A production of Billy Elliot The Musical (BETM) will take place from July 3-18, 2026 in Leongatha, Victoria, Australia presented by the Leongatha Lyric Theatre at the town’s Memorial Hall. Leongatha is a town in the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges, South Gippsland Shire, Victoria, Australia, located 135 kilometres south-east of Melbourne.
Leongatha Lyric Theatre was founded in 1964 by Lyn Carr who was a music teacher and singer at the time. Having experience in both amateur and professional productions, Lyn set about recruiting a small group of dedicated thespians. The first production, the operetta ‘Trial By Jury’, was performed in the newly opened Mesley Hall, Leongatha in July 1965. The production was a success and played to an estimated audience of 1,200 over a three-night season.
Productions in a variety of venues have continued in every year since its founding. For many years, Mesley Hall was the primary site of performances. More recently, Leongatha Memorial Hall (pictured above in the title of this article) has been the venue for the Lyric Theatre’s productions.
Billy Elliot The Musical
In July of 2025, Leongatha Lyric Theatre announced on its media platforms that it would be producing Billy Elliot The Musical in 2026. A first round of auditions were to be held on August 6, 2025 followed by additional try-outs in September.
On August 26, 2025 the first cast members were announced. The production’s Billy would be Mason Athanasiadis who would be appearing for the first time at the Lyric Theatre, and Jude Fisher as Michael. Jude had previously appeared with Lyric in the theatre’s very successful production of Kinky Boots. The full cast was announced, again via the theatre’s social media, in September 2025.
Some early rehearsals were held in the Fall and early 2026 for dance instruction for cast members (including tap lessons for adult ensemble members from choreographer Bron Croatto – who appropriately will also play dance teacher Mrs. Wilkinson in the show). But the official start of rehearsals for the full cast began on March 1, 2026.
To promote the show before its opening, the Leongatha Lyric Theatre produced this video clip on its social media featuring Mason and some of the Ballet Girls:
View this post on Instagram
To learn more about Mason Athanasiadis, click on the Billy Profiles button (below) to be taken to his detailed profile.
To see a complete listing of the rest of the Leongatha Lyric Theatre cast, just click on the Cast Information button.
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