Photo Feature: Billy Elliot

Billy is back!  Its been 10 years since the original Australian production of Billy Elliot the musical graced our stages, and now four more boys are taking on the iconic role. David Hooley went along to their media call to see what is in store.

The gritty story of a working class lad from a northern English mining town has literally seen boys become men, and now the next generation has taken on the mantle (with the help of some of the original Australian cast).  Omar Abiad, River Mardesic, Wade Neilson and Jamie Rogers will share the title role of Billy, having undertaken months of rehearsals, honing their tapping, ballet and jazz dancing, not to mention the accent and dialect training, acting and singing rehearsals.  And as usual the result is impressive.

The rest of the cast is also an exciting list, with Kelly Abbey, Justin Smith, Drew Livingstone, Vivien Davies and Robert Grubb included in the principle cast.  As show business is a fickle beast, Kelly Abbey was unwell for the media call and so  her understudy Lisa Sontag donned the leotard so that the show could, indeed, go on.

Billy Elliot is playing now at the Lyric theatre in Sydney.

David Hooley is a Sydney based actor and photographer.  For more information visit davidhooley.com or visit his Facebook or Instagram page.