Clap Your Hands Say Tinkerbell: Recapping ‘Peter Pan Live!’
Aside from the plum role of “Tree #2’’ in an elementary school save-the-environment production and my hungover shower renditions of “Don’t Look Back in Anger’’ on Saturday mornings, I’ve never had the talent or guts to perform on stage. I thought that might put me at a bit of a disadvantage when it came to recapping NBC’s “Peter Pan Live!,’’ the second installment in the networks’s ratings-monster live productions, following up “The Sound of Music Live!’’ last year.
Then I slapped my head, marveling at my ignorance. I had the perfect resource to help me recap this, living ten feet away from me. My roommate is pretty much my opposite when it comes to performing skills. She’s an actress and Boston Conservatory-trained singer and musical theater teacher. I’ve spent the last year and a half or so seeing her play Cosette in “Les Miserables’’ and an English street hooker in a musical “Jack the Ripper’’ production (among many other gigs). Attending these would get pretty annoying if she weren’t so damn talented. I’m going to have her toss in her thoughts on the show at the end. And, just so you don’t think this is total exploitation, a portion of this article’s restitution will go towards buying her several pints of Ben and Jerry’s.
Now, on with the show. It’s Minnie Driver as the narrator! Nice to see her career comeback in full swing. Her words echo across the rather beautiful city set of the Darlings’ household, where our story begins. There’s Christian Borle (also from “The Sound of Music Live!’’) as George Darling, and Broadway powerhouse Kelli O’Hara, showing off her pipes as the Darlings mother. My roommate is in heaven already (I’ll save her comments for the end). The casting for the three Darling kids appears spot-on, too; they’re all wide-eyed and adorable.
Tinkerbell is here as a sparkly special effect – I’d love to know how they did this – and now here’s Allison Williams — Brian Williams’ progeny — as Pan, flying into the room. First wire stunt and no one’s hurt. This is already turning out better than the “Spider-Man’’ musical. This is my first exposure to Williams, and (minus a few slips) she’s doing a pretty good English accent. Close your eyes and she sounds like Keira Knightley. Not a bad voice, either, trading songs with Wendy (Taylor Louderman), who’s got powerhouse pipes. Meanwhile, the other Darling kids are sleeping straight through all the singing. Why am I picking out these plot holes? That already ruined Interstellar for me.
No Christopher Walken as Hook yet. I wonder what he’s doing backstage. I hope it involves horrifying the Lost Boys actors with his Pulp Fiction watch monologue.
Back in England, Allison Williams is still singing and smiling (her grin is practically at Julia Roberts level) and she teaches all of the Darlings to fly. All four of them in the air, spinning around the set, and not one plunge! This is a technical triumph, set to a gorgeous score, too, and what fun for the actors! Floating through the air, they’re all off to Neverland.
That means Walken is here, continuing his long, fruitful relationship with NBC. He’s nibbling on the scenery , already in full Walken-ness, singing and sort-of-dancing and spitting out his lines with that strange language pattern. I’m not quite sure it’s working so far. It’s more odd than anything else. When he starts singing, he’s still in that full Walken-speak mode. It’s just strange. It’s like Lou Reed strained through “The Continental.’’
Still, it’s compelling in its total Walken-ness. Say what you will about him, but no one else could do it like this – for better or for worse. Here are the Lost Boys and Tiger Lily and the natives, and then Walken appears to be … god, prancersizing around the set. Whatever he’s on now – or, actually, whatever he’s been on since The Deer Hunter – I want some of it. By the way, he won an Oscar for that movie. Good to remind people of that. By the way, no matter what happens tonight, this could only be the second-best thing he ever did on NBC. Also, the crocodile is a bendy purple beast played by some flexible human in a suit. I can’t even imagine how that’s going to freak out all the stoned college students who tuned into this as a lark.
The Darlings are in Neverland now, and it’s a little disturbing when the Lost Boys Katniss the hell out of Wendy with an arrow thanks to Tinkerbell’s jealousy. Tink really is unlikable. I hope the clapping thing later on doesn’t work. Wendy’s fine, though, perfectly OK to spontaneously break out in song.
Better still? Walken is back, and he’s dancing again, and I don’t think he’s moving his feet at all. He’s basically me at a wedding after the champagne toast. Meanwhile, Louderman gets yet another opportunity to show off her voice on a romantic night-time canoe ride with Pan. Williams has a fine, workmanlike voice, but she’s basically Brian Hoyer to Louderman’s Tom Brady (hey, I’m missing football for this, give me a break).
The dynamic duo trick some of Hook’s idiot pirates into giving up the captured Tiger Lily. If this were most other Walken features, someone would have a body part sliced off in bloody fashion for retribution. Here, there’s just more singing, followed by a spectacular first meeting between Hook and Pan. All the aerial aerobatics have gone off perfect so far, and they’ve all been amazing. That deserves the highest marks.
Wendy’s next musical number teams her with Kelli O’Hara as Mrs. Darling, and, wow. It’s incredible. They’re just owning the whole show. Even better? After the Darlings and the Lost Boys are captured by Hook, and Tinkerbell starts to fade, Williams completely aces the famous “clap your hands, believe in fairies’’ speech. She stares straight into the camera and pleads to all those sleepy kids out there, something that I’m sure tired parents really appreciated. I’m a cynical 30-year-old New Englander and I almost started clapping like C.F. Kane.
Here comes the big finale. Walken saying “I’ve placed the plank on the poop!’’ is something I’ll giggle about for ages. His sword fight with Pan seems to be choreographed at quarter speed, like they’re both on quaaludes. This isn’t the end of Rob Roy. Post-defeat, Walken just seems to go completely batty. I swear, he improvs a line to the crocodile and sashays into a completely different accent before he walks the plank. He’s either having a ton of fun or really detesting this whole thing.
The greatest thing about the final part in London? Kelli O’Hara sings again, and that awesome dog apparently can turn down beds, too. Take that, cat people. The Darling family has its kids back, along with 12 more Lost Boys (think of those food bills when they hit puberty). Wendy grows up to turn into Minnie Driver for a brief, wonderful cameo, and Peter Pan flies off into the moonlight with grown-up Wendy’s daughter. THE END.
So, that was it. Walken being bizarre, a nice story, a moment that almost pierced my cold, cold heart, and some fine singing. Not a bad way to spend three hours. Now, what did the professional think about the show?
MY ROOMMATE’S ROUNDUP:
On Allison Williams’ Pan:“She’s not bad as Peter. Good singing. I think Peter should be more vibrant, energized and mischievous than we see him here, though.’’
On Walken: “C+. I just feel kind of meh about him. Since this my first time seeing this musical, I can only compare him to the over-the-top Hooks in the animated cartoon and “Hook.’’ Based on the script, I would think his choices could be bolder / grander. I think his character would read better and be great on film.’’
On Louderman, as Wendy: “Fantastic. Hands down, the best part of the cast.’’
On Comparisons to the Other NBC Live Musical: “Better. The opening scene already makes it better than Sound of Music.’’
On the Props: “I love when people have to pretend to play the piano, like Walken did, on stage during musicals. It’s when my belief is most suspended.’’
On the best parts of the cast: “Kelli O’Hara is stupid good. She gets an A+.’’
On her favorite little detail: “Two – no, three gingers in the cast! Redheads rule.’’
On the show as a whole: “The biggest thing I thought was lacking from Sound of Music is lacking here – a live audience. You need that energy from an audience to really make theater what it is. Having no live audience totally changes the medium.’’
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