Miley Cyrus is no Tinkerbell.
I don’t know who started the rumor, but apparently someone thought it would be clever to spread the word that Miley Cyrus would be playing Tinkerbell when NBC presents Peter Pan this December.
After record viewing of The Sound of Music with Carrie Underwood, NBC decided to continue the tradition of a live Broadway show. That’s a good thing.
But, Miley Cyrus as Tinkerbell? That’s not a good thing. And it’s not happening.
She even said so on Twitter:
That pretty much sums up how most of us feel.
But who thought it was clever to suggest any celebrity to play Tinkerbell? Look at the classic stage version of Peter Pan with Mary Martin. NBC in fact presented this version on live television in 1955, the first full-length Broadway show on live color television. You can view it here. (I’m linking, not embedding, because I’m not sure the person posting on YouTube has the rights.)
Cathy Rigby later recreated the role of Peter Pan. We saw a touring production at the (now) Altria Theater some years back.
Here’s the thing. If you know the show, Tinkerbell is not portrayed by a human. She’s portrayed by flashing lights and well, a bell.
This is not Hook with Julia Roberts, or another animated or live version.
Casting a human, Miley Cyrus or not, in the part of Tinkerbell would garner NBC more criticism than casting Carrie Underwood in the iconic role of Maria von Trapp (and I happen to think she did a fine job).
Here’s the other thing. If NBC wanted to take a classic stage show like Peter Pan and ruin it by totally remaking Tinkerbell they can do that. We’ll write the reviews when it happens.
But what’s more annoying is that someone thought it would be clever to leak, or perhaps create, a story that’s really a non-story.
Miley Cyrus doesn’t want to be Tinkerbell. We don’t want Miley Cyrus to be Tinkerbell.
Clap if you believe.
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