How does it feel to beat out 1,500 contenders for a coveted Broadway role?
Really great; just ask the boys.
The boys we’re talking about, of course, are Trent Kowalik, David Alvarez, and Kiril Kulish—the three young actor-singer-dancers who won, and share, the starring role in the Broadway production of Billy Elliot the Musical, which features music by Sir Elton John; book and lyrics by the original screenwriter, Lee Hall; and choreography by Peter Darling.
The story, set in northern England during a coal-mining strike in the eighties, follows its pint-size hero, Billy, who finds freedom through dancing, much to the dismay of his father, a professional boxer.
“It’s been one of the most enjoyable things I’ve ever done in my life,” says Sir Elton John of his involvement in the show, “but the secret to the success of the show is the Billys.” Here they are.
BILLY #1
TRENT KOWALIK, 13, IRISH STEP DANCER
GOTHAM: When did you start dancing?
TK: When I was three. My sisters were dancers, and I wanted to be a dancer also. I started doing tap and ballet. Then when I was four, I started doing Irish step dancing.
G: How did you get the part?
TK: One of my Irish step-dancing teachers recommended me for the auditions. The last audition was a 10-day intensive dance with only 15 kids left. From there they told me that I got the part in London. So I went to the West End first.
G: What do you admire most about your fellow Billys?
TK: I think it’s so cool how we all play the role differently. Like, David and Kiril are both amazing ballet dancers.
G: What do you do all day, before you have to perform?
TK: I play Wii—a lot.
G: So they choreograph some dances differently for each Billy—can you give us an example?
TK: With “Electricity,” for example, there are usually three versions—a street version, a ballet version, and an in-between version.
BILLY #2
DAVID ALVAREZ, 14, AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE DANCER
G: Where are you from?
DA: I’m from Canada, but my parents are Cuban. We moved to California when I was eight, but came here four years ago because I got a full scholarship to ABT.
G: How did you win the part of Billy Elliot?
DA: The [Billy Elliot] children’s casting director saw me in Pointe magazine and called ABT. I had to learn singing, acting, tap, acrobatics—I trained for six months.
G: What do you admire most about the others?
DA: I think Trent is an amazing Irish dancer, and I’ve never seen anyone tap like him. Kiril, he’s an amazing acrobat and he’s really good at ballet, too.
G: What’s your favorite part of the show?
DA: “Electricity,” the last dance. I love it so much because you get to just burst out and dance and sing. That’s pretty much what I feel like when I’m dancing: I just explode and I can’t stop.
G: Which of you three has the best accent?
DA: I’d say Trent because he’s been in London and his English is perfect.
G: Is ballet what you want to do when the show’s over?
DA: I’d like to continue my training with ABT. I’m going to see what else I get after I retire from ballet, which won’t be until I’m 40 or something. I’ll probably want to be a choreographer. I want to make some ballets and all that stuff.
BILLY #3
KIRIL KULI SH, 14, BALLET DANCER
G: How did you get started in dance?
KK: My sister was a dancer in Russia.... She’d come home from college and I’d copy her dance routines, so she told my mom to take me to a ballet class.
G: Why do they alternate the three of you?
KK: I think it would be impossible for one boy to do the role. It’s really difficult to be on stage for two and half hours—there’s only one scene where we’re off. And you come home late and the next morning you’re so sore. Then you have rehearsals throughout the day, so it’s just really hard.
G: Any embarrassing moments?
KK: [In one scene], Billy gets a letter and takes it into his bedroom to open it. But when the hole opened up in the stage for the bed to come up, the letter fell down into it. The show really can’t go on without the letter. So, Gregory Jbara, who plays my dad in the show, came out and was like, “Here you go, here’s the letter,” and just handed it to me—one that he got from somewhere, I don’t know. The audience was cheering. It was really cool.
