A grand night at the Oriental Theatre

I just spent the entire night tapping my toes and bopping my head to the musical score by Elton John and electric dance choreography in BILLY ELLIOT the Musical. Thank you, L & A, for the fabulous invite to the theater on opening weekend!

For three hours, I dreamily relived my former dancing days through this story of a young boy who stumbles into a ballet dance class when he should be in boxing – and ultimately discovers it to be his passion in life, and Billy's talent allows him a peaceful escape out of a struggling mining community on strike against Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in Northern England.

I suppose it is tough to frame an entire historical reality into a 3 hour musical because the story was a bit disjointed – punctuated by a few random scenes, such as when the ballet teacher's young daughter taunts Billy Elliot: "Don't you fancy me? I'll show you my hoo-hoo!" (Is that the correct spelling?)

Nevertheless, the choreography was uh-MAZ-ing! Especially the last musical number of Act I, "Angry Dance" (pretty self-explanatory), in which Billy's anger from being forbidden by his father to go to a dance audition for the Royal Ballet School in London is dramatically interpreted through dance against an intense black backdrop flooded with red light. ("Angry Dance" had a somewhat redeeming effect, as it was preceded by a bizarre and wild number blatantly Elton-esque, involving Billy and his friend playing dress-up in girl's clothing, singing "Expressing Yourself", and life-size, stuffed dresses prancing around with only hangers in place of heads against a glittery backdrop. It was unnecessary, but entertaining, at least.)

P.S. For those of you who have never been to The Oriental Theatre – GO. NOW!
It is an amazing experience in and of itself – ornate red woodwork carvings and moulding inspired by architecture in India, gold accents, plush red velvet curtain and seats... When I come here, I always feel transported into the golden days of theater-going where dressing up, an upright carriage, and good manners were the norm.