Billy Elliot the Forum

http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/featur ... l_of_fame/

Newcastle-born writer Lee Hall is taking time off from celebrating the Broadway success of Billy Elliot The Musical to return to his old school to launch a film club. He tells Steve Pratt how films can educate, as well as entertain.

Hope this is the right thread for the following remarks by Lee Hall at the "Tonys " " Before we came to New York in November there was this idea that we had to tone down the swearing and the poltics for Broadway but we thought : No f . . k it ! Lets make it as we want it, and not patronise the American audience " The Broadway version is more uncomprimising than the London Show and IS BETTER .
I could scream from the rooftops at these remarks, we should be the very, very best, take the lead, and set the example .I could weep !!

I Will weep with you, i cant understand why they make comments like that, i Remember Elton John making a comment on the Australian Billy's being better than London. the shows may be different but not better.

It sounds like Lee Hall was being interviewed about the New York show. I cannot imagine for one minute that he would say that the London show is better if he is trying to sell it to America.

At the end of the day beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I am sure i heard Lee once/twice say that he thinks the Broadway version is better(it may even be the same interview)but maybe that is just his preference, i think each of the shows has parts that people prefer etc but doesnt make either one better.

Its the same situations as someone saying a certain billy is better than the other one, but at the end of the day they all have their own different strengths and people look for different things in their billys and shows, which means it is their preference not that, that billy is better or worse than another.
All the shows are part of the same show and we all enjoy it for our own different reasons, so lets just enjoy the show.

Maybe that is just his preference and it may just represent his first visions of the Billy story better for him, but i do definately think maybe he should be more careful how he says things, just as we try to be with our comments.

If anyone has the right to pass comment on New York production then surely it’s the creator.

Let’s face facts; there was every chance that the Broadway version would be better than the London production. The production team took the opportunity with the Sydney show to tweak things, and I commend them for doing the same again on Broadway.

It would have been very easy to sit back and carbon copy the London production worldwide.
The budget for the Broadway show is higher than the UK, and it shows. Now don’t get me wrong spending more does not make for a better show, but in this case it has.

So I’m in agreement with Lee, the Broadway production is better than the London show, they have polished perfection. I’m I no way criticising the London production – but four years has taught the production team a lot and they have not been afraid to change things.

For me the New York production stands out in the area of lighting, orchestration and the quality of the adult cast. The young cast are all superb and equal to any I have seen.
As for the comments about Lee being careful about what he says, in the same way we are, then we are careful not to hurt the feeling of the younger cast and rightly so – I was unaware that rule extended to the entire production.

On another note about things being better, I would say Lee’s later work – in particular the pitmen painters is better than Billy. I was happy to tell him this in person – and he agreed.

We are all fiercely protective of the show, and long may that continue – but let the creators have their say, it is their show.

In my opinion you can never beat the original version, although I haven`t seen the New York version.

Take "Cats" as an example they kept adding & tweaking & completely ruined it. I wonder if they will ever make the same changes in London..... I totally agree that everyone has a right to their own opinion, especially the top dogs!!

The London show itself has been tweaked since it opened. The Winter Scene, for example, used to be significantly different than it is now, and so did the Breakfast Scene. Other lines have been added and then taken out over time. The transitional music has also changed over the course of the show. So you have to understand that for its creators, this show is a living, breathing thing which changes over time, which I think is a good thing, since it means that the show stays fresh.

So I’m in agreement with Lee, the Broadway production is better than the London show, they have polished perfection

When did "polish" equal better?

Certainly for Billy one could put forward the suggestion that the converse is true. The very rawness and rough-hewn nature of the show and storyline itself demands that it be reflected in the production.

In any case - lighting, sound, even choreography do not a show make. For a show like Billy - the make it or break it is to a large extent determined by the actor who plays Billy. That's possibly the most important aspect of the show, even while accounting for the fact that it is an ensemble piece. I think it's pretty fair to say that Billy carries the production.

In any case, I'm not disputing or even comparing the different Billy productions. I haven't seen them all. What I am questioning though is the assertion that because the producers have tweaked around with the show, therefore it makes it somehow objectively better. We've seen them tweaking around in London - and I have to say, from a subjective point of view - the majority of the changes to the London production have actually resulted in a worse outcome.

There have been some extremely interesting and valid points made following my original remarks , all of them contain substantial and well thought out points in their own way . But if only Lee had said the New York show was a thousand descriptive adjectives superb, and tactfully ommitted " better than " the London show, I would not have had any qualms. Praise each of them, and let the sky be the limit.

" and we all go together when we go "