May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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Finale
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May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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A place for May 2011 reviews
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atreyu
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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Sunday May 1 matinee
Peter/Cameron/Zachary

This was my first time seeing Peter. Other reviews in recent days have captured his remarkable dancing and acting quite well, so I will voice my agreement and try not to be repetitive.

For me it was quite interesting to see a different take. Seems to me that Peter's Billy is . . . ohh, I guess I'd call it less "Type A personality" than others. There is no less conviction and zeal, but not necessarily defiance. That was my first impression, at least, I'll have to see more of Peter's performances. (Not saying this interpretation is better or worse than others, just observing a distinction.)

I thought Peter showed very good form in the full range of dances and really look forward to see how that will only get stronger as he matures. Peter nailed the jump rope routine in this performance and I think that is why it remains in the show when there are sentiments for removing it. When it is done well, it is impressive.

Just one aspect with this portrayal that I wasn't thrilled with in a few places, but will defer to forum guidelines. :|

Really, really like what Joel Hatch brings to the show. I can't put my finger exactly on what makes it so appealing; perhaps a special level of sincerity that stands out with his normal role of George and that I don't sense as much with others. Even though George on the surface is berating the kids in boxing class, there's still some rapport there with Joel whereas other Georges come across as merely bossing the kids around.

And when Greg Jbara is out, although no one can really fill Greg's shoes, per se, Joel's Dad can stand firmly on its own. Yes, we have further confirmation that Greg seems to be the only Dad that does not need the note to start Deep Into the Ground, but what a fine voice Joel has. Makes one wish that George had a song for himself and Joel could show off his talent there.
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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My billython ended, fittingly, with another performance by Jacob Sunday evening. Alex was originally scheduled, but was indisposed. Every time I see Jacob on stage, I marvel at his acting ability. He plays The Letter scene as I have never seen before in all my 200 plus shows! He doesn't really cry, but his face tells a powerful story of love and loss. I've never been so moved by this scene.

I waited at the stage door till Jacob had run the gauntlet of fans wanting his autograph, and then I told him I had seen BETM all over and had seen many boys play the role. I told him he was one of the finest, most sensitive Billy actors I've ever seen. Then I pointed to the image of George Maguire on the sign board above us, and told Jacob he was in the same class as that famous Billy. Just then the lady standing nearby who I hadn't paid any attention to, thanked me for saying such nice things about Jacob. The lady turned out to be Linda Clemente, his mom. :o She and I then had a nice chat before she and Jacob had to leave. I thought it can't get any better than this during my visit to NYC. But then the news came on regarding a certain terrorist's entry into a state of deceasement. (Did I just coin a new word? :lol: )

Just a few comments about the shows I saw - I see in the Maggie Thatcher scene that grandma is now holding onto one of the "cannonballs" that was fired from the tank, and is going to the front of the stage and choosing some deserving person (usually a child) to hand it off to. A nice touch. And one of the guys working the puppets, during at least one performance I saw, stuck his puppet out to a front row audience member so that person could shake the puppets hand. Another nice touch.

I hope to be back to NY sometime in July. But that's it for now.
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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Just a few comments about the shows I saw - I see in the Maggie Thatcher scene that grandma is now holding onto one of the "cannonballs" that was fired from the tank, and is going to the front of the stage and choosing some deserving person (usually a child) to hand it off to. A nice touch. And one of the guys working the puppets, during at least one performance I saw, stuck his puppet out to a front row audience member so that person could shake the puppets hand. Another nice touch.
Both of these things have been in the Broadway show for a long time. If you have ever sat in A10 or 12 in the orchestra, you would have seen Carole do this with the cannon ball and the puppeteer engage the front row as well. Last time I was there, I sat in row AA on the House Left side, and there, one of the ballet girls always comes right to the edge during the song and makes eye contact with whoever is in those two seats. It's lots of fun. :D
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johnnyc
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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ERinVA wrote:
Last time I was there, I sat in row AA on the House Left side, and there, one of the ballet girls always comes right to the edge during the song and makes eye contact with whoever is in those two seats. It's lots of fun. :D
I sat in AA on house right one show last week and I got the eye contact thing from a ballet girl. You are right, it's lots of fun.
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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Saturday (evening) May 7th
Billy - Joseph (The Cincinnati Kid) Harrington
Michael - Cameron

