Never Never is Almost Almost Here Here

You've probably started to see the TV ads, but in just over a month NBC will be broadcasting its live production of Peter Pan, starring Allison Williams and Christopher Walken as 'Captain Hook."

Last Thursday, NBC news anchor Brian Williams -- her father -- was a guest on the David Letterman show, and Dave began by asking him about the production, from the perspective of a father watching his daughter in a massive, live production on national TV.  Williams, who's got a great sense of humor, had a couple of wonderful lines.  Early on, Dave asked him with all the pressure that would be at stake, was he at all nervous/

Without pausing, he said straight out.  "No."  And immediately added.  "I've been listening to those damn songs since she was three."

To make it even funnier, and to show he wasn't just quipping about having a daughter who loved to sing show tunes, but actually meant it, specifically, he brought along this photo which they showed. 

The costume was made by her grandmother.  (Allison herself tweeted this photo when she got hired for the role.  She wrote, "Thrilled to be playing Peter Pan on NBC in December.  I've been rehearsing for a REALLY long time.")

One of the things Brian Williams mentioned is that the broadcast wasn't going to be done from a studio, but rather they were building the sets in what used to be a huge aircraft hanger, where they built the LEM module for lunar landings.  This to allow more flexibility and room for flying.

Which led to a later question that Letterman asked, wondering about all the things that could go wrong during the live production, from sets being knocked into, a sword being dropped, a problem with the rigging...

With the bemused look of a father, Williams said in a sardonic voice, "It's reassuring to know that Christopher Walken will be swordfighting with my little Petunia..."

Actually the whole conversation about Peter Pan was very amusing, and Brian Williams is so engaging, so here's the full four minutes of it.

Anyway, in lieu of any advance footage from rehearsals, here is Brian Williams's little Petunia singing Leonard Cohen's song, "Hallelujah."