Okay, so I finally have a minute to breathe - the new carpet is (finally) in (after the original got very bad water damage due to Sandy), the Christmas tree is (finally) up just in time, and aside from wrapping, I am almost ready for Christmas! Of course having Billy Elliot in town has NOT helped me try to schedule things - too many late nights! Anyway, on to the interesting stuff!
I saw Noah on opening night ably assisted by Jake as Michael, and the regulars. Only other point of interest was that Ben was on as TB/PB. Last time I saw Noah was at his debut performance in Louisville. That was an amazingly confident performance and he impressed me mightily then... And he continues to impress me. He is completely comfortable on stage and is a terrific little actor. He is a sweet kid trying hard to be tough, but he can't quite pull it off - I mean, Noah's Billy can't quite pull off the toughness, thanks to Noah's great acting! His dancing is flawless, and I don't really know what more I can say. I like focusing on some of the other skills, because Noah came in to Billy with the dancing skills. The acting and singing are equally impressive, because he can do both beautifully. Noah does a great job pulling off the wide-eyed bewildered look - it's funny and sweet at the same time. Noah has this way of immediately drawing me in to his world, and I find myself rooting for his Billy even before his opening number is complete! Bravo Noah. Love, love, love Janet Dickinson as Ms. W. She is wonderful, and has a beautiful voice to boot - she has a great rapport with all her Billies! Rich Herbert has been one consistent Dad since the tour started back in Durham. Always puts out a solid performance. Cullen Titmas as Tony is growing on me. One person who I don't mention often is Samantha Cutler as Debbie - this kid is terrific, night after night with her different leading men. She enunciates so clearly that every word she says is easily heard and understood. She also has wonderful timing... As one example, when Billy says "me mum's dead," Debbie will often rush "oh... See ya then" but not Samantha - she says the "oh" then waits enough time that you know she is thinking about what to say next, can't figure out what to say, and then bows out. This is just one small example of how she milks the timing - a great little actress! Bravo Samantha! Jake is a great Michael - his Michael was a bit understated in act 1, but it worked real well, in my opinion. He let it all out during the winter scene in act 2. Bravo Jake!
Night number 2 saw Ben Cook as our leading man, ably assisted by Sam Poon. This time, TB/PB was Jake. I last saw Ben at his debut performance in Louisville... (Did I say that already?
) Anyway, he was wonderful then, and continues to be wonderful. Because Ben is quite tall, his Billy feels more grown up than Noah's... His is more a teenager to Noah's pre-teen. This changes the dynamic of the relationships with the other characters some, notably Ms. W. What is so amazing about BETM is that both styles work, and it is worth seeing the show multiple times for that reason alone! Anyway, back to Ben - he has a wonderful singing voice - and such a stage presence. And his dancing - he opens his Electricity with an aerial that just takes your breathe away! Sam Poon is a terrific Michael - going all out in Express, milking the audience! Speaking of the audience, Baltimore has been great - they are super engaged in the show, laughing lots, crying some, standing ovations at the end. I'm so proud of my almost-hometown!
Night number 3 saw Drew Minard in what was only his second ever performance as Billy - I would never had guessed it had I not read it here first - he was wonderful. Great accent, wonderful dancing, singing and acting. Where do they find such consistent talent??? I don't have a good feel for Drew's Billy yet... Gotta see him a few more times. Also, I was sitting quite a bit further back from the stage for this show, so I did not get to see facial expressions as much as I would have liked. Jake did his wonderful take on Michael again, and Sam was on as TB/PB. We had an understudy as Tony, but I don't remember his name off the top of my head. He was good too. They all are - such depth to the cast.
One person I have missed seeing so far is Tim Funnel as... the scab and posh dad. Particularly as posh dad, he is so funny - I notice that the guy who was on has adopted Tim's run across the stage - the first time I saw Tim do that (in London) I just cracked up - a surprisingly funny touch.
The company are all wonderful from ballet girls to George, to Big Davey to small boy to grandma and everyone else! What a joy to have the show so close to home. I only have tickets for a couple of shows next weekend, but I imagine I will swing by once or twice more next week after the holiday stuff is complete. It would be great to catch the other new Billy OR see Drew again, or Noah, or Ben...
That's all for now!
maria
PS Cherri, thanks for filling us in on last night - wish I could have been there - two Billies for the price of one! I may be wrong, but I don't think a Billy has ever come back for the curtain call after being replaced, probably because they don't hang around the theater, or... Anyway, I think that was a nice touch!