Note: Jonathan Fraser-Monroe’s final show as Billy in Billy Elliot the Musical (BETM) in Kelowna, British Columbia, presented by Kelowna Actors Studio, was on August 5, 2017.
Debut: July 27, 2017 (Kelowna, BC)
Total Performances to Date: 10 (No partial shows)
Jonathan Fraser-Monroe from Vernon, BC, makes his debut as Billy Elliot in Kelowna Actors Studio’s (KAS) production of Billy Elliot the Musical. He is a seventh grade student in the Late French Immersion Program at Harwood Elementary School in Vernon. Outside of dance, Jonathan is a keen soccer player, and he studies piano with Travis Saunders.
Jonathan first started dancing at just three years old, with his early training taking place with the Zirka Ukrainian Dancers of the Okanagan Valley. He now also trains at Accentz Dance Studio and in 2015 The Royal Winnipeg Ballet offered him an entrance scholarship to join their professional training division. He studies a wide variety of dance styles including ballet, tap, jazz, modern, lyrical, musical theatre, hip-hop and Zirka (Ukranian dance).
In recognition of his dance skills, Jonathan has had the honor of performing on some great stages. In May 2015 he represented the Kelowna Festival of Dance as the delegate to the BC Festival of Performing Arts for Junior Stage Dance, and in 2016 he represented Penticton in Junior Ballet. Earlier this year he represented Kelowna as the Junior Stage delegate.
Jonathan has performed the role of ‘Fritz’ in The Canadian School of Ballet’s production of The Nutcracker for the past three years. In his third year he also danced the roles of ‘Lead Chef’ and ‘Menacing Rat’. Dance talent must run in the Fraser-Monroe family as, in 2014, Jonathan shared the stage with his older brother Cameron who was dancing the lead role of ‘The Nutcracker’.
As with all productions of BETM, a large part of the success of the KAS show would rest of the shoulders of the young man chosen to play the lead role. Therefore, a lengthy search was conducted to find their Billy, and KAS was thrilled to find a very talented young man right on their doorstep in Jonathan. Randy Leslie, the show’s director, spoke very highly of Jonathan’s talents: “Jonathan is truly a triple threat with incredible talent. Jonathan has worked for months, honing skills in ballet, acrobatics, and tap (not to mention the acting and vocal lessons).”
Jonathan’s debut performance as Billy Elliot on 27-Jul-2017 makes him the 206th actor worldwide to play the role in a professional, regional or community theatre production of the musical.
For more information about Jonathan Fraser-Monroe visit:
______________________________________
To Kelowna Actors Studio Main Page
To A Complete Listing of All BETM Articles
