Elton John Musical Billy Elliot Will Dance Into Movie Theaters

Liam Mower in Billy Elliot the Musical Live

Twirl your tutus! Billy Elliot the Musical will jeté from stage to screen later this month.

Billy Elliot the Musical Live, a filmed version of Elton John and Lee Hall’s hit musical in London’s West End, will screen at more than 300 U.S. movie theatres for three showings on November 12, 15, and 18. Fathom Events, a leader in alternative entertainment, will present the exclusive limited engagement. 

The special performance was filmed at West End’s Victoria Palace Theatre, where Billy Elliot, which is still running, opened in 2005 and won four Olivier Awards, including Best New Musical. Directed by Stephen Daldry and choreographed by Peter Darling, the musical, which has since played around the world, opened on Broadway in 2008 and won 10 Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

“Set in a mining town in the north of England against the background of the 1984-85 miners’ strike, Billy Elliot is the inspirational story of a young boy’s struggle against the odds to make his dream come true,” according to press notes about the musical, which is based on the 2000 film of the same name. “Follow Billy’s journey as he stumbles out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class where he discovers a passion for dance that inspires his family and whole community and changes his life forever.”

Elliott Hanna and the Ballet Girls in Billy Elliot  the Musical Live

Billy Elliot the Musical Live will include a special welcome from John, the show’s composer, and a five-minute backstage tour led by Elliott Hanna, who plays Billy Elliot. As another bonus, 25 current and former Billy Elliots — including original Billys James Lomas, George Maguire, and Liam Mower — will unite on stage in a specially choreographed mash-up finale. 

Mower, the first actor to ever play Billy on stage in 2005, returns to the show in the role of Older Billy. The cast also includes Zach Atkinson, Ann Emery, Chris Grahamson, Ruthie Henshall, and Deka Walmsley.

“Bringing this stage show to cinemas will give dance, music, and theater fans from around the country the chance to experience this astounding show right in their home town,” said Fathom Events CEO John Rubey in a statement. “The gathering of the 25 talented young men who have played Billy makes this an extra special event and we are committed to bringing more of the best of stage productions to local cinemas.”

For screening locations and show times in your area visit FathomEvents.com.

Actor Fired After Tossing Anti-Gay Heckler From ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ Performance

An actor in a Santa Clarita, Calif. production of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” was fired Saturday after physically removing a heckler in the audience who lobbed anti-gay slurs at the cast for nearly half of the show.

John Lacy, who played Big Daddy in Tennessee Williams’ classic play that tackles homophobia among other themes, was fired after jumping off stage and physically confronting an audience member who repeatedly made noise and yelled “fag” during emotionally tense scenes, according to audience members’ accounts of the incident on Facebook.

The show apparently continued following the confrontation and concluded to a standing ovation. Lacy was apparently not let go until after the performance.

Lead actor Anton Troy resigned in solidarity with Lacy, writing on the social networking site that the show's producers should have handled the unruly patron, who had apparently been drinking before the show and returned to the audience after consuming more alcohol during intermission.

“I will not support homophobia or an establishment that doesn't support its talent,” Troy wrote. “Hate in any form is not something I choose to subscribe to. John is a seasoned professional and an honorable man. It should never escalate to a point where the talent has to handle an unruly drunk in the audience themselves regardless of the outcome. Producers dropped the ball, the fish stinks from the head on down.”

Troy resigned to show support for his castmate, but not all of Lacy's fellow actors agreed with his decision to confront the heckler.

“I, unlike most of you, am NOT proud to be an actor today,” cast member Missy Kaye wrote on Facebook in response to Troy's resignation.

“By you jumping off the stage and putting your hands on this guy put the whole theatre in jeopardy, cast and audience, and to me that is unforgivable,” Kaye added.

“What if this guy had a weapon? Did that cross your mind?”

Fellow actress Emily E. Low, who plays the female lead, agreed that violence should not have been the answer, adding that part of acting is accepting criticism from the audience.

“As actors we must take the positive audience responses with the negative. It's not always about cheers and standing ovations,” she wrote in the same Facebook thread.

Low added that Troy's character, Brick, is gay, suggesting that the heckler's anti-gay slurs may have been appropriate.

“And, the truth is, Brick is, after all, a gay man,” she wrote. “The material is strong, and it elicits strong responses from an audience, different every night.”

The Repertory East Playhouse in Newhall said Monday that its managers had not been made aware of the situation at the time, or else they would have intervened.

“The management of the REP regrets that this situation was not brought to their attention sooner and would like to assure future audiences that disruptive behavior, including disparaging remarks from the audience, incidents of bullying or hate speech, and racial, discriminatory or homophobic utterances, will not be tolerated and offending parties will be asked to leave the theater,” REP said in a statement.

The run of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” had been suspended Monday and the original performance schedule would not be completed due to cast loss from “an incident during the May 31 performance.” Because the play was slated to run for just two more weeks, the theater said, there was insufficient time to recast the two vacated roles.