Christopher Walken tap-dancing and singing, a big dog, novice child actors, and lots of pirates visited TV screens across the nation as part of NBC’s Peter Pan Live broadcast on December 4, reported Entertainment Weekly .
At 71, Walken happily accepted the opportunity to play Captain Hook in Peter Pan . While the lead role was played by Allison Williams, it’s Walken who won the spotlight both on the screen and in the Twitterverse.
Although most movie-goers think of Walken as a villain, he actually toured in a musical, took tap-dancing lessons, and even worked with Liza Minnelli. And Christopher, as he makes clear below, is delighted to return to his musical roots.
“I think that if he had been around in the heyday of MGM, he would have been a big star of musicals on film,” reflects Peter Pan Live executive producer Craig Zadan.
“I always kind of liked putting on a show, you know,” admits Walken, best known for sinister roles such as Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead and A View to a Kill .
Twitter lit up as Walken took his own cues, from tap-dancing to playing the piano to challenging Peter Pan’s naive niceness.
So how were the reviews? Mixed. The New York Post reviewer praised Christopher Walken for dancing daring.
His catatonic Hook came alive only during the dance numbers, sashaying his way across his ship’s deck with a lounge lizard’s smoothness.
For Allison Williams, Peter Pan Live felt like a chance to change her image, as the Inquisitr reported. The slender actress also hopes that playing the role of the boy who doesn’t want to grow up will show her strength. The acrobatic demands of Peter Pan include everything from flying through the air to battling pirates with swords.
“‘This is just the way my body is very naturally,’” said Allison of her thin physique. “It’s a little bit stressful to know that there are a lot of people walking around who think I’m constantly just shaking and depriving myself.”
In previews of the live performance, Williams has made it clear that she’s feeling energized and ecstatic about the chance to re-create the role made famous by Mary Martin (see below).
To those who are cynical and sneer at the idea of adults viewing Peter Pan Live , Allison told NPR that she’s philosophical about that possibility.
People like to ‘hate watch’ things; people are very cynical, that’s a much more fun way to watch television. People are afraid to admit they like things… Why have we been taught that it’s not okay to genuinely like anything anymore?… Peter Pan lives and breathes by people believing in fairies. I mean, that’s a literal moment in [the musical].
Did you watch and believe? Post your comments — and don’t forget to clap your hands for Nana the Dog!
[Images via http://www.nbc.com/peter-pan-live /]
