Note: Fergus Paterson’s final show as Billy in Billy Elliot the Musical (BETM) in Newcastle, Australia, presented by The Very Popular Theatre Company, was on October 21, 2023.
Debut: October 13, 2023 (Newcastle, Australia)
Total Performances as Billy: 4 (No partial shows)
Fergus Paterson was 13 years old when he debuted as Billy in The Very Popular Theatre Company’s production of BETM at the Civic Theatre. He is from Avoca Beach.
Fergus began dance and drama when he was seven years old and performed in his first musical a year later when he was eight. He now also takes dance classes four days per week and has weekly singing lessons. Fergus saw Hugh Jackman perform live in 2019 and this experience has inspired him to want to be a performer himself when he is older.
Fergus has a lot of experience on stage, having performed in over ten musicals, primarily with Gosford Musical Society. Most recently (July 2023) he played the role of ‘Pabbie’ in their production of Frozen Jr.
After auditioning for BETM in February 2023, Fergus was one of two young boys to be cast in the lead role of Billy. As the production has collaborated with the National College of Dance, Fergus then spent the next few months attending ‘Billy School’ there. This consisted of an intense dance and singing programme to prepare him for the role. A typical week involved attending the college for 3 hours of ballet training, an hour of acrobatics training and 2 hours of tap training plus singing lessons on top of this.
Fergus then joined the rest of the cast when full company rehearsals began in July. Fergus’s debut performance as Billy on 13-Oct-2023 makes him the 346th young actor worldwide to play the role in a professional, regional or community theatre production of the musical.
For more information about Fergus Paterson visit:
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