

Webre also notes that Peter isn't the only one taking risks. The dog, Nana, originally had a costume made of several dozen kitchen mop heads that resulted in the only accident associated with the production. According to Webre, the bangs hadn't been cut, so the male dancer stumbled into the pit and wound up dangling by his front paws over the orchestra.

"It hasn't happened in performance yet," Webre says. "I designed it to be a magical place."

Just take the second star to the right and straight on till morning.