Billy Elliot untransferable

[devonian.t]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 8:02am

Saw the show last night. It's fantastic, but there is no way the show can run on Broadway without a crash course in 1980s British politics and surtitles for the Georgie accents! It's even more difficult than the original film!

Still, stunning show! Wey ay the leds! (as they say)

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 8:05am

I have tickets for August 16.

[popcultureboy]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 8:05am

GeorDie accents .

And do you know which Billy is performing on August 16th?

Updated On: 5/31/05 at 08:05 AM

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 8:09am

I wish I knew. That's a Tuesday. I would like to to either be whichever one is on the soundtrack or the one who did it opening night.

[Anastasia_Beaverhausen]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 9:56am

Let's hope it has a long London run so I can see it next year when I am there. I sisn't think it would be able to tranfer to Broadway, but you never know.

[superwoman108]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 10:30am

SUCH a good show-saw it last week. Which Billy did you others see? I am interested to hear some comparisons.

[MasterLcZ]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 10:38am

A friend just back from London that he could never see it transferring as well - during one dance number with lots of children on stage, a chorus of miners comes in bellowing four-letter words (a very powerful moment in the show).

I don't see a lot of kids parents agreeing to that scene.

(And my friend ravced over it - said there was one moment (Billy dancing in the pinlight) which he thought the most beautiful which was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen on stage.

Updated On: 5/31/05 at 10:38 AM

[jaded_october]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 10:47am

my grandmother saw it and she loved it. i might be going back to london this summer so i hope i see it then.

[midtowngym]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 10:52am

Having seen the show, it could definitely work off-broadway in a small house with few changes. It would be perfect for Dodgers. Most americans already know the story, and those that don't still know who Margaret Thatcher is, what labor arguments are about, what it's like to be a nelly boy (well, maybe just some of us.)
As long as producers don't have unrealistic expectations-Rosie O'Donnell and Taboo anyone?

Updated On: 5/31/05 at 10:52 AM

[devonian.t]

Posted: 5/31/05 at 5:42pm

Oops- typo: Geordie!!!

It's a show which has a core context the miners' strike of the early 80s- it just does not equate to any recent experience in the U.S. so unlike Full Monty it could not even relocate.

The show rather reminds me of The Hired Man in its close connection to a specific time and place.

I saw the lad whose name I forget but who is centre in the press photo by the fountain. He was very good- the tap was stunning in the Act 1 finale.

In fact, I would say the last 15 minutes of the first act are up there in the greatness stakes with West Side Story or Porgy & Bess. The rest is very good, but not quite as moving as it could be.

Incidentally, the kids have already started messing around: there was quite a lot of chatting going on behind the fans in Shine. If I were resident on the show, I'd be cross!

[riv]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 3:09pm

Bump.

[hyperchet]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 5:30pm

I would LOVE to play Billy!

[Plum]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 5:36pm

The hard part of the transfer might be the expense of continually finding new Billies.

[hyperchet]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 5:37pm

OOOH oooh right here! Pick me pick me!

[cturtle]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 6:52pm

i saw LIAM MOWER, who was absolutely fantastic as BILLY. i think the show would do well in NYC if done carefully. and, yes, it COULD play in a smaller house, with a revised set design. (which is not a bad idea, anyway.)

[BroadwayBaby6]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 6:56pm

It's definitely transferring to Broadway. Whether they will re-tool it for the American market in order to make it succeed? Let's hope so.

[Speed]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 8:53pm

devonian--- how come you were able to understand and enjoy the show but the rest of us won't be able to?

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/4/05 at 10:30pm

i hope that it transfers. id really like to see it and i doubt ill be going to london any time soon. but i agree with plum that it would be very hard to continue to find new billies.

[devonian.t]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 12:46pm

Speed- I was born and raised in London.

[stonewall2]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 1:06pm

People had problems undestanding the accents and material in the movie (I know, the first time that I saw it, the person that I was with was completely clueless as to what was being said!) but the film was a success in this country nevertheless. Those interested in musical theatre will have picked up on some of the hype from London and the others that paid $110/ticket probably won't admit that they didn't get parts of it anyway! There shouldn't be any problem finding youngsters to play Billy-Britain is much smaller and managed quite well- as the School of American Ballet is in NY and a series of regional casting calls would turn out many other likely candidates. I am hoping that "Billy" makes it across the pond SOON!

[meredith]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 1:51pm

I saw the show 3 weeks ago on a trip to London and I absolutely loved it. I am usually really bad at understanding accents, and there were definitely things in this that I didn't completely understand, but even missing small things here and there, the story is still completely understandable and both funny and moving, and I definitely think it could do well in NY. I knew nothing about the coal miners' strike beforehand, and that didn't really matter either. Maybe the I would have enjoyed it even more if I had known more about the strike, but I don't think it was necessary. Maybe if it comes here, they could put a little article with background info on the strike in the Playbill so people would at least know the basics.

I actually just watched the movie yesterday on DVD (I hadn't seen it before seeing the musical), and I thought the movie was somewhat harder to understand than it was on stage. I turned the English subtitles on and they definitely helped me understand more of what they were saying. But even without them, I could definitely get what was going on.

I saw James Lomas as Billy and he was amazing. The boy who played Michael was also excellent--so funny. I saw it on a Monday, but I'm not sure if they always perform on the same nights.

Anyway, that's just what I thought about it. I think as long as people are open to it and know ahead of time about the accents and the swearing and anything else possibly objectionable, people here would definitely enjoy it.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 2:08pm

So happy to hear that folks from this side of the pond are just as enthusiastic about the show as they are in London...the show is already sold out for the summer! I know they just extended to April 2006, hope to make it out there by then. Can't wait for the CD in the meantime.

[Chloe]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 2:08pm

I was lucky enough to BE a couple of weeks ago, and agree with what Meredith said. I think the one untransferable element might be the obvious emotional connection the English audience had to certain political things in the show that Americans probably wouldn't relate to. The audience was so "with" the show that I saw, and that added an important dimension to my enjoyment of it. On the other hand, the bigger theme about transcending one's origins and striking out into the larger world is so universal that it might override other considerations.

[ruthiefan_felix]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 2:32pm

I saw Liam as Billy, he was fantastic! But I think if it transfers to Broadway, it'll have to do sth with the accent, because as a student studying in Yorkshire, I still cannot catch every word they say!

[Jwaa]

Posted: 6/5/05 at 3:40pm

Im going to see it on Friday

AND
im seeing Tick..Tick...Boom tomorrow!

Am a londoner myself so will let ya know what I thought!
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