Happy 5th Birthday Billy
Billy Elliot the Musical
31st March
Victoria Palace Theatre
As I walked down the red carpet surrounded by paparazzi I knew tonight was going to be special.
The atmosphere in the theatre was electric, I have never felt such a huge buzz in a theatre and the anticipation of what was to come hung prominently in the air.
7.30 came and went and the audience was getting restless with excitement. 7.40 rolled around and on to the stage stepped Stephen Daldry, Lee Hall and Elton John. They gave a very personal speech about how working for Billy Elliot has affected them, including tears from Elton and then it started.
The show was absolutely brilliant. It is no wonder it has survived five years in the West End despite the economic troubles that have faced many productions.
The adult cast was fantastic but it has to be said that the true stars of the show are the children, they completely outshine the adults and how they have so much talent at such a young age is beyond me.
Billy was played by thirteen year old, Londoner, Tom Holland. The talent that he possesses is just unimaginable. He owned the stage and had the audience on their feet on more then one occasion. The applause when he finished the signature dance of Electricity with a wall flip was totally out of this world, it was like an explosion.
Eleven year old, Connor Kelly took on the role of Billy’s best friend Michael and he did so with so much passion. During his song Expressing Yourself he totally owned the stage.
At the end the audience were treated to a mind blowing Billy Elliot mega mix featuring nineteen of the past, present and future Billy Elliot’s. It was so fast paced with flips here and flips there, blink and you missed it but it was amazing to witness as it is unlikely to happen again.
If you are yet to see the show, make sure you do and here is to hoping it lasts another five years, if not longer.
Some articles/videos from the night;
http://www.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/201004013211/elton-john/billy-elliot-musical/anniversary/1/
