Jittery Grouch v. Billy Elliot

[From Jittery Grouch]

How much bigger, brighter, louder, gaudier, special-effects laden, over-produced and “faux heart-warming” can Broadway musicals get? After sitting through three hours of this piece all I could think of was a bottle of Tylenol.

Some issues and thoughts: It’s got what seems to be a decent Elton John rock-inspired score (hard to tell with speakers blasting and scenery flying) so why add a “number” from Swan Lake? REALLY!! The show tries to soar and the young Billy (there are three actors who play the part) I saw was charming and a wonderful dancer but the poor guy was weighed down by 10 tons of over-staged nonsense (huge dancing dresses on headless coat hangers or a 20-foot Margaret Thatcher puppet lurking over the action, anyone?) and dodging overly-complicated set pieces (Billy’s bedroom just about touches the Imperial Theater’s ceiling as it periodically rises and rises and rises frighteningly from the stage. Watch out where you dance, you cute little tutu-costumed kids – danger lurks!) And all those little ballet dancers periodically flitting around on stage alongside coal miners and police trudging about all at the same time totally upstage each other. I never was quite sure if the action was taking place in a ballet class or a union hall. There might (might!)just be a rather nice musical there beneath the crushing production but then again...

As I try to recall the film, one important plot element that comes to mind is that Billy is not portrayed as gay or possibly gay; he’s just a young guy who likes to dance and does it really well. Sexual orientation has nothing to do with Billy but lurks only in the minds of other characters. The musical portrays Billy as possibly gay or at least real gay-friendly (dressing in your best gay-friend’s frocks and using his lipstick is kind of gay). Now there is nothing at all wrong with gay – Jittery absolutely loves gay – but one of the most appealing aspects of the film is that it is not a stereotypical portrayal of a young boy who wants to dance.

Jittery says check out the cast album (hmm… wonder if it includes the sizzling Swan Lake number?) and rent the movie.

Jittery to all ten thousand producers: Why did I have to pay full orchestra price ($136.50) for my rear mezzanine seat just because it was Saturday night?