Victoria Palace Theatre

Dance into a frenzy with Billy Elliot tickets as this smash-hit musical never fails to disappoint

With both screenplay writer, Lee Hall, and film director Steven Daldry on board for the stage adaptation, Billy Elliot the Musical is about as true to the film as it is possible to be, only this time the audience can see the iconic dancing brought to life before their very eyes.

Like the award winning film, Billy Elliot the Musical has bagged itself a whole wealth of prestigious awards since it opened on the West End at the Victoria Palace Theatre in 2005, including 4 Laurence Olivier Awards and 10 Tony Award’s for it’s time on Broadway.

The story is set during the 1980’s miner’s strike in County Durham; a time and place in which appreciation for the arts was overlooked by a need to survive and put food on the table. This was also a time that Thatcher’s government had cut arts funding to an all time low (ironic considering it is successful and acclaimed musical that is telling the story and attracting millions of audience members across the world.) Billy is a young, motherless, boy who lives in a mans world with his coal miner father, his brutish older brother and his Nan. Billy, like most young boys in the area, is expected to learn boxing. By chance Billy stumbles upon a dance class and his love and passion for ballet begins to grow.

Billy’s tale is moving as he struggles to gain the skill his dance teacher believes he has in him to train at the Royal Ballet School in London whilst also struggling to fight for his father and brothers approval, leaving them with some tough decisions to make about whether to accept or shun Billy’s talents.

With a score written by the national treasure that is Sir Elton John, there are some truly magnificent musical numbers to accompany Peter Darling’s choreography, the most celebrated of which is arguable “Electricity” (which was #4 in the UK singles chart) which is Billy’s emotive, physical response to the question “what does it feel like when you are dancing.” There are also other stand out numbers in the show such as the comical “Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher” and “The Letter”, which is a heartbreaking exchange between Billy and his dead mother.

Child Friendly

Billy Elliot is not suitable for children below the age  of 12 as there is a great deal of foul language and scenes of an adult nature. The show also has a small degree of violence that could scare a younger audience. Mature children of 12 and up are welcome to see the show.