August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post Reply
User avatar
Billy Whiz
Gallery Admin
Gallery Admin
Posts: 5537
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2009 11:26 pm
Location: England

August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post by Billy Whiz »

A place for August's reviews. Keep 'em coming.
.
Billy Whiz is the Gallery Admin. Please send your photos, articles etc to forum.gallery[at]billyelliottheforum.me.uk Please replace [at] with @

In the email can you also please let me know the date where and when the photo(s) was taken, who is in the photo(s) as well as your forum name.

When you send photos to the gallery can you also please PM me to let me know that you have sent them. If I don't receive them after a couple of days I can then chase them up.
Todd
Dad
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:05 am
Location: Kansas City, USA

Re: August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post by Todd »

Wednesday evening - August 4, 2010

Billy - Giuseppe Bausilio
Michael - Keean Johnson
Debbie - Madison Barnes
All other cast were the regulars

Well, looks like I get to post the first review of the month on here ! I was able to make it to town today to see the show - but only one show, as I was just in Chicago for 1 day.

I was happy to get to see Giuseppe, as I hadn't seen him since the opening weekend back in April. He turned in an excellent performance in all areas. I had forgotten what a good singer he is, as he has a very pleasant treble singing voice and is able to hit all the high notes quite well. He has a good deal of stage presence as he does an excellent job of staying in character. Even after a loud and lengthy round of applause at the end of "Electricity," he simply broke from his finish position and stood there until the applause stopped so he could continue - not smiling or even looking around the audience much.

It was pretty much a flawless performance by Giuseppe from what I could tell. With all the lines the Billys have to remember and all the dance moves, it's amazing what an extreme rarity it is to see or hear any mistake from any of them. Just another example of what talented and well-prepared kids we are seeing when we go to this show.

The highlights for me would have to be: "Angry Dance," which he put a great deal of fury into and used his strength to accentuate the anger of the piece, and "Swan Lake," which was perfectly in sync between Billy and his older self. Giuseppe appeared to be loving every minute of it, as he did allow himself several moments to smile and enjoy himself during the flying parts.

As well as Giuseppe performed, an argument could be made that his equal in the show tonight was Keean Johnson as Michael. I'd seen him a couple of other times in the role, and this was the best I've seen him. At this stage of his time in the show, his experience and comfort in the role really show forth, as he looked like the seasoned pro that he is. His line delivery was perfect, as the audience really came alive during "Express Yourself" everytime he would say something or give Billy a sideways glance. In the winter scene - right before he did the splits when he was singing "Just a little bit . . . just a little bit" - he paused for a moment with his back to the audience and reached back to pull his shorts down which were apparently bunching up under his tutu, which got a big laugh. He seemed to be having a great time during those two scenes and in "Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher." Quite simply, one of the best performances of Michael I've ever seen.

One rare dialogue mistake which I found quite funny was in the boxing scene. Michael runs by George and gets knocked down by his arm that's sticking out. When George asks him what he was doing, Keean accidentally said, "I need the toilet sir" - instead of the correct line of "I'm pissing off." George went ahead with his comeback line of "You're pissing me off." When Michael tries to run off to the toilet and George yells at him to come back, Keean said the correct line of "But I need the toilet sir." George replied back with, "You already said that once !" I'm sure 99% of the audience didn't realize the mistake, but I got a good chuckle out of it. Pretty smooth cover-up by Jim Ortlieb as George - or maybe he was just having a fun inside joke with Keean.

A few lines in the Chicago production are different than in Broadway or London. At the curtain scene at the audition, when the lady asks Jackie what his occupation is, he said "He babysits his nana" instead of "He's still in school, like." When it's just the two of them in front of the safety curtain, Billy starts to do some of his ballet moves and his dad looks at him disgustedly and says, "Is that absolutely necessary?" That line came directly from the movie and has always gotten a big laugh from the audience in Chicago, so I kind of hope to see it put into the other productions as well, as it's always been a favorite line of mine too.

I really find myself liking the supporting cast in Chicago as much as any group I've seen, as Emily Skinner (Mrs. Wilkinson), Patrick Mulvey (Tony), Cynthia Darlow (Grandma), Jim Ortlieb (George) and Maria Connelly (Debbie) are all excellent in my opinion. There had been some negative comments about Armand Schultz as Dad at the beginning of the show's run, but I do think he's gotten much better and handles the comedy portion of his role quite good now.

