Fayetteville Reviews

[porschesrule]

Here's the first review in from Fayetteville -- a lengthy and very positive one:

http://www.thecitywire.com/node/25436#.UL--FuQ8B8E

[porschesrule]

And yet another positive review -- this one from the Fayetteville Flyer:

http://www.fayettevilleflyer.com/2012/1 ... ight-away/

[Todd]

Friday, December 7, 2012

Billy - Kylend Hetherington
Michael - Jake Kitchen
Tall/Posh Boy - Cameron Clifford
All other cast were the regulars

I decided to come visit some friends here in Fayetteville this weekend and see a few shows while I was in town, as it's only a 3 and a half hour drive from home. It was fun seeing the show in a smaller venue for a change, given the huge theaters I've seen it in during previous tour stops. Surprisingly, a good portion of the balcony was empty - pretty disappointing given that it was Friday night and the theater wasn't very big to begin with. The small crowd was also quite flat, especially in the 1st half. It was strange hearing just a smattering of giggles from lines which usually draw a big laugh - such as Michael's "It's bloody weird if you ask me" during the beginning of "Express Yourself." Thankfully, the audience perked up in the 2nd half.

The cast was professional as always, giving an A+ performance despite the drowsy audience. I was excited to see Kylend's name on the cast board when I entered the theater, as I was hoping to see him again after being very impressed with his previous performances. I found him to be thoroughly entertaining once again, as his experience and confidence assure you that the show is in good hands when he's on stage. I continue to be amazed at the longevity of many of the tour cast members, given what must be a grueling lifestyle of living out of suitcases and being away from home most of the time. It was great seeing Joel Blum, Patti Perkins, Rich Hebert, and Kylend still aboard - two years after I saw them when the tour was just getting underway.

Kylend's acting is a thing to behold. I'll be very surprised if he isn't sought after in movies, TV, and theatrical productions - if that's a direction he chooses to go in for his career. I found my attention focused on him when he wasn't the center of attention, marveling at how he stayed in character and had subtle interactions with every cast member. I'd love to know what they're saying to each other, especially at the curtain scene at the beginning of the 2nd act when Kylend, Jake and Cameron seemed amused as they quietly visited while George warmed up the audience. There were also smiles and comments between Kylend and some of the adult cast members at the beginning of "Deep Into The Ground."

It was also a treat seeing Cameron Clifford once again after I was afraid I'd seen him for the final time this past summer. He seems to be a natural and is clearly enjoying himself. I look forward to hopefully seeing him as Michael in one of tomorrow's shows.

Despite seeing the show a few ( ) time before, I once again left the theater with a good feeling from having just been entertained for 3 hours by a top-notch group of actors, singers and dancers. I would recommend seeing the tour show next time it comes to a theater near you !

[BEtourfan]

Friday, December 7, 2012
Despite seeing the show a few ( ) time before, I once again left the theater with a good feeling from having just been entertained for 3 hours by a top-notch group of actors, singers and dancers. I would recommend seeing the tour show next time it comes to a theater near you !

Great review, Todd!

[jdmag44]

Fayetteville .AK. Sat Mat. Ben/Kylend

OK. I love surprises and special treats. Today I got BOTH. Kylend in the role of Michael. Great crowd and great show. Kylend looked like he was enjoying playing Michael again and he turned in an A number one performance. The Walton Arts center is small and intimate,with comfortable seats and great acustics. Sadly it was only half full. The audience was very enthusiastic and loved Ben.
"The Letter" - what Billy Elliot fan doesn't love that scene? I was in the second row and was in tears through the whole scene. Ben was so emotional,even more so than the other times I have seen him, he shed real tears,and so did the folks seated next to me.

Treat number two - I sat right in front of Cameron and his mom. Had a great chat with them before the show

I have one more show tonight,front row seat.

Joe

[ERinVA]

Lucky you!

[jdmag44]

Fayettville Sat Eve

Thought for sure it would be Noah tonight but NO. It was Kylend who did an amazing job after just doing the Mat.

Two little things were missing 1 The Punch bag. 2. No snow

One special thing added KY DID THE BACK FLIP OFF THE PIANO. As well as a spectacular Electricity. Alas I guess this was my last time seeing this wonderfully talented young man.
All the best to you Ky.

