When we are teenagers we all have things we would like to do in life, we all have ambitions, and we all like to dream. The sad thing about dreaming is that we eventually wake up, in the knowledge that we are set for another day in the office, at college or maybe at school. Though for an exceptional few dreams really do come true. One of those lucky people is Tanner Pflueger, a fourteen year old boy from Norfolk, Nebraska. Whilst many young American boys dreamed of being a baseball star or a pro footballer, Tanner on the other hand saw his future in dance and wasn’t going to let anybody stand in his way as he set off down the road to becoming Billy Elliot, a role in which he graced both the London and Broadway stages of the production over the last year.

On Saturday 26th September 2009, Tanner’s love affair with boxing gloves and ballet shoes came to an end at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London, amidst an atmosphere that can only be described as electric, no… Supercharged, that’s more like it! This show was all about Tanner, and the capacity crowd at the theatre was all there to ensure he received the best send off possible. It’s not rare for a Billy to receive a standing ovation at the end of the show, and I am sure Tanner has lost count of just how many he has received. However I am pretty sure most actors even on a final night’s performance are unable to say that they received three standing ovations in one show! Yes that’s right THREE!

The first of which came after “Angry Dance”, where Tanner has always stood out from the crowd. He is aggressive, jerky, full of teen angst and really conveys Billy’s emotions so well. It’s hard to believe that this is the same boy who performs the smooth and elegant “dream ballet” scene a little later in the show. In contrast the whole styles of dance in these two routines are completely different, but this is what makes Tanner a professional at what he does. You cannot see a weakness in any dance he performs, he simply embraces the opportunity to dance and gives it his all. I guess it is a natural born talent of his.

I don’t think any other Billy will be able to re-create the power Tanner bought to “dream ballet”, everything about it is always so perfect, the movement, the posture and the flow of the routine is simply beautiful! Well it opened my eyes to ballet, as did his “electricity” routine which scored him his second standing ovation of the night. With such an angelic voice and a powerful ballet routine, Tanner’s performance during this piece is fantastic and absolutely faultless!

By now emotions are running high, though nothing could prepare the audience for the closing scene, which on any other night is emotional enough in its own right. In this scene Billy is leaving for London, when his best friend Michael comes after him, calling him back to say goodbye. Billy returns the kiss Michael gave him from earlier in the show before saying goodbye. Billy walks away down the aisle of the theatre as a glum faced Michael can only stand and watch, knowing his best friend will soon be miles from home. Remember this was set in a time before MSN messenger and text messaging. Moving away was just that… like losing a friend for good.

George Maycock was in the role of Michael at this evening’s show, and much like, Tanner has been with the show sometime. As the character’s said their goodbyes, you could see George was visibly upset. All of a sudden the scene which he had acted out one hundred times before, had become his very own personal reality. This was no longer Michael saying goodbye to Billy. This was George saying goodbye to Tanner, and if you could see the hurt in George’s eyes, it could bring a grown man to tears, and trust me on this one… it did. What can I say? Hugely emotional and so real. Though George can rest assured that he gave Tanner the best possible send off with what was simply the best performance I have ever seen from a Michael at this show.

So what is it about Tanner that makes him so special in my eyes? After all lots of people leave shows every year, and they don’t all get write ups! Well, Tanner has been very influential, through bringing dance to life and making it more accessible to me. I guess he changed what I saw as a two dimensional series of movements into a three dimensional, emotional and expressive piece of art. He has motivated me to expand my horizons within my own actors training, and experiment with dance. That is something I will forever be grateful for. You meet lots of new people in life, though very few leave an imprint in your character like Tanner has for me. That is why I hold him in such high regard and always will.

I guess as I finalize this write up Tanner is probably enjoying his return to relative normality and the opportunity to be back around friends and family in Nebraska. But when you become a Billy, you have two families. The first is back at home, your mum, dad, brothers and sisters. The second is a much larger family, it’s the cast and fans of the show. Sure it’s not the same as a real family but it is a loving one all the same! So for the extended Billy Elliot family, another Billy has left the nest and flown into the sunset, but the memories of Tanner and his showmanship will stay with us for a long time to come.

Thank you Tanner!

Written by Gareth Varndell, a longtime fan of the Billy Elliot show. His blog about West End Theatre can be reached here. On the same blog, there are various posts about Tanner Pflueger, here are some quick links:
- Goodbye Tanner (part 1)
- Goodbye Tanner (part 2)