After the show, Giuseppe came out the stage door to a nice-size group of applauding fans, and he kindly stayed and signed autographs and posed for pictures until everyone had gotten what they wanted. He's certainly very polite and friendly with the fans, and seems to love what he's doing. A great night of entertainment and a fun way to end my short stay in Chicago.
User avatar
Billy Whiz
Gallery Admin
Gallery Admin
Posts: 5537
Joined: Sun Mar 15, 2009 11:26 pm
Location: England

Re: August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post by Billy Whiz »

Todd wrote:When it's just the two of them in front of the safety curtain, Billy starts to do some of his ballet moves and his dad looks at him disgustedly and says, "Is that absolutely necessary?" That line came directly from the movie and has always gotten a big laugh from the audience in Chicago, so I kind of hope to see it put into the other productions as well, as it's always been a favorite line of mine too.
Thanks for the great review Todd.

The above is now in the London show and I agree that it is a great line.
.
Billy Whiz is the Gallery Admin. Please send your photos, articles etc to forum.gallery[at]billyelliottheforum.me.uk Please replace [at] with @

In the email can you also please let me know the date where and when the photo(s) was taken, who is in the photo(s) as well as your forum name.

When you send photos to the gallery can you also please PM me to let me know that you have sent them. If I don't receive them after a couple of days I can then chase them up.
User avatar
bandaide2012
Audience Member
Posts: 18
Joined: Thu Jun 03, 2010 12:18 am
Location: Chicago

Re: August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post by bandaide2012 »

As I mentioned in my NYC review last week, I attended the Chicago matinee today to FINALLY see JP and to see Dillon. I was really trying to look out for major differences between the productions as per some requests last week but it was hard to do when I was just so into the show :) It really all comes down to technical aspects and the way the individual performers portray their characters. I will say, I absolutely love Emily Skinner as Mrs. W and though I am sad she is leaving Chicago, I am excited that everyone in NYC can see how phenomenal she is in the role. Dillon, Gabe's replacement for Michael, was fantastic! I thought he was so funny and added a lot of sass and personality to Michael. I really enjoyed his performance. I was happy to finally see JP so that I have now seen all of the Chicago Billys. I was very impressed with JP's acting, I liked the seriousness he gave to Billy.

I am still on a high from seeing the show last week in NYC and then again today back home in Chicago. Again, the only differences really are technical and personal acting choices. The technical differences cause for different transitions between scenes which definitely has some affects on the show as a whole. I love the way the house comes up from the floor in NYC, especially when Billy gets the RBS letter, but I also like the simplicity of the set in Chicago because it makes it seem more realistic. As I wished NYC had the moment of Billy wearing Dad's mining hat and shining the light on his face, I wish Chicago was able to have the giant light up BILLY at the end of the finale. I just think that adds such an amazing feeling to the ending of the show, and gives the Billy all the credit he deserves.

Now that I am an unemployed recent college graduate, I may not be attending the show for a short while but already have my closing night ticket and am definitely planning on going to Tommy's final show!

I am also thrilled to say that today was my Billverysary.....9 performances in 2 cities in exactly 1 year!!! :-D
NYC:
Billy- Tommy, Alex
Michael- David B., Gabe
Chicago:
Billy- Tommy x3, Giuseppe x3 Cesar x2, JP 2x, Marcus
Michael- Keean x7, Gabe x2, Dillon 2x
User avatar
porschesrule
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 9368
Joined: Fri Jun 12, 2009 2:02 am
Location: Rhode Island, USA

Re: August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post by porschesrule »

Thank you for your review of the Chicago production with JP and Dillon tonight, bandaide2012.

I've made no secret of the fact that I particularly love to read reviews that feature comparisons of the productions, so I especially liked that aspect of yours.

While there's much sadness among the Chicago cast/crew and fans of the show there regarding the announcement of Emily Skinner's leaving, the consolation is that Susan McMonagle takes over the role now full-time. Everything I hear and read about her has been so positive, both in her portrayal of Dead Mum, but also when she's ably filled in for Emily as the Mrs. W U/S.
cincinnati
Tall Boy
Posts: 190
Joined: Fri Sep 25, 2009 1:42 pm

Re: August 2010 Reviews - Chicago

Post by cincinnati »

The Sunday August 22nd show was outstanding with Cesar turning in an amazing afternoon of work. Dillon, who knocked me dead with his work the first two times I saw him...didn't let me down either. He has only become even better. Dillon and Cesar were in the middle of Express Yourself when a malfunction of props took place and they were forced to stop. The show continued ten minutes later with Dillon and Cesar picking up where they left off. Outstanding job by these two. I might add that Spencer Milford turned in an outstanding afternoon of work as well.
Post Reply

Return to “Reviews - Chicago”