Review: Billy Elliot
Ha, okay, FINALLY getting around to writing up reviews of the shows I saw last weekend. Classes just started up again and my parents are going to be around for Labor Day weekend, so I don't know when the other two will happen, but they're definitely coming.
Billy Elliot, Music by Elton John, Book and Lyrics by Lee Hall
This is the story of a boy (named Billy Elliot, obviously) who accidentally misses his boxing lesson and ends up in a ballet class where he discovers his passion for dance. It is set against the 1984-85 UK coal miners' strike - Billy's father and older brother are on strike, along with the rest of the town, and frequently clash with the riot police. When Mr. Elliot finds out about his son's new talent, Billy is forbidden from taking ballet, but his teacher continues to give him private lessons and encourages him to audition for the Royal Ballet School in London. Despite money troubles and resistance from his family, Billy struggles to follow his dream.
As I mentioned in my trip write-up, I found this show to be rather disappointing. It got rave reviews and won lots of awards, so we expected it to be great. Unfortunately, it seems to be one of those shows that is more about the dancing than about actually having a coherent plot. We found it somewhat difficult to follow what was happening with the coal miners, especially not being familiar with the strike in British history. I don't think it was portrayed in the show as clearly as it could have been - we kept asking questions like why are the riot police singing the solidarity song with the miners? Aren't they on opposite sides? Who are the people with the NCB jackets?
And yet, for a show that was primarily a vehicle for lots of dance numbers, the actor who played Billy wasn't that great, though maybe the others are better. (Since it's a children's role, they have to have multiple actors and rotate them for performances due to child labor laws.) I mean, he was certainly good for a 10-year-old, but Billy is supposed to have an exceptional talent, and this kid had nowhere near the skill of the three boys who won the Tony for this role. It was a Saturday matinee, so I don't know, maybe they put the crappy kid on for the matinees and save the talent for the evenings?
I also wasn't impressed with the music. It's an Elton John musical, which... meh. His theater track record is not exactly inspiring. Everybody likes The Lion King because it was a Disney movie, but can anyone name any songs from Aida? And the less said about Lestat, the better. Billy Elliot is much the same. Other than "Merry Christmas, Maggie Thatcher," which is catchy and charmingly snarky, most of the songs were forgettable. One of the hallmarks of a good show is if I'm still singing the songs the next day and want to run out and buy the soundtrack, and this show definitely did not do that.
So, overall, thumbs down, which was really surprising, given all the praise it's gotten.
Billy Elliot, Music by Elton John, Book and Lyrics by Lee Hall
Click to viewThis is the story of a boy (named Billy Elliot, obviously) who accidentally misses his boxing lesson and ends up in a ballet class where he discovers his passion for dance. It is set against the 1984-85 UK coal miners' strike - Billy's father and older brother are on strike, along with the rest of the town, and frequently clash with the riot police. When Mr. Elliot finds out about his son's new talent, Billy is forbidden from taking ballet, but his teacher continues to give him private lessons and encourages him to audition for the Royal Ballet School in London. Despite money troubles and resistance from his family, Billy struggles to follow his dream.
As I mentioned in my trip write-up, I found this show to be rather disappointing. It got rave reviews and won lots of awards, so we expected it to be great. Unfortunately, it seems to be one of those shows that is more about the dancing than about actually having a coherent plot. We found it somewhat difficult to follow what was happening with the coal miners, especially not being familiar with the strike in British history. I don't think it was portrayed in the show as clearly as it could have been - we kept asking questions like why are the riot police singing the solidarity song with the miners? Aren't they on opposite sides? Who are the people with the NCB jackets?
And yet, for a show that was primarily a vehicle for lots of dance numbers, the actor who played Billy wasn't that great, though maybe the others are better. (Since it's a children's role, they have to have multiple actors and rotate them for performances due to child labor laws.) I mean, he was certainly good for a 10-year-old, but Billy is supposed to have an exceptional talent, and this kid had nowhere near the skill of the three boys who won the Tony for this role. It was a Saturday matinee, so I don't know, maybe they put the crappy kid on for the matinees and save the talent for the evenings?
I also wasn't impressed with the music. It's an Elton John musical, which... meh. His theater track record is not exactly inspiring. Everybody likes The Lion King because it was a Disney movie, but can anyone name any songs from Aida? And the less said about Lestat, the better. Billy Elliot is much the same. Other than "Merry Christmas, Maggie Thatcher," which is catchy and charmingly snarky, most of the songs were forgettable. One of the hallmarks of a good show is if I'm still singing the songs the next day and want to run out and buy the soundtrack, and this show definitely did not do that.
So, overall, thumbs down, which was really surprising, given all the praise it's gotten.