Wheelock reviews

kport
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Re: Wheelock reviews

Post by kport »

I do not think I have ever read a review of a schools' BETM matinee only. The only adults in the room at a schools' show are on the stage, or busy supervising the pupils. When I was last at Wheelock Family Theatre, at Sunday's matinee, the theatre was full of young kids with their parents. I do not mean teens and tweens, as I recall in a London Thursday matinee, but very, very young kids - 5-11. Hundreds and hundreds of them. I became acutely aware of this musical's rough edges, that are really designed for adults and teens, and wondered what the hundreds of single-digit-age kids would make of it. This reviewer concluded exactly what I did:
Here’s what I noticed. Many of the kids in the audience may have giggled and gasped and whispered at different parts of the show, but were completely wrapped up in Billy’s experience; and when it was over, and the young actor who played Michael the young man who cross-dressed came out for his bow, he got some of the biggest applause of all.

Take your kids and see this production of BILLY ELLIOT The Musical— not just for the singing and dancing which are first rate, not just for the performers who will win your heart, but because it is a show about why and how the arts are crucial, and how they inspire kids to have the courage to be their true, best selves. That’s a fact.
I asked one of the cast if he noticed the giggles, too, and he said he did. And quite liked it.

Enjoy this review of a school children's matinee of BETM:

http://joyceschoices.com/theater-billy- ... e-musical/
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Re: Wheelock reviews

Post by kport »

Wheelock’s ‘Billy Elliot’ showcases boyhood with grace and wit:

http://sampan.org/2017/02/wheelocks-bil ... e-and-wit/
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CJ-Rochester
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Re: Wheelock reviews

Post by CJ-Rochester »

Here's another rave review, this one by Jules Becker. I don't think it's been posted on here yet.

Wheelock’s Billy Elliot Soars
https://bostontheater.wordpress.com/
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LiamM
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Re: Wheelock reviews

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Re: Wheelock reviews

Post by mikey2573 »

I saw the 1:00 matinee on Feb. 22 and I would say this is a very respectable and competent production of BILLY ELLIOT. It is always a bit jarring for those who have seen the Broadway/Tour and regional productions that basically follow all the same staging and choreography of the original to see something different, but I liked a lot of the changes that were incorporated into this production. I noticed that this is one of the first BILLY ELLIOTs I have seen that did not use the wooden chairs that were such an integral part of the original production. I think there were about 5 chairs at any given time on stage.
I was very surprised at the number of young children in the audience (and I mean YOUNG children, like 5 and 6 year olds). I am not sure how much of this show children that young would understand. The kids in front of me were about 8 and 9 years old and there attention to what was happening on stage was spotty at best. Some times they would actually get out of their seats and walk over to their parent's seat because they wanted something.

As to the show itself, it was very well done. Most of the acting was very good and the singing was a standout. Shane Boucher was a fine Michael and Seth Judice was a winning Billy. I was particularly impressed with Seth's strong singing voice and his acro skills, which were on full display during ELECTRICITY. His Angry Dance was also particularly strong. The actor playing Tony (sorry I don't have my Playbill handy) was very good as was Billy's dad. I don't think the actress playing Grandma quite captured her character's borderline dementia which I think is important to the script. You never really got the sense that Grandma had any kind of disability. The woman playing Mrs. Wilkinson was very strong, though she was quite young for that part. Still she was very good. I do miss all those beats that the original production had that made the show so moving. Don't get me wrong, this production had its emotional high points and they worked well. But, those small moments are almost as important as the big emotional ones, and when they are not there it is noticeable, especially to those familiar with the show. I am talking about scenes like the buildup to Billy's "I hate you! You're a bastard!"; or the scene right before Billy hugs Mrs. Wilkinson. where Billy really exposes his fear and anxiety over the audition. I really wish these moments were not rushed. Also, the timing of the ending was off; Michael came on too soon and the kiss happened way too soon which caused Michael to have to sit on his bike for a very long time before the orchestra swelled and the curtain closed.