I have to admit that saying I am proud of the fact that Joseph is from my hometown in an understatement. I also have to begin by saying that if there ever was a showman that connected with the audience it is Joseph. The fact that Billy Elliot at anytime is really like multiple shows with each performers version is very prevalent now more so than ever with the current roster of Peter, Jacob, Alex and of course Joseph. That is the hidden magic in the cauldron of brilliance that Stephen Daldry brews. I for one say that a visit to see the very expressive Joseph Harrington is one that will amaze even the toughest critic. The magic that was in the air was very obvious early on in this performance. The moment that never fails to exist is one that is a sure to happen as regular as high gas prices is when the audience is dumbfounded by the shocking ability of the Billy when he shows his ability for the first real time in Solidarity. This night didn't fail as the people around me dropped their jaw in a way that would make any dentist happy. Joseph and Cameron captured the audience big time with Express, as this number seems to do more and more each visit I make. Cameron is very funny with his "time for a look in the mirror" bit.....the crowd went wild for that. Cameron had a very very funny moment, one that the audience I believe thought was part of the show, when at the end of the number when Joseph and Cameron were coming to the front of the stage, Cameron slipped on his right tap shoe, he quickly got up and smiled big time. Joseph has a magic about him that for sure captures the audience's heart and soul. When Joseph performs he for sure puts everthing that he can in every number. The facial expressions that Joseph shows are very obvious that this kid is in another zone of consciousness as he makes his way through the very physical aspects of the performance. The end of "Angry Dance' is very obvious of his work, Joseph is drenched by the end of this number. The "mustard" that Joseph puts on his work was in full effect this night as he really brushed his pants off hard and stared at the audience. The second look before he walked off stage was the clincher. This night when the lights started to come up the audience sat in disbelief of what they had just saw. The stunned crowd didn't seem to know what to do, get up or think that the "Cincinnati Kid" was coming right back for more. Swan Lake was performed with so much emotion that it had some in tears around me, that I have not ever seen but leave it to Joseph to do this. The end of the number Joseph was breathing so hard as he stood in front of Greg. The audience went nuts ..... the longest applause I have heard in some time at BETM. I must now tell you about a time that only comes around every now and then, like Michael's last performance of Electricity or Kiril's. Joseph had this audience so worked up that I could sense it in the air the build up to what was coming while the one's sitting around really didn't know. Joseph just flat out nailed Electricity, I actually noticed Greg smile a little towards the end, he knew that it was a magic moment at the Imperial. Joseph at the end was gasping for air and drenched with sweat. The crowd cheered and cheered. They knew that this blonde DYNAMO had just given them everything that was in him and more. Then for the first time I saw Joseph do something that he hasn't done before, he broke out of Billy and just smiled and smiled, tears came to his eyes....the emotion overcame him, he appreciated so much the love and respect the crowd was showing him. This was so obvious. I have to tell you the CLASSIC Joseph ending didn't fail either. The long stand with his back to the crowd as the cheering increased, he waited and waited then turned around. What a night at the Imperial. This show was just flat out super. My gosh, if there ever was a young actor made for Broadway, Joseph sure is, a showman he is.........what a talent.......
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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Great review, Cincinnati! Can't wait to see Joseph myself!
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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Someone started a discussion thread on Broadwayworld.com about Alex Ko's last show. The first entry is a review of his show on Sunday evening, May 15, 2011:

http://broadwayworld.com/board/readmess ... &boardid=1
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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porschesrule wrote:Someone started a discussion thread on Broadwayworld.com about Alex Ko's last show. The first entry is a review of his show on Sunday evening, May 15, 2011:

http://broadwayworld.com/board/readmess ... &boardid=1
Billyboy A's review on the above link is excellent. We should get him to join this forum. ;) I was happy to hear that all the other current Billys were able to watch the show.
:/
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atreyu
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Re: May 2011 Reviews - NYC

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One Last Dance with Alexander (The Great)
May 15, evening

Okay, so I succumb to hyperbole on occasion. Being the kid's finale and Alex giving such an outstanding performance, the occasion is special enough. For the play-by-play account, the BroadwayWorld blog covers the show well. I'll supplement a few additional details and include my impressions here.

Stephen Daldry's speech included a line wishing Alex well in his future endeavors whether it's as a dancer or doing brain surgery and that Alex is capable of either. It is well worth repeating SD's thanks to the family giving up life in Iowa in order to make Alex's Broadway career possible.

Along with the lowered key for some of the musical numbers, there were more indications of Alex literally outgrowing the role by the way many of the costume pieces are now a bit too short.

It has always seemed to me that when Michael yells "Ole Billy", Alex somersaults into the shawl more aggressively than most other Billys. Figure it's the gymnast in him and tonight that was fully on display; Alex looked to be no more than a couple feet from the edge of the stage when finishing that move and gave a thrill to the front row fans.

Outstanding Expressing Yourself, great chemistry between Neil and Alex there and for that matter in all their other scenes together.

Nice to see Alex succeed in his last jump rope scene.

Angry Dance. WOW! I venture to say it was here that the reality of Alex's final performance as Billy was seen the most. Nothing held back and this is a dance that benefits from the pure unharnessed energy. From clues earlier in the first act, it was evident that a lot of the audience was seeing BETM for the first time and thus don't know how privileged they were to see that exhibition. And so it was just us veteran fans who gave the well-deserved standing ovation.

Zach Maitlin was sporting an irritated right eye during Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher, enough to draw some attention from Ben Cook. But Zach was a trooper, continuing through the scene, including the critical task of pushing the Copacabana singer off stage. :lol: Zach looked to be fine after the show.

Good time to acknowledge the rest of the cast's contributions to making it such a wonderful night. In particular I get to wondering how much adjustment it is for those who have to lift, catch and carry Billy since Alex must be at least 20 pounds heavier now than when he first started. But Stephen Hanna, Thommie Retter and Joel Hatch didn't let on anything unusual.

I don't have anything of substance to add about Swan Lake and Electricity that hasn't been described well by others for this performance or prior ones. Except perhaps that tonight captured better than any other experience I've had on The Great White Way the essence of why I love coming to Broadway and seeing this show in particular. A beautiful, elegant spectacle.

The one moment that it seemed Alex might have gotten emotional was - as best as I can now recall - the last "And ...Good luck to you as well, Miss" line with Mrs. Wilkinson. Not sure at all if that was the case as he was mostly turned away from me and also not positive that was the line. I just remember a pause where there usually isn't one and it was around 4 or 5 seconds.

The chant of the ballet girls during the finale: Miss you Alex, miss you Alex.

As the house lights came up and the audience began making its way out, the traditional chorus of Happy Trails from the rest of the cast could be heard.

The final image left to describe is one that would appear to be a spontaneous move by Alex: The curtain is falling for the very last time and as it reaches Alex's height, we see him holding the farewell flowers in his right arm and his left hand forming the Lady Gaga Little Monster thing.

Thank you, Alex, for persevering through the hardships. To a grey world, you have brought so much color, inspiration and joy. Happy trails indeed and here's hoping it won't be too long 'til we meet you again.
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