Tues. April 13 7pm, Seat B-9 (left orchestra)
Billy - Jacob,
Michael - Trevor,
Small Boy - Seth,
+ understudys: Mrs. W. - Leah Hocking, Mum - Stephanie Kurtzuba
Opening -
I believe this was only Jacob's fourth show. He has a nice voice in "Take Me Up". This was the first time I've noticed that Michael comes on with a soccer ball at end of the number. I agree with others who posted before that it seems out of his character. It does add to the commotion of the scene to see the kids kicking the ball around, but perhaps it would have been better for Tall Boy to be the one to bring it on stage.
Boxing class -
Seth croaked the "oh Jesus" lines to good laughter. Jacob does a good John Travolta dance. He missed the keys when he tried to kick them up, then got down on the floor and used his teeth to get them. I've not seen that before.
Shine -
My first time seeing Leah as Mrs. W. She is less gritty / working class than Haydn or Kate, and more of a Broadway style (if that makes any sense). When Kate took over for Haydn last fall there were some changes made to Mrs. W's costumes to make them her own. Likewise Leah has her own versions of the costumes. They are still garish with lots of blue and purple, but a bit different. The thing I especially noticed with Leah's Mrs. W. is the assortment of brightly colored warm up socks she wears throughout the show.
Shadow Dance -
Jacob does his own thing with this piece. It was the first time I've seen this part get laughs.
Grandma's Song -
It was great to see Carole back, as she was out during the "Weekend of Awesome" in Feburary, which was my last visit. In an earlier review Musical Fanatic wrote that "Jacob is really engaged and in character during the show." I completely agree here. Jacob watches Grandma attentively, smiling and reacting to her.
Solidarity -
Jacob is pretty small and gets pushed around a lot by the ballet girls. Great finish in this number. Jacob is very good as the bratty boy when he defies dad. After reading on here about the writing on the inside of the stall door I finally noticed it myself. Additionally on the upper left corner of the door when it opens is written in smaller letters: "David B". He is still with us.
Express -
Jacob has a great reaction to seeing Michael in the dress, very intense. Jacob and Trevor are well matched in the dressing up scene itself. However during the number there are some subtle differences between one with experience and a new commer. Given some time I feel these two have potential to be one of the great "Billy/Michael" pairs.
Letter -
Jacob turns on the water like no one else. He got very sad early in the song. Stephanie as Mum has a very pretty voice.
B2B -
Jacob did a nice Billy jump off the stage right chair near the start of the song. The jump rope with Mrs. W. worked well. There was no leap off the piano at the end, but a hand spring center stage instead.
In the bathroom scene following they have made some changes. Debbie no longer says "If you want I'll show you me extensions". That line never worked anyway, and it sounded too similar to the hoo hoo line that comes soon after. Now she mutters something about her father being an alcoholic. I'm not crazy about this either. At the hoo hoo line Jacob took a long pause and had a good puzzled look on his face, to lots of laughter.
During intermission I met the couple behind me. There were visiting from Austin and are friends with the Bologna's. Sadly they never had a chance to see David in the show, but they were really enjoying Jacob and Trevor. I told them where they could find videos of David's number on Youtube.
Act 2 -
Because I was on the left end of a row, the boys passed by me at the start of the Christmas party, and I tossed a few coins in Trevor's bucket. He looked quite startled.
Phil sang "Deep Into The Ground" as nicely as I can ever recall. He has such a beautiful voice. Tutu scene -
Bravo to Trevor! His comic timing along with the fond looks at Billy are a such pleasure to watch.
Dream Ballet -
Tons of fog at the start that engulfed a few rows of the audience. Stephen Hanna is back as Older Billy. Welcome back Stephen! Jacob's dancing is not the polished ballet of some of the more experienced Billys. It is more of a playful dancing and tumbling you would expect of a kid Billy's age who has only just started to learn to dance. The piece still worked for me. Jacob holds this nice pose as he is spun up to the top of the stage.
He Could Go -
I just want to give some applause to Will and Phil for solid performances in this scene. How can they do this night after night with such intensity?
Royal Ballet -
Jacob is very defiant and angry during the interview. His "Electricity" has good form and is well executed for what he does. Some of the parts were taken at a slower pace than the other Billys. Some of the moves that we Billy veterans are accustomed to seeing were missing, especially during the final lap at the end of the number. However since this audience had not seen any other Billys perform they still gave him a huge applause at the end.
Company Celebration -
Jacob shows great leadership, stage presence and confidence in this final dance number. When Leah comes out to take her bow yet another variation of costume. Haydn and Kate both appear in a sort of wedding dress. Leah wears a tutu plus hot pink warm up socks that come all the way up to her thighs. I think this is a great outfit.
In an earlier review of Jacob, Musical Fanatic wrote that he could use some more time and experience. I agree. He doesn't have a strong accent, and often sounds like an American boy. This is an area to work on. Jacob has the right personality and is very expressive. There were many parts of his performance that made me recall Jamie Bell. I don't believe other Billys have evoked that comparison, at least from me. I hope to have a chance to see him again down the road.
After the show the cast was taking donations for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. The BETM company is splitting the donation with the Central West Virginia Red Cross, to support victims of the mining disaster there. In addition the producers are matching donations. Solidarity!
