Broadway Billy related questions.

[johnnyc]

I don't know if this is the proper place for this, but something that occurs in both NYC and London has always bothered me. In the scene just before the boxing, Billy is looking for his trainers, and goes back downstairs to find dead mum has gone. He says mum? Then he repeats the word while looking down. Now the repetition of the word has seldom worked for me, because it's usually just said without any emotion. And when done in that manner, it makes no sense. The other night I heard Kiril Kulish do it differently. The first time, he said "mum" as a question. (Mum, where are you? Have you gone?) OK, all the Billys do that. But when he repeated the word, he had sadness and longing in his voice. (Oh, Mum, I miss you so much.) Done in this manner, the repetition makes sense.

So am I the only one who feels this way about that dialog? I think the scene should tell us what Billy's feelings are for his departed mother. And if he just says "mum" the second time without any feeling, as happens 99 percent of the time, that fails to tell us how he really feels.

[phoebe]

I have not seen the show enough times to even recall this detail, but johnnyc's suggestion sounds good to me. At any rate, he's sure making Kiril Kulish's performance sound studendous in every way.

[Billy Whiz]

I can understand what you mean johnnyc.

Not wishing to sound pedantic but the boys actually say "Mam". It is often used in the North of England instead of Mum and I should know as I always called my Mam that.

[johnnyc]

I have not seen the show enough times to even recall this detail, but johnnyc's suggestion sounds good to me. At any rate, he's sure making Kiril Kulish's performance sound studendous in every way.

Kiril is a talented, sensitive actor, but I didn't intend to imply he has something the other actors lack. He is just a more emotional Billy than some others choose to portray.

[johnnyc]

Not wishing to sound pedantic but the boys actually say "Mam". It is often used in the North of England instead of Mum and I should know as I always called my Mam that.

As does Liam Mower. You are right of course, but when I talk about the musical, I have a tendency to use whichever word (mam, mum, mom) comes to mind first.