THEY cuff each other with pillows, do somersaults and flips and embark on epic stage sword fights.

I simply hang, suspended from the sky, like a forlorn Christmas tree decoration.

That's the chief difference between my attempts at taking to the air and those of Northern Ballet Theatre's cast of dancers in their latest production, Peter Pan.

While they swoop, glide and swivel, I bumble around like a conker on a string. I may be off the ground but my flying skills really aren't.

Generally, according to flying director Adam Searle, it takes people half an hour to an hour to learn how to glide gracefully.

"Dancers are quicker than most – they're very aware of their bodies and they're used to remembering instructions," Adam says.

Adam has spent almost 10 years working for Flying By Foy, one of the entertainment world's leading flight specialists. His company has flown Christina Aguilera, Beyonce, Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra and Britney Spears at gigs and in films.

Flying By Foy also works extensively in theatre, hence its collaboration with Northern Ballet Theatre. This year, NBT has revived its famous production of Peter Pan and major sections of three scenes involve aerial stunts by the dancers.

Having installed all the equipment on Sunday and instructed the set operators and performers how to use it, Adam has now returned to Nottingham Theatre Royal to oversee the first night's performance.

"If I'm sitting out in the audience watching a performance, I get very nervous," he says. "Often I can tell before anyone else can if things aren't going quite right – perhaps somebody's stood on the wrong mark, that kind of thing. It's much easier if I'm backstage and I feel as if I have some control over things."

I'm harnessed up in a contraption that roughly follows the lines of your average swimsuit.

"Open your legs," Adam instructs me. Beg pardon?

"This is not going to be the most comfortable thing in the world," he continues. Oh, the harness. "Have you ever gone skydiving before?"

"Noo..." I mumble. I get giddy going down the escalators in Marks and Spencer.

Next I'm attached to a 2mm wire which drops, some 15 feet, from the ceiling above the stage.

"Two millimetres isn't much, is it?" I say, testing the wire between my fingers.

"It's got a breaking strain of half a tonne," reassures Adam.

"We could lift a small car."

Woah, stop there mister. Not sure I appreciate that comparison.

Eleanor and Richard are waiting in the wings. They both give me a little wave. They will be my flying attendants today. It takes two people to manoeuvre each cast member; one to hoist them, and one to move them around the stage. The ropes they pull are connected to parallel metal tracks that run above the stage. I try to relax my limbs then – suddenly – I'm off! I'm hanging about five feet off the ground, staring straight ahead into the grand circle, trying to strike an appropriate Peter Pan pose.

"Try to keep your posture tight!" Adam commands. "That way, you'll look less like a sack of spuds."

Again, cheers.

"Would you like to go higher?" he asks.

I've heard this before, at Goose Fair, to be precise. The results are never good.

Shortly after stammering, "yes", I'm hauled into the roof. You get an amazing view up there, about 20 feet off the ground. The stage ceiling is covered with stars. Finally, it feels as if I'm flying. I don't have long to enjoy it, however. Almost as soon as I'm up, I'm brought back down to earth to try some stunts.

The stage set displays the Darlings' nursery. There's a bed each and toys for Wendy, John and Michael, plus plenty of space for Nana to caper about in.

My mission, should I choose to accept it, is to recreate one of Peter Pan's tricks: fly through the air and land on the bedstead.

Suffice to say, it doesn't go according to plan. I fly through the air all right – chiefly because somebody else is doing that bit for me – but I find it difficult to catch the bedstead with my toes. After a few goes I manage a rather wild pirouette with lots of shrieking.

Adam can sense I'm not particularly daredevil. He, on the other hand, is always the first person to test the contraptions he hooks up in theatres.

"I do skydiving at weekends. I went bungee jumping a few years ago. So I don't mind this," he shrugs.

Nor, it seems do the dancers.

"The first time, I felt scared, then I got used to it," says dancer Jeremy Curnier, 20, who is playing Peter and Michael in different shows. "But you get used to it. I've never had a problem with heights although I can't say I'd enjoy hanging off a cliff.

"It's not particularly hard. Your legs get a bit numb because of the tightness of the harness restricting the blood to your thighs. If you're dancing afterwards it can be tricky."

Although some of the dancers mention brief stints as airborne ballerinas in other shows, this ballet uses flight more than most.

"We go right up into the lights and the audience just see the bottom of our legs," adds Jeremy.

To paraphrase J.M. Barrie, flying is an awfully big adventure.

Catch Peter Pan at Nottingham Theatre Royal until tomorrow. For tickets, call 0115 989 5555.