One thing I was really not liking was that the Wheelock Family Theater is now right in the heart of the city of Boston. The last time I saw a Wheelock show (quite a while ago I admit) they were located in Waltham, about 15 minutes north of Boston. It was on a large school campus with a huge parking lot. That's where I thought I was going and I was a bit nervous when my GPS brought me right into Boston. I don't know if the Waltham theater was their regular venue at the time or if they were using it temporarily while their Boston theater was being refurbished, but there is something to be said for not having to deal with Boston traffic and parking. It was especially troublesome after the show as I got caught up in rush hour traffic which made my ride home much longer.

In summary I would say that this was a fine but not exceptional production of BILLY ELLIOT. I enjoyed the show as did the rest of the audience. The older lady sitting behind me who said "Well, it's not My Fair Lady" after the Act 1 curtain was wiping tears from her eyes at the end. And the kids were still lined up to get their picture taken with Seth when I drove by the theater on my way home. Just be prepared for the headaches of Boston (one of the worst cities to drive in) if you go to see this production.
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Re: Wheelock reviews

Post by atreyu »

I have been remiss in posting my comments about Wheelock, although I'll claim having had a significant distraction which is noted elsewhere on this forum. :D

After Lancaster with the experienced Jamie Mann being directed by Adam Pelty, I was not intending to attend Wheelock at all. In the end, I attended a handful of performances and that was indeed a whole lot better than none. However I still think the combination of a known high-quality Billy and a director who sets a high level of choreography may not be something we'll see again.

What was most interesting to me was the observable improvements that could be seen in the primary roles over a period of time. In the case of Shane, besides becoming the 188th Billy in the world, it was achieving a milestone with his acting. Even a few months ago at Thommie Retter's Jingle Jam, my description of Expressing Yourself performed there with Jamie Mann was still seeing Shane playing Michael. At Wheelock all I could see was Michael. And Billy when he took on that role.

Seth is a very strong dancer. His pirouettes have some element of Mitchell Tobin and some element of Drew Minard. Mitchell in the ability to put his foot down and twirl on that one spot and Drew with sometimes raising his hands while doing tight spins. It was also notable how his comfort level on stage increased steadily. It will be fantastic if Seth is able to continue his Billy career in a future production.

I have to think Wheelock leads all BETM productions in the number of hugs. Besides the usual spots - first Letter scene, Mrs. W after the 2nd Toilet scene and for Dad after packing the suitcase - there was the second Letter scene with Mum plus one hug each for Tony and Dad at the end of Once We Were Kings.

Aimee Doherty was brilliant as Mrs. Wilkinson. I could not get enough of her wonderful singing, and the excellence included just the right gestures and right amount of gruffness and tenderness as was befitting the scenes and the lines. I really hope to see her in future productions in this role.

Neil Gustafson was excellent as Dad. Perhaps not quite as distinctive as Aimee shining in her role, but that is no discredit to Neil. He was a valuable asset in this production.

A couple of the other roles, however, unfortunately bring diversity to the forefront. It is hard to think that Grandma and Mr. Braithwaite were chosen because they were the best candidates. Artistically, at least, they were not great choices. Maybe there are other reasons for not casting the best actors for those roles, but one of the possibilities is that it is deliberately done as promoting diversity. If that is the case, I would say the message is better presented if the production had better actors there. Like Dead Mum who was played by an African-American woman and she did add something to the role. In this case, however, I just gotta wonder if blind casting of an immediate family member is the best strategy when there is typically a young, inexperienced actor playing Billy.

During one of the performances, Michael kissing Billy brought about an audible "Ewwwww" from a very young audience member. Seth understandably had a case of the giggles during much of the remainder of the scene and kudos to Shane being able to continue on through that sequence. :lol:

In the final performance, it was nice to see that the director gave her blessing to the traditional "See ya Shane"/"See ya Seth" closing lines. This was evidenced by the open captioning showing those lines exactly. Shane confirmed the official approval of the change after the show.
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