and
never used. He regarded it as a great and rollicking adventure.

The first production of the Barrie masterpiece on any stage took place
at the Duke of York's Theater, London, on December 27, 1904. Frohman was
then in America. At his country place up at White Plains, only his close
friend, Paul Potter, with him, he eagerly awaited the verdict. It was a
bitterly cold night, and a snow-storm was raging. Frohman's secretary in
the office in New York had arranged to telephone the news of the play's
reception which Lestocq was expected to cable from London. On account of
the storm the message was delayed.

Frohman was nervous. He kept on saying, "Will it never come?" His heart
was bound up in the fortunes of this beloved fairy play. While he waited
with Potter, Frohman acted out the whole play, getting down on all-fours
to illustrate the dog and crocodile. He told it as _Wendy_ would have
told it, for _Wendy_ was one of his favorites. Finally at midnight the
telephone-bell rang. Potter took down the receiver. Frohman jumped up
from his chair, saying, eagerly, "What's the verdict?" Potter listened a
moment, then turned, and with beaming face repeated Lestocq's cablegram:

_Peter Pan all right. Looks like a big success._

This was one of the happiest nights in Frohman's life.

The first _Peter_ in England was Nina Boucicault, who played the part
with great wistfulness and charm. She was the first of a quartet which
included Cissy Loftus, Pauline Chase, and Madge Titheradge.

Charles so adored "Peter Pan" that he produced it in Paris, June 1,
1909, at the Vaudeville Theater, with an all-English cast headed by
Pauline Chase. Robb Harwood was _Captain Hook_, and Sibyl Carlisle
played _Mrs. Darling_. It was produced under the direction of Dion
Boucicault. The first presentation was a great hit, and the play ran for
five weeks. On the opening night Barrie and Frohman each had a box.
Frohman was overjoyed at its success, and Barrie, naturally, could not
repress his delight. What pleased them most was the spectacle of row
after row of little French kiddies, who, while not understanding a word
of the narrative, seemed to be having the time of their lives.

From the date of its first production until his death, "Peter Pan"
became a fixed annual event in the English life of Charles Frohman. He
revived it every year at holiday-time. No occasion in his calendar was
more important than the annual appearance of the fascinating