Well, thanks to great planning and foresight , I happen to be in London during that infamous 'last week'.
Just booked F13/14 for the last matinee on 7 April (I think those are nice seats?).
Living 6000 miles away, although I am a serious fan, I have only been to one performance (hangs head in shame) and that was in March 2012 (Harris Beattie, a show with also a stop due to a technical problem with the flying rig). Of course I have seen the DVD zillions of times, but as we all know its not the same thing.
Being Dutch (but not living there), I have followed the Dutch production with interest and would have been to see it if I could have.
And I will be in Stockholm some time during the summer. Not sure yet if I'll dare a Swedish language production though....
Wonder if members of the public will get tickets don't mind where I sit
It is a great show that people do come and see. Because it's not
just a show for adults, or just for children, or just for people that
like theatre, I'd say for everyone, and it's got so much emotion
behind it. Because who ever comes and sees it, feels the story -
so I think: it's brilliant!" (GM)
Interesting comment about a possible return to a permanent location in The Mail Online this morning ........... " This page has already revealed plans for a UK tour, which begins at the Theatre Royal, Plymouth on February 24 and will take in ten other venues. There’s also hope Billy Elliot might return to London — perhaps in two or three years’ time... .............".
The timing of this decision and announcement seems a bit odd, as though it was all last minute. Unless there were signs of a diminishing audience - nobody has alluded to that - then why pull the plug just now ? The 9th April also seems to be a quirky date to choose. Why not at least run it to the 12th May ? I might be completely, wildly off track here, but the announcement was made on 10th December - the final performance on 9th April - four calendar months. I wonder if this might have anything to do with a break clause in the contract with the theatre owner (only fairly recently changed) which can be exercised by either party ? Absolute pure speculation, just a fevered mind at work. There does not appear to be long term planning involved. Otherwise the logical thing to have done would have been to stop the London operation maybe a few weeks before the tour dates start, have a short break, and then transfer the existing cast (those who wanted) to the tour company. Anyhow, that is my conspiracy theory in the absence of information or explanation.
This decision does not make sense to me.
The VPT needs renovation, but it's not something they didn't know earlier.
If I were in charge I would have synchronized the closing of the London show and the start of the tour.
Anyway, I hope many of the cast and crew can continue with the tour and maybe after the tour they can return to London.
It definitely seems like this was a recent change of plan as it makes little sense. The tour starts 6 weeks before the London show closes and therefore they will need to already have 4 Billy's, 3 Michael's etc for the tour but then kids like Euan, Bradley, Ben, Hollie and Beatrice will soon be available who could surely have transitioned onto the tour as they have all recently started. It will be a great shame if they all have to finish their runs in April and there's no way they could be used on the tour.
If there is any validity in my speculation above, then the reason for closing the show early may rest with the owner of the theatre or others. The producers of the show might have wished to continue through to December, and clearly that was their original plan, but certain conditions may have arisen which meant that the decision was no longer theirs. This may be a legal contractual problem. A number of things point to a decision having been taken quite recently. Again, all speculation, and possibly utterly wrong. The possibility of the show returning to London when the tour ends does suggest that audience numbers was not a factor. Over time it is likely that more information will leak out.
Received the following this morning from Delfont Mackintosh:
"Dear Customer,
The final performance of Billy Elliot the Musical will take place on 9th April 2016 after what will have been 4,600 performances, and 11 years at its London home. The Billy Elliot team would like to thank the 5.25 million audience members who have seen the show in London to date and the nearly 11 million people who have seen the show around the globe so far.
Ticket holders for performances after 9th April 2016 will be contacted by a member of our Box Office team as soon as possible to discuss transferring your tickets into another performance or to arrange a full ticket refund.
I saw on the booking page the message that hospitality packages might be available, so I decided to click that link. It led me to a form to fill out, which I did, asking how to book a hospitality package. Here is the response I received:
Dear Ellen,
Thank you for your email enquiring about hospitality at the final performances of Billy Elliot.
Unfortunately, both performances on the final day are currently off-sale.
To that end, we are unable to assist with hospitality seats for these performances at this stage in the proceedings.
To keep up to date with Delfont Mackintosh Theatres, please subscribe to our newsletter HERE.
With kindest regards
Wayne
Wayne Burke
Priority & Hospitality Coordinator
Delfont Mackintosh Theatres
Ellen
"I don't want people who want to dance; I want people who have to dance.”
-George Balanchine 1904 -1983
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I saw the London show only once, back in 2007, and unless I receive an unexpected cash windfall in the next few months, I don't expect I'll see it again. It's sad, very sad, but wow, what a run! Don't be sad it's over. Smile because it happened.
Our North American Tour began while the Broadway run was still alive and well, and most frustratingly, it started showing up in cities near me in the closing days of the Broadway run, so I missed some Broadway shows to catch the Tour. Not such an easy decision, believe it or not, when you compare ticket prices and casting, et cetera. I want all of you who have only seen the London or Broadway shows to know one thing. Yes, the sets will be different (sans in-stage lifts/elevators), and some other tweaks may be necessary, but I am quite confident your Tour will be phenomenal nevertheless! It also provides all kinds of other benefits like seeing more of the country (and countries), getting together with other traveling fans for meals and whatnot, and even better stage door policies hopefully.
All that said, go see the London show now as much as you can in the coming months! You've got a lot more lead time than we received when we heard of the Broadway closing. If there is a final show fans can attend, GO!!! And if you're torn over whether to bring your significant other, BRING THEM!!! My only regret for the Broadway show's last performance is that I didn't buy an extra (albeit expensive) ticket for my partner. It was a show of a lifetime. And I have no doubt the London swan song will be just as special!
, I happen to be in London during that infamous 'last week'. 
