Raye Zaragoza was just a child when she first auditioned to play Tiger Lily. It was the late ’90s, yet another “Peter Pan” project was in the works, and though most adaptations had presented Tiger Lily as an offensive caricature, maybe this one would offer a dimensional, dignified depiction of a Native American. “The only thing I had to do in the audition was giggle at the Lost Boys,” she recalled.
In most “Peter Pan” retellings, “her part is so small, and in an incredibly cringe, stereotypical scene that’s a white perspective of what a Native person would be, and it isn’t even based on real language or dance or culture or anything. She’s the only Indigenous character in the story, and yet she’s almost like a mascot.” Zaragoza — who is of Akimel O’odham, Mexican, Japanese and Taiwanese descent — was relieved she didn’t get that role.
But 20 years later, she’s originating a fresh take on Tiger Lily in the “Peter Pan” national tour, now playing at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre through Sunday, followed by Costa Mesa’s Segerstrom Center for the Arts (Aug. 6 to 18). The musical is a restructuring of Jerome Robbins’ stage show and maintains most of its beloved score, composed by Morris Charlap with additional music by Jule Styne and additional lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green.
This production features a new book by Larissa FastHorse that better represents its Native characters, and with Native American actors in the cast, a piece .