September 2009 Reviews - NYC

[phoebe]

Wow, seuchick! You are quite adept as pulling your reader into a full experience! "Are you SURE" you avoid writing?

I have yet to see Trent, so especially enjoyed your first review. I had the same astounding experience seeing Kiril a few days after you did. (I promise to post my review soon!) It is clear that while certain Billys are labeled a "ballet" Billy or a "tap" Billy, once they've been in performance for a year, they are extraordinary at everything. This is why I prefer seeing a Billy who may be taller and whose voice may break occasionally, but who has the confidence, strength and stamina to take the stage by storm. (Not that I would turn down a ticket to see Alex Ko, or the new Chicago Billys. )

[phoebe]

Tuesday, September 22, 2009. 7 PM
Billy: Kiril Kulish
Michael: Trevor Braun
Small Boy: Mitchell Michaliszyn
Tall Boy: Keean Johnson

Seat: orchestra J102
My 4th show, first time seeing Kiril as Billy.

I’ll start off saying that I don’t know how the cast, crew and musicians do such an earth-shattering performance over and over and over, but Haydn Gwynne, Grag Jbara, Carole Shelley, the Ballet Girls, and, really ALL the others, are consistently believable and completely affecting. It galls me to no end that Broadway stars earn a fraction of what movie stars get to do 15-second takes as many times as they need to get it right. But, that’s another story.

First time seeing Trevor as Michael. He certainly has the necessary energy and abilities, and his oddities do work to portray Michael as an eccentric kid who, similarly to Billy, doesn’t fit into the town’s culture. But I saw David Bologna as Michael 3 times, and he set a very high bar.

Kiril: I was prepared to see really good dancing from Kiril Kulish, but I did not expect to be stunned by the power, control and artistry of a world caliber dancer. In this show, there was nothing involving movement that Kiril did not do perfectly and beautifully enough to make you gasp or melt your heart. The amount of energy he expends while dancing is Herculean, yet it looks effortless. Everything having to do with movement -- shadow puppetry, rope-jumping, acrobatics, tap, ballet -- Kiril excelled at. His focus and control were flawless. His posture was consistently elegant and grand. Every motion was extraordinarily precise and well-defined yet fluid and expressive of the music. Every piece ended with no wobbles or corrections. And (one of my pet peeves) Kiril's shoe changing was so efficient that unless you were looking for it, you'd probably not notice that Billy frequently changes his footwear.

Kiril’s Billy is noticeably sweeter and warmer than previous Billys I’ve seen. He smiles and seems to enjoy himself from time to time; especially when he’s with his pal Michael. But he also wrenches your heart when he’s talking to Mam (the tears flowed) or Grandma. His comic timing was not quite as impeccable as some others, but he still got plenty of laughs. His voice is definitely changing; most likely the reason he’s leaving the show. He relied a lot on falsetto, especially for singing, which didn’t exactly match the lanky body on stage. I’d like to see him belt it out, cracks happening when they may. But I sense that Kiril is a perfectionist. Now, back to the dancing:

The brief shadow-puppetry segment is one of my favorites in the show, and is rarely mentioned. I love how it tells us, very appropriately wordlessly, how captivated Billy is with expressive movement. Kiril's movements were slow, flowing and achingly beautiful. Somehow, he communicated a deep longing during this element. I still hold the mental image of him hunched forward slightly as his arms took on perfect birdwing formation. Even this vignette was so intense yet charming that it took my breath away; auguring what was yet to come.

Solidarity is still my favorite 10 minutes of the show, portraying months of the simultaneous development of the miners' strike contrasting with and intruding into Billy's evolution as a dancer. It is pure magical theater arts story-telling. Kiril first did a very believable job of portraying a boy learning ballet, completely believably looking like he was really trying to keep his balance while losing his balance. When he finally held that stance on one leg at the end, I wept; such splendor. (A few audience members laughed when he finished Mrs W's instructions and said, "Chin," but I have no idea why. Maybe it was their form of release at that potent moment.)

In Born to Boogie's rope-jumping (which many on this Forum seem to want to toss out since they are under the impression that no one can get it right), Kiril started off with a knock-'em-sideways series of rope maneuvers while tapping gloriously then proceeded to blow-your-mind-out fancy footwork as he flawlessly whirled the rope at top speed for about 2 minutes. The whole time, he was smiling, laughing, having the time of his life! The leap off the piano was unlike any I'd seen in person or on YouTube. First, he did not use his hands to spring off the piano, then, instead of forming an L-shaped flip, he fully splayed both his legs and spun himself like a bicycle wheel into the air. This image of pure joy of movement was awesome!

Kiril's Angry Dance tapping was so fast, strong and fierce, you'd think he'd been doing that since he was 5, along with the ballet and ballroom. Even though there are only a few glimpsed ballet moves in Angry (which can sometimes look rushed and, thereby, incidental), Kiril infused them with so much feeling and care, that they became the emotional center of the dance. You completely understood how ballet was Billy's refuge from the violence. Also, somehow, Kiril made the upper body movements when tapping (holding hands to the head, eg) make a lot of sense, when in the past I’ve felt they looked forced. There were no agonized screams, as other Billys do (which make me writhe in my chair with empathy). Kiril Kulish is all about expression through movement.

Dream Ballet was riveting, with the two dancers seamlessly mirroring each other. I felt that Stephen Hanna was working a bit harder to pull this heavier 15-year-old, though you could also tell that Kiril's enormous leaps helped him out with the lifts. In the pas de deux portion of this dance, Kiril smiled broadly, even laughed, apparently enjoying the pure ballet experience (or maybe Stephen was whispering jokes to him). When Kiril ended with the defiant pose in front of Dad, everyone in the house spontaneously cheered for a long time.

