There can never be an equal amount of performance time between any of the Billy's and Michael's. The main reason is obvious - Michael appears on stage mainly for Expressing Yourself,dancing for Dad, the goodbye scene and for a couple of other small scenes. However, Billy is on stage for pretty much the whole show, therefore the Billy actors need more rest as their role is more demanding, so there would always have to be more Billy's than Michael's.
The proper mix for BE is as we know 3 of each, but due to the exhausting schedule of playing Billy, some of the actors have needed a rest - like James covering for Liam. That's the only reason we've currently got 4 Billy's and 3 Michael's.
We should remember that BE is still a new show and the West End hasn't had to rely on such young leads since Cameron McIntosh's revival of "Oliver!" a few years ago, so nobody could predict how demanding the show would be. I think once the producers are comfortable, we will be down to 3 - or even 2 (the normal West End amount) - sets of each.
One point I would just like to make is about the posts about whether or not George and Liam will stay on after the December cast change. I think most of you have forgotten that Mr's Lomas, Maguire and Mower have been working on this show since early 2004 (auditions, workshops, rehearsals and performances) and they must be exhausted. They cannot go on forever. The average run for any juvenile in the West End is 12 weeks under licensing laws. So to have had at least 2 of the original juvenile leads for 9 months is beyond expectation, therefore perhaps we should all bite the bullet and prepare to say goodbye - after all, they're only human (and supposed to be getting an education). As much as I love all 3 as Billy, it really is only fair they hand over the reins. I'm sure they'll all get other work, but we really shouldn't want to exhaust them and scare them off showbiz completely. What use is the Billy academy if nobody else gets a shot. If we run Liam and George into the ground with only Joey (and James for a limited time) to cope, the show will close because there'll be no replacements.
I don't mean to go on, but obsession seems to be overtaking reality.
Other than that, Congrats to James and long live Billy! (Oh, and don't be to mean to me - I'm only thinking of the boys!)
Shake that bum Billy - it's big enough!
