Peter Pan is the tale of a young boy who never grew up.
Traditionally, the role of Peter Pan is played by females.
As the times change, so too do the conventions around the role. This year, BMO and Ross Petty present PETER PAN at the Elgin Theatre, starring…Kurt Browning? Seriously? Can we never get it right?
First we have young adult to adult females playing the role of the eternally young Peter. Now, we have a forty-something year old balding man playing him. It’s not that I’m against balding men in any way. It’s that I don’t think a balding man can portray the freshness of youth very well, that’s all.
I understand artistic license and everything, but er…no. I’d actually be interested to see at least a part of it. I can only imagine how awkward it will appear on stage.
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I saw this advertised on the subways ages ago and I was a little disappointed as well. I think Kurt Browning is a cool guy, but what is he doing playing Peter Pan?? I mean, is the show going to be on ice or something???
100% on stage, 0% on ice. And yet, there are promo shots of him with skates over his shoulder. I guess they did it so that when people saw him and were like “…is that KURT BROWNING?” they didn’t really need to ask, with the skates-slung-over-shoulder look. Or they were trying to confuse skate fans into buying tickets.
And doesn’t this picture of him just make you laugh?
I think it’s awful. Has anyone seen that OfficeMax dancing elf thing? I want to cut out Kurt’s head and put upload it…lol
Sorry for butting in – was doing a google blogsearch and found this post.
Kurt actually did don rollerblades on stage, managed to pull off an axel and some fancy footwork in a very small space. Climax fight scene between him and Hook take place with him on blades *and* with the wire attached to him so he was flying and skating and swordfighting all at once.
This production of Peter Pan was a panto – supposed to be silly and over the top. They actually made a lot of fun of Kurt being too old for the role and the premise was that things had gotten so dull in Neverland that the Lost Boys all had aged (one of them was even older than Kurt). And if any 40-something balding man *could* capture the innocence and spirit of youth, it would be Kurt… I saw the production and it may be b/c I’m not particularly attached to Peter Pan, but I had no problem at all with him playing the role.
It’s so true! Peter Pan is all about eternal youth…what’s it going to be like on stage as he sings “I won’t grow up”
Fine they poked fun at how he is too old to play the role in the production…but they shouldn’t have had to!
This Peter Pan sang “It’s not easy being green” and “Believe it or not (Theme from Greatest American Hero” so this is not your traditional Peter Pan. The Lost Boys sang “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” (the Beach Boys song)… The crocodile was a rapper (Croc Rock), the mermaids were the “Dixie Fish,” and Tiger Lily and her handmaidens were Indians of the South Asian variety who ran a multinational corporation.
From what I understand, pantos usually deviate from the traditional storyline even more broadly than this production did. But a traditional production of Peter Pan this was not…
Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge Kurt Browing fan. Seriously, the hours I’ve clocked watching that man skate, is probably embarrassing. And I commend his efforts with Pan, and the originality behind what they’re doing, but I think what some of us are thinking is…
Ok, in class we learned about some brands who attempted to branch out and do other products. Sometimes this works out very well, and other times it flops. And other times it just seems awkward, despite the intent.
At the same time, I should probably just shut up, as I’m commenting on something I haven’t even seen.
I walk by a promo poster for it everyday, and I still don’t understand it.
I have special insight. I worked at the elgin theater backstage and as an usher, and lemme tell ya, the closer you get the more the cracks and wrinkles stand out.
The odd castign choice of Kurt Browning pales in comparison to the discomfort afflictec upon a rational thinking adult when they realize that Ross Petty has been annually using the place as a venue for children’s show built around the concept of him getting to walk around in women’s clothing.
Its a pattern. In wizard of oz he was the witch. In snow white he was the evil queen. Always a lady. If thats fine, Kurt is finer.
Daniel