As many times as I've seen Electricity performed at publicity events (all praises to YouTube!), in person, or at the Tonys, it is still intensely emotional in context of the show. Kiril was in his element. His ballet spins were so fast, he did four gorgeous spins where others may only fit in three to the music. His leaps and mid-air splits are spell-binding; jaw-dropping. Then, during the final tumbling run, his last flip was completely in the air, again without springing off his hands. Somehow, he went from that immediately into his final pirouettes - again, so precise, powerful and stunning - with those marvelous arm flourishes; first one up, then both. I cannot convey the power, control and heartfelt love of dance that emanated from this 15-year-old during those final moments. At that point, a sensation came over me that Kiril Kulish is not just a talented boy who works very hard, but some other type of being who lives on a different plane than the rest of us. I am not kidding.

Throughout, when Kiril danced, he looked tall, strong and intense. At the stage door I was surprised to find someone who is probably not more than 5'5"; a sweet kid who signed every autograph and posed for every photo requested, even though he was justifiably exhausted.

[porschesrule]

A wonderful review, Phoebe. Your vivid descriptions of Kiril's enormous dancing talent will make a fitting remembrance for him of just how powerfully he played the role in his final week -- the culmination of so many hours of training and rehearsal. Kiril's Billy will surely be missed on Broadway.

[ERinVA]

Thanks for that great review, phoebe.

[Todd]

In Born to Boogie's rope-jumping (which many on this Forum seem to want to toss out since they are under the impression that no one can get it right)

I actually warmed a bit more to the jump roping on my trip there last weekend. In all 4 shows I saw, they got it right every time without either Billy or Mrs. Wilkinson getting tangled up in it. I guess the repetition and practice of this routine has paid off !

[phoebe]

A wonderful review, Phoebe. Your vivid descriptions of Kiril's enormous dancing talent will make a fitting remembrance for him of just how powerfully he played the role in his final week -- the culmination of so many hours of training and rehearsal. Kiril's Billy will surely be missed on Broadway.

Thanks - this was my intention.

[seuchick]

This is why I prefer seeing a Billy who may be taller and whose voice may break occasionally, but who has the confidence, strength and stamina to take the stage by storm. (Not that I would turn down a ticket to see Alex Ko, or the new Chicago Billys. )

I totally agree, which is why I keep asking myself why Kiril has to leave? He can still sing the songs beautifully, even if some of them are in falsetto, and he's not that tall. Oh well, I guess I should just be thankful I got to see him at all.

Glad you enjoyed the review

[theluji]

Id like to say thank you for all great reviews and
I read while enjoying it very much
There are not so many things written to another because everyone has already done
a wonderful reviews, but let me try to add something a bit.

9/24(THU)
Billy : Trent
Michael : David B
Tall Boy : Kiril

I thought that casts on this day were very luxurious
And I was really lucky because it is the last chance to see this combination.

This was the first time to see Billy played by Trent.
His acting was refined very naturally.
It's easy for me to catch his dialog because his voice is still sweet and clear.
I thought that he is the most suitable time for Billy.

And David Bologna was my first Michael, he stayed lovely and funny.
It was a little sentimental though he was very energetic.
I was sitting just beside the stairs that went up to a left stage.
Michael and Billy go up the stairs at the beginning of the 2nd act.
David turned the held box to me and said " Any present ? "
Of course, it was to have said as acting, but I had some small gift for him actually.
After the show, I gave him the present as a farewell.

Then about Kiril, I was very exciting to see his Tall Boy.
He seemed to be performing that role eagerly and happily.
Before the scene of boxing, he did push-up over ten times.
He was dancing with a smile all the time even behind the set of the house
in the Christmas scene.
When Billy was packing his clothes,he seemed to be deeply yelling while lifting
the signboard for him.

And something more at the stagedoor.
When I asked Erin for the autograph,She pointed at my T-shirt and asked me
"Where did you get this T-shirt ? I really want to see that."
and I told her "I saw the Memphis last night, it's a great musical,you should go to see !"
Next day I bought same T-shirt and I gave it to her as a present of the farewell.
She said " Thank you very much " with a big smile and ran up for telling to her Mom.
How lovely girl

uh, it's already timeout.

on Friday night,Kiril was stunning and I wanted to see his Billy at earlier time.
I hope to see his ballet in the future.

on Saturday matinee,It was a most emotional show for me.
Both of David, they grabbed my heart when I saw the show at the first time.
I moved because I was impressed at any moment
and admit to getting teary-eyed from the beginning till the end.

on Saturday night,Tommy and Trevor performed perfectry in tune with each other.
They will make a new history from now on.

For Keean,he seemed to has be a little bored with performing the Tall Boy.
I'm sorry for saying such a thing but I honestly love you
Anyway he will shine again by performing Michael.

There might be a part where my English is wrong, but thanks for reading.
Especially for phoebe and Erinva I always appreciated to your kindly reply.

[phoebe]

This is why I prefer seeing a Billy who may be taller and whose voice may break occasionally, but who has the confidence, strength and stamina to take the stage by storm. (Not that I would turn down a ticket to see Alex Ko, or the new Chicago Billys. )

I totally agree, which is why I keep asking myself why Kiril has to leave? He can still sing the songs beautifully, even if some of them are in falsetto, and he's not that tall. Oh well, I guess I should just be thankful I got to see him at all.

Glad you enjoyed the review

His voice is seriously changing. The falsetto doesn't really work for him theatrically anymore, and Billy can't have a deep voice. Plus, I actually think Kiril wants to move on to whatever is next for him.

[phoebe]

thelugi, you communicate very well the feelings and observations you had at your shows. I enjoy reading your reviews. Than you! You were very lucky to catch four historic shows in a row!