Musical ‘Billy Elliot’ takes place with backdrop of pivotal 1984 British mineworkers strike

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?news_6_4717

By Steve Share, Labor Review Editor
16 December 2010

MINNEAPOLIS - For the musical “Billy Elliot,” Elton John composed a new take on the union anthem “Solidarity Forever.” That’s just one of the powerful songs he wrote to tell the story of a young boy’s quest to follow his passion, set amidst the 1984 strike by the British National Mineworkers Union.

Young Billy, growing up in a coal mining town in northern England, doesn’t take to boxing lessons and instead is drawn to ballet.

Billy’s father and older brother, engaged in the strike as members of the union, struggle to understand and support Billy’s passion for dance — at a time when the survival of their town and their livelihood is at stake.

I saw the show in Chicago this summer and now the Hennepin Theatre Trust is presenting “Billy Elliot” through January 9 at the Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis. Tickets are $33-$133.50 ($20 for students with valid ID). Tickets are available in-person at the State Theatre box office, by phone at 1-800-982-2787, or online at www.hennepintheatretrust.org.

Notes from the playbill:
“In 1984, the British National Union of Mineworkers (the NUM) went on strike to save the coal industry from the threatened closures of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who was politically opposed to state-owned industry and determined to crush the union.

FULL story at link.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

1. Haven't seen the musical, but it's one of my fav movies.

LOVE the ending.

[virgogal]

2. Me too. A great movie.