Billy Elliot Question

[mrs felciano]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 10:17pm

Hi there--

For the record I did do a search, but I didn't quite find what I was looking for!

I was on the Billy Elliot website and saw that there were four Billys listed. Do all four get equal stage time? Or is the fourth Billy an understudy if one of the other three is unable to perform? If he does in fact get equal stage time, then why wasn't he part of the Tony nomination as well?

Also, I have tickets for a Sunday performance in July. I'd like to know which of the boys I am seeing. Is there a set schedule? Or does it change weekly.

Thanks to anyone who answers my questions. I apologize if either of them have been asked to death.

[alightinthedark23]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 10:21pm

The fourth one did not open the show with the other Billy's. I couldn't tell you if they get equal stage time though. sorry

[sgv123]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 10:21pm

There is no set schedule, but when it gets closer, you can sort of have an idea who will be on. Nothing is definite though. All four boys are currently in rotation. Tommy( 4th Billy) was (and still is an u/s) at the time of opening, so he was not nominated.

[DRSisLove]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 11:21pm

They do technically get equal stage time, however some weeks it differs. This week David performed three times, however Trent only went on once.

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 11:33pm

Tommy's not an understudy anymore, he's officially in the rotation as Billy as of March. He was not nominated for the Tony because he did not open with the show, at that point he was still an understudy. But, they have even changed the poster out front to include him amongst Kowalik, Alvarez and Kulish so he is a "legitimate" Billy now. One of the ideas behind adding Tommy full time is so that each Billy can perform twice a week, but as DRSislove pointed out, it changes from week to week.

There's no set schedule, so there really is no way of telling who you will be seeing on that day. After a while a pattern sort of emerges and you can take a guess at which Billy is performing maybe a week before, but the pattern changes as well based on boys getting sick, needing a specific day off, etc.

[sgv123]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 11:50pm

As it was said in the official thread, Tommy is still technically an understudy b/c Equity requires it for that role, but he has been in the rotation since February.
Updated On: 6/15/09 at 11:50 PM

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/15/09 at 11:58pm

This is true (though, I haven't read the hundreds of posts in said official thread, so) but for all intents and purposes of what the original poster is asking, he is a Billy. ("Or is the fourth Billy an understudy if one of the other three is unable to perform?") He's in the rotation, so he is performing because he is scheduled, not because the other Billy's cannot. It's a technicality that he's listed as an understudy. Like I said: for all intents and purposes.

It's those, I guess you can say: "in the know," who know that Tommy Batchelor is an understudy, but to the rest of the world he isn't:

http://www.theatermania.com/broadway/news/03-2009/tommy-batchelor-joins-billy-elliot-rotation_18243.html

(Though, of course, who knows how much of the TheatreMania readers are made up of the non BWW posters portion of Broadway audiences, but I digress).
Updated On: 6/16/09 at 11:58 PM

[lolabeanz]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 7:44am

Take if from me, it is really hard to count on a specific actor playing Billy, I went up this past weekend with pretty good info that a certain Billy would be on and it changed last minute. So you never know!

[Geridith]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 12:13pm

As far as I understand, Tommy is not an understudy anymore, or else he would billed as such in the playbill, as he used to be. However, there must be some technicality or specific wording in his contract that still allows him to play Tall Boy on occasion, despite having already been bumped up to the lead role. Don't know of any other show on Broadway where a lead character would be understudying an ensemble role. But then again, no other show has four kids rotating in the lead like this.... soo.... however they're managing it, it'd be really interesting to see how Tommys contract is worded.

[WishingOnlyWounds2]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 12:14pm

^^^
This is stretching it a little but in WICKED LA Marcie Dodd was the principle Nessarose as well as an Elphaba understudy.

[BwayTday]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 12:25pm

then she eventually became standby only

[WishingOnlyWounds2]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 12:37pm

Yes, once Teal became principle Marcie got bumped to stand-by, but there were a few months where Marcie was both playing one role and covering another.

What's make it different than Billy though is: If Tommy is on for Tall Boy there is just another Billy. If Marcie was on for Elphaba, there had to be a Nessa understudy as well.

[PastorErnst]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 1:26pm

As far as I know, Tommy Batchelor is currently out due to an injury. Tanner Pflueger (from the current West End cast) is filling in for his performances.

[WishingOnlyWounds2]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 1:32pm

Tanner left right before the TONYS.

[Geridith]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 2:15pm

Thats also an example of an ensemble member understudying a lead, not the other way around, as it is for Tommy. When Keean is on for Michael, Tommy gets pulled to go in the ensemble role of Tall Boy despite being technically in the full time lead rotation.

EDIT: I guess Nessa isn't just an ensemble role, but she is still a smaller part than Elphaba. Similarly, in BE Big Davey is one of the u/s for Dad. That situation is not that unusual I don't think.

Updated On: 6/16/09 at 02:15 PM

[lolabeanz]

Posted: 6/16/09 at 2:17pm

Tommy is back, I saw him the other night perform