Joe

[Todd]

Saturday, December 8, 2012 - matinee

Billy - Ben Cook
Michael - Kylend Hetherington
Posh/Tall Boy - Jake Kitchen
All other cast were regulars

Like Joe mentioned, it was indeed a treat to see that Kylend would be on as Michael this afternoon, paired with fellow Broadway veteran Ben Cook as Billy. Quite simply, it was one of the best Billy Elliot performances I've ever seen. You could tell they were having a blast together, as it was a show I didn't want to see come to an end.

"Expressing Yourself" was a real treat, as Kylend turned in one of the best performances of Michael that I've ever seen. Made me wish that he could perform as Billy on his regular rotation while performing as Michael on all the other days ! Like he did last night as Billy, his stage presence and scene-stealing capabilities made "Express Yourself" and the Winter Scene two highlights of the show for me. His sense of comic timing and voice inflection worked perfectly, and was a big hit with the audience. Lines that I'd heard many times before made me laugh out loud once again, thanks to his enthusiastic and masterful take on them. Knowing that Kylend is entering his final week in the show added a sense of poignancy to it all, as it was a well-deserved treat given to him by the show to demonstrate his comic talents.

As for Ben Cook ? His performance of Billy was about as near to perfect as you can get. His timing, delivery, and emotion were all perfectly executed. His dancing was superb, especially in "Angry Dance" and "Electricity." It was interesting to see that he does his pirouettes counter-clockwise, which I believe Leon Cooke also did in the London show. Haven't seen many other Billys do it this way. And his singing ? Wow . . . . someone needs to sign this kid to a recording contract. He now has some vibrato in his singing that I didn't remember hearing from him before. The result is nothing short of a professional boy chorister.

Several fun touches were added by Ben and Kylend today. In "Expressing Yourself," Kylend embellished several lines and made some wild faces at Ben, nearly causing him to break into a laugh. After "Electricity" when the townspeople were asking Billy if he'd gotten into the Royal Ballet School and Billy and Michael were about to walk out the door, Ben turned and gave a kick towards Kylend - just below the belt, shall we say - which Kylend narrowly avoided by quickly jumping back. As they were eating their bowl of ice cream, Ben kept trying to poke Kylend in the face with his spoon, resulting in Kylend smiling and wiping his face. And finally, at the curtain call - when Ben came running back up onto the stage - he made a bee-line over to Kylend and gave him a high five, followed by some laughs and comments to one another, probably to the effect of, "This was awesome !"

Awesome it was - and not a performance that I'll soon forget.

[Todd]

Saturday evening, December 8, 2012

Billy - Kylend Hetherington
Michael - Jake Kitchen
Posh/Tall Boy - Cameron Clifford
All other cast were regulars

My weekend in Fayetteville could well be called, "Kylend Hetherington Appreciation weekend." Three shows, all featuring Kylend in a prominent role. As Joe mentioned, I didn't expect to see him again tonight since I figured it would be Noah Parets' turn in the Billy rotation (I later learned that Noah had a slight ankle sprain, but was expected to be back on stage in one of the shows tomorrow).

I sympathize with Ellen, who posted in another thread that she will never get to see Kylend perform. That was my story for a long time too, as he never seemed to be on when I had a ticket. I finally saw him as filling in as Michael in Charlotte, North Carolina around January, 2011 but didn't see him as Billy until St. Louis in November, 2011 - two years after he joined the show on Broadway. Since then, however, I've hit the jackpot, seeing him multiple times it seems, in whichever city I happen to see the show in.

In terms of show details, it was basically a carbon copy of last night's show, right down to the rather subdued audience and the unfortunate number of empty seats. The cast was also identical to last night, and everything in both shows was well-executed. I did think that Kylend was less smiley than he was last night, for whatever reason. At any rate, it was a surprise bonus performance by him, since I figured last night would be the last time I saw him in the show. I missed several of the details that Joe mentioned in his review, maybe because I was a bit sleepy unfortunately.

At this point, Kylend seems to practically be on par with the adult actors in the show, in terms of the respect they obviously have for him. This is evident in little asides that occur between him and various ensemble members throughout the show. The tour cast is definitely one big happy family - and Kylend is one of their charter members. It will be a sad day next week in Austin, TX when he performs with them for the last time.

[jotunheim]

Todd and Joe - thank you for taking the time to write up your experiences in Fayetteville. Though my intention with the Omaha run was to finally see Kylend, it wasn't in the cards and he did not perform at all during the weekend.

At least here you can catch some of the details that take place with each individual performance and it is valued.

Jason