Billy Elliot the Forum

Theatre Cedar Rapids has announced its 2016-2017 season, which includes BETM opening on June 30, 2017:

http://littlevillagemag.com/just-announ ... rd-season/

Here's the theatre's website:

http://www.theatrecr.org/2016-17-season

Auditions are announced: http://www.theatrecr.org/event/billy-el ... 017-04-23/

Billy has been cast:

https://www.theatrecr.org/2017/03/casti ... t-musical/

Today is a big day for casting announcements. Here's the complete cast list.

https://www.theatrecr.org/2017/04/cast- ... t-musical/

Billy – Jesse Flaherty
Dad – Tad Paulson
Mrs. Wilkinson – Tina Conroy
Grandma – Jan McCool
Tony – Max Locher
George – Adam Burnham
Michael – Gus Ewell
Debbie – Ava Macek

Small Boy – Nash Hayek
Big Davey – Ben Lafayette
Lesley – Sara Maslowski
Scab/Posh Dad – Bryant Duffy
Mum – Kara Ramirez
Mr. Braithwaite – Jake Stigers
Posh Boy/Tall Boy – Maclain Ray
Clipboard Woman – Anne Ohrt
Pit Supervisor – Brett Borden
Mr. Wilkinson – Jon Turk

Miners/Scabs/Police/Ensemble:
Brett Borden
Adam Burnhan
Dustin Davis
Bryant Duffy
Alex Gassman
Zach Kelchen
DJ Kohl
Ben Lafayette
Jon Turk
David Scanlon
Bryce Spencer
Sage Spiker
Jake Stigers
Len Struttman
Austin Wicke
Sara Maslowski
Meg Norris
Anne Ohrt
Kara Ramirez
Nicole Schumacher
Nikki Thompson

“Expressing Yourself” Dancers:
Sophie Lindwall
Lily Palmersheim
Bryce Spencer
Jake Stigers
Nikki Thompson

Ballet Girls:
Ava Macek
Emma Cruse
Lily Palmersheim
Sophie Lindwall
Jaydin McMickle
Rachael Jackson
Erin Musselman
Jaeden Ray
Olivia Parsons

The show runs June 30 - July 22:
https://www.theatrecr.org/event/billy-e ... 017-06-30/

Here is the same website's announcement for Jesse Flaherty, who will play Billy:

https://www.theatrecr.org/2017/03/casti ... t-musical/

Win free tickets!

http://www.kzia.com/tcr-billy-elliot-ti ... lte-clare/

Here's a preview featuring Jesse Flaherty and the cast in some early rehearsals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cX4LA_N0nyo

First review:

CEDAR RAPIDS — Theatre Cedar Rapids took a leap of faith, programming “Billy Elliot The Musical,” crossing collective fingers that a local tween boy with fleet feet would rise to the occasion.

Jesse Flaherty, 11, of Fairfax, doesn’t merely rise, he soars in an unbelievable stage debut as the boy who secretly swaps ill-fitting boxing gloves for ballet slippers that perfectly suit his soul, if not the norm in his hardscrabble English mining village.

http://www.thegazette.com/subject/life/ ... t-20170630

This is my hometown's production, and I even was on staff for several years, long ago...

I attended opening night, and it is a solid community theater effort. Jesse Flaherty as Billy did very well for a young newcomer to the stage, and Tina Conroy could hold her own against most of the Mrs W's I have seen.

The stage itself suffers from lack of depth and wing space, but the set did well within those limitations. Some of the bits added by this production are welcome additions (a bit of the street outside the Elliot's front door is put to good use), but some other bits that the original productions had are missing (the shadow dance after Shine and Twitches before Solidarity come to mind). Grandma's Song is nicely reimagined, and Swan Lake without the flying went well, but Angry Dance and MCMT were strangely still and prop-free. The cast as a whole did well with the Geordie accent, I didn't hear anyone detouring off into cockney or BBC english.

The script used was the american version, with the changed "he could be a star" and audition sequences. The pre-show history lesson was handled as a class report by a few of the ballet girls and extra boys.

Steamboy wrote:The pre-show history lesson was handled as a class report by a few of the ballet girls and extra boys.

I like this idea if done well! Cool!

Thanks for the review! Always enjoy hearing about little changes. Although I love to act in improv, I'm not sure I could ever succeed as an actor in a stage production (perhaps after a course with Toastmasters). I often think I'd be very good as an assistant director and eventually director of a Billy production though (or with other stage shows or movies)if I ever had the opportunity.

There are so many nuances different productions miss because they don't know about the history of the show's many little changes that we as forum members have learned from each other's posts here over time. THAT SAID, it can also be a great gift not knowing, because it provides the performers and local director a chance to re-imagine the play based solely on the script and music. A blank palette is a wonderful opportunity for any artist to work with!

Sean