A dancing, quirky, cross-dressing eleven year old boy is not something that you would normally ride on a bus for three hours to see, but when I got the chance to see “Billy Elliot” in New York with the Theatre Department, I couldn’t say no.

I had never seen “Billy Elliot” before, so when Guidance Counselor Larry Hensley, Associate Director of Admissions Kim Bruggeman, and Director of Development Laura Lang told the theatre department in the spring of 2011 about the opportunity, I jumped at the chance.

We left JC at 8:45 a.m. and spent three hours on a coach bus driving to New York. The bus was filled with games and laughter and munching on snacks that Hensley frequently handed out. Everyone was enjoying themselves and the ride flew by.

The students had about an hour and a half to explore part of New York City, shopping, eating, or seeing iconic places in the city. After a quick bite to eat, my group and I were able to go to Forever 21 and the M&M Store, both huge stores with multiple floors.

The play itself was wonderful. The superb singing, dancing, and acting made this show by far one of the best Broadway shows that I have ever seen. The actors’ tapping in particular was incredible.

The lead actor, Giuseppe Bausillo, showed remarkable talent onstage at only 13 years old. He was able to portray his character’s feelings through both his acting and his dancing. It was awesome to see so much emotion from such a young child.

This trip was the chance of a lifetime. We were able to explore a lot of the great aspects of New York City and enjoy a phenomenal Broadway show, which is not something everyone can do every day.

Ashley Beyer is a Lifestyles Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.