Myron Meisel – Stage Raw
During the notoriously doomed 1984 coal miners’ strike against Maggie Thatcher’s determination to destroy the union and its jobs, motherless 11-year old Billy Elliot (Mitchell Tobin) ditches his 50-pence afterschool boxing classes for ballet lessons, unbeknownst to his picketing father (David Atkinson) and firebrand older brother Tony (Stephen Weston). Read more…
Steven Leigh Morris – LA Weekly
In one of many striking images in Brian Kite’s staging of Billy Elliot — The Musical, an army of northeast England miners, having had their strike busted by Mrs. Thatcher, descends en masse into a pit, the lamps on their helmets blazing forward, as they sing the rousing “Once We Were Kings”: “The ground is empty and cold as hell, but we all go together when we go.” Read more…
David C. Nichols – LA Times
The sheer joy of musical performance dances through “Billy Elliot the Musical” at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts. Read more…
Jonas Schwartz – TheaterMania
The musical adaptation of 2000′s sleeper hit film Billy Elliot must survive on the actor hired for the title role. As well as leading nine songs, it’s a heavy dancing part, requiring one to shine in tap, ballet, and interpretive dance. To make it more daunting, the lead actor must be an adolescent. That’s a heavy burden, and youngster Mitchell Tobin makes a winning Billy. Read more…
Melinda Schupmann – Arts In LA
After the success of the 2000 film Billy Elliot, it wasn’t a stretch to imagine making the story into a musical. Lee Hall, who wrote the screenplay, created the musical’s book and lyrics, and with the help of Elton John’s music and Stephen Daldry’s direction, turned out a production that is still currently playing in England today. Read more…
Now running through February 8.