Billy Elliot The Musical — Page 5

Leaving the show after a preview, he could not believe how many people wanted his autograph. But he's not always been popular.

Liam Mower (13), has always been a dancer boy. His class mates used to tease him saying he was a dancer because he was gay. In such situations it's good to have two older brothers who are willing to stand up for you. And a younger one who is equally supportive.

Liam's family up in Hull consists of his dad Paul (Pipe fitting engineer), his mother Joanna (sandwich shop worker), his older brothers Luke and Lewis, and his younger brother Leighton.

When he was younger he used to play in the same rugby team as his brothers (he tried for two weeks, actually, and say's although he likes to watch it he hates to play it), but he is a true music lover, and music always made young Liam want to dance, especially the music videos on TV. Whenever they came on, he used to copy the moves of the dancers. So when he was 8 he joined a dance school, learning disco, rock and roll, and ballroom, and he just loved it. He became a champion at disco and rock and roll.

At the age of 10, he wanted more, so he tried gymnastics for 3 months, and he is a natural acrobat with rythm in his blood. But that wasn't enough for him. Since he was too shy to sing, he wanted to dance, so he was encouraged to join the Northern Theatre Company (NAPA - Northern Academy of Performing Arts), where he learned to love modern dance and tap. His shyness for singing almost stopped him from auditioning for Billy.

Age 11, he was encouraged by his dance teacher, Julie Lovewell (who had seen some talent in young Liam during a talent show when he was only eight), to try ballet. He resisted for some time, saying that ballet wasn't for boys. But he fell for the argument that ballet would make him stronger. He found himself being one of two boys in a class of twenty girls. He, then, successfully auditioned for the Urdang Academy and later became a student at the Royal Ballet School as a mid associate. When he danced with the mid associates, ballet became a favourite, and while auditioning for Billy Elliot, he was completely focused on ballet, so he auditioned for, and gained, on a full scholarship, a full time place at the prestigious Royal Ballet School "White Lodge" in Richmond Park.

It was never easy to dance, when all your brothers were rugby players, and your father a rather prominent figure in the local rugby team. At first, his brother couldn't understand that he wanted to dance, but now they're all proud of him and think he is fantastic. His father used to talk about him as if he was still playing rugby. When his father's mates at the pub found out, they used to sneer at him and say, "Well, I would certainly not let my lad do ballet." Paul obviously wanted his son to play rugby, but the desire to dance was so strong he just couldn't stop young Liam. One thing, though, was a requirement. He could do ballet, but not wear tights. He had to wear shorts or training pants. But now, when Paul sees him on stage, he knows that this is where is happy, this is where he ought to be.

Before he goes on stage, he gets nervous, butterflies all over, and he starts to yawn. For all purposes, Liam has moved away from home, as he is now boarding at the RBS since summer 2005. He used to board with his fellow Billies, Michaels, Debbies and some other performing children and only go back to Hull for some weekends each month. He shared a room with two other boys, something that was ok to Liam, since he used to share room at home with his younger brother Leighton. He loves what he's doing, but misses his mums cooking...

Now, when talking about his bullies, he say's they can say whatever they want to, they can call him a poof, if they wish. "Watch me, and I'll show you what I'm made of."

(The image above is a capture from the documentary The Real Billy Elliot Diaries.)

Updated On: 8/18/05 at 03:43 PM

Updated On: 7/25/05 at 02:42 PM