BILLY ELLIOT Heads to Civic Center of Greater Des Moines June 12-17, 2012

NETworks Presentations, Universal Pictures Stage Productions, Working Title Films and Old Vic Productions bring the 2009 Tony Award-winning Best Musical Billy Elliot the Musical to the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines June 12-17, 2012 as part of the Willis Broadway Series. Based on the international smash-hit film and featuring music by Elton John, book and lyrics by Lee Hall, choreography by Peter Darling and direction by Stephen Daldry, Billy Elliot the Musical has earned critical acclaim on Broadway including 10 Tony Awards.

Billy Elliot the Musical is the joyous celebration of one boy's journey to make his dreams come true. Set in a small town, the story follows Billy as he stumbles out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class, discovering a surprising talent that inspires his family and his whole community and changes his life forever.

In addition to the Tony Award for Best Musical, Billy Elliot the Musical received the award for Best Direction of a Musical (Stephen Daldry); Best Book of a Musical (Lee Hall); Best Choreography (Peter Darling); Best Orchestrations (Martin Koch); Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Ian MacNeil); Best Lighting Design of a Musical (Rick Fisher); Best Sound Design of a Musical (Paul Arditti); Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical (David Alvarez, Trent Kowalik, Kiril Kulish); Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Gregory Jbara).

The production has been awarded 81 national and international awards including ten Tony Awards, Best Musical by the New York Drama Critics Circle, Drama Desk, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle.

Ben Brantley of the New York Times says that Billy Elliot "Sends audiences into a mass swoon!" Time Out says it's "The most electric and passionate show in years." The Daily News calls Billy "So exhilarating that you feel like leaping!" Liz Smith calls the show "Absolutely awesome," The New York Observer raves that Billy is "The best thing to happen to Broadway in a long while," and WOR's Dave Richardson cheers, "All I can say is WOW!"

The production features original direction by Stephen Daldry, choreography by Peter Darling, scenic design by Ian MacNeil, associate direction by Julian Webber, costume design by Nicky Gillibrand, lighting design by Rick Fisher and sound design by Paul Arditti. Musical supervision and orchestrations are by Martin Koch. Touring production direction by Justin Martin and choreography Kathryn Dunn.

Additional information about Billy Elliot the Musical is available at www.billyelliotthemusical.com.

Tickets for BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL go on sale to the public at 9 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 10, 2011 at the Civic Center Ticket Office, all Ticketmaster locations, charge-by-phone at (800) 745-8000 and online at CivicCenter.org. Groups of 15 or more should call (515) 246-2340.

Call (800) 745-3000 or visit CivicCenter.org, all Ticketmaster locations or the Civic Center Ticket office open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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