Billy Elliot the Musical

    Even though we were held up by traffic and a bus driver who wasn't too sure exactly where we were going, we were able to get into our seats right as the lights began to dim.  Within seconds of the first note being played the crowd was completely silent.  Looking across the aisle all I saw were my students on the edge of their seats and eyes completely captured by the show unfolding before us.  

   Set in Durham, England, the set was strikingly familiar to me from my time spent living in Sheffield.  The hard edged cast with their northern english accents and coal smudged faces, snag your attention with an intensity that is literally palpable as they include you in the struggles they face as coal workers on strike desperately fighting for livable wages.  Adding to this conflict the show centers upon a family of four.  An aged grandmother who is loosing her memory, a older brother wanting to find justice while learning its true costs, a father working desperately to take care of his family alone, and then there is Billy- a young eleven year old w

ho discovers his giftedness for an art form that is completely alien to world.  All of them grieving the loss of the mother that was the family glue, embroiled in a highly political strike, money is tight, emotions run high, and from this crucible Billy discovers ballet.  

   Of course many of you have realized I'm talking about the incredible Tony Award winning Billy Elliot.  A truly amazing and inspiring story that had my laughing, crying, laughing again, and truth be told crying again too!  This remarkable story is a must see.  And if you're not able to get to Broadway or London anytime soon to see the musical, do yourself a favor and rent the movie. I fell in love with it long before the show was written.  As we got on the bus to head back home my students couldn't stop talking about the incredibly moving experience they had just had:  "That was the best show I've ever seen!"     "I want to see that again and again!"   "The dancing was great, the music was incredible, the story was breath-taking, it was the best kind of art!"   "It takes a truly good show to make me cry from both laughter and emotions!"

   And remember to be yourself in all you do, be true.  -Billy's Mom