Message from 'Billy Elliot' Cast Member

My name is Griffin Birney and I play Michael in the Billy
Elliot National Tour. The character of Michael is Billy
Elliot’s best friend. When Billy is faced with the hard
decision of pursuing his passion of dance or pleasing
his father by not dancing, he looks to Michael for advice.
Michael helps him realize that it’s okay to express
yourself as long as you’re happy.  

Griffin Birney and Olivia Wang in Tampa at the beach.

It’s hard to pick my favorite part of Billy Elliot the
Musical, there are so many. One of them is the finale,
it’s the one time the entire cast is on stage together,
I can feel the energy and excitement. Another favorite
scene of mine would be The Letter, because it is
beautifully written and touching, no matter how many
times I hear it from backstage, I never get tired of it.

Being a part of the Billy Elliot cast is like being in school.
I get to see all these veteran actors perform every day,
I watch and I learn from them.  Everyone is very nice,
it’s like having a second family, we get to travel together
and see the country. So far we have been in several
cities, but I can’t wait to get to Tempe, Arizona! There
is so much to see there! We only get Mondays off, so we
have to plan our trips carefully. First on my list is The Grand
Canyon, I want to go all the way down to the bottom and
see the Havasu Falls. I would love to see the Petrified
Forestand hike the Oak Creek Canyon in Sedona. On
my lastMonday I’d like to go to Big Surf and play at
the water park.

I feel like I’m the luckiest kid alive, I get paid to do what I
love and see the country with amazing people.

See you soon, ASU Gammage! 

- Griffin Birney