G'day Dayton Tavares! An Aussie Makes His Broadway Bow in Billy Elliot

Age: 13

Hometown: Sydney, Australia

Currently: Making his Broadway debut (after stints in the Sydney and Melbourne productions) in the title role of the hit musical Billy Elliot.

Class Dismissed! Flashing a beautiful smile and sporting an argyle-print New York Yankees ski cap (part of his collection of crazy hats), Tavares met with Broadway.com in the rehearsal studio schoolroom he shares with Billy Elliot’s other young cast members. In a charming Aussie accent, he ticks off his class schedule: “English, math, science, geography, history—all of them,” adding that math is his favorite subject. “If we have rehearsals, we to go to school in the morning and leave at 11 or 12 for ballet,” he explains. “Otherwise it’s [classes] till 3:30.” How on earth do the Billy boys juggle a full academic workload, dance and acrobatics classes and rehearsals, followed by an evening performance of one of the most demanding roles on Broadway? “We get a schedule, so we know where we have to be,” Dayton says with a shrug. “That makes it easier.”

Dancing King: Tavares donned dance shoes for the first time at age nine at the urging of his older sisters, Aeysha and Tenille. “They said I should try a boys’ class at their dance school, but I didn’t really want to,” he recalls. “They were like, ‘Oh, just go in once, and if you don’t like it, you can run straight back out.’” Obviously, Big Sisses knew best. “I just loved it,” he says, so much so that he gave up his other passion, soccer, to concentrate on all forms of dance. From the beginning, Dayton’s friends found his obsession "cool," he says with relief, adding, “They try to get me to teach them some moves.” Soon, the talented terpsichorean joined the competition circuit and began racking up awards, including Australian Dancer of the Year. Next stop: Vegas, baby!

Viva Las Vegas: By the time Tavares headed to Sin City to represent Australia in the World Dance Championships, he had mastered tap, jazz, hip-hop, modern and contemporary dance and had put together a routine set to the hit song “Are You Going to Be My Girl” by Jet. Competing for a title that would make the Rat Pack proud, Dayton returned home as Mr. Junior Las Vegas. About the same time, he auditioned for the Sydney production of Billy Elliot, which meant tackling yet another dance form, ballet. “They kept calling me back, but I was always too short. They said to eat more Wheat Bits in my cereal so I could grow,” he says with a laugh. “After lots of auditions, they asked me if I wanted to play Billy—and straightaway I said, ‘YES!’”

Broadway Bound: After starring in Billy Elliot in his hometown for almost a year, Tavares and his mom decamped for Melbourne for a seven-month run. When an offer to play Billy on Broadway came through, the family didn’t think twice. “My dad has his own business, and he’s been really supportive,” Dayton says, noting that his father makes the 24-hour (!) trip every couple of weeks to visit his wife and son. The young actor immediately fell in love with New York. “When I was looking at the city from the plane, I got so excited,” he says. “The next day, I went straight to Times Square. Everyone’s so busy and professional-looking, walking fast to wherever they’ve got to go. In Australia, they’re just walking around going, ‘G’day, how’s it going?’ They’re not in a rush to get anywhere. The atmosphere in New York is so cool.”

Go Billy! As with all Billys, the title character’s big solo dance, “Electricity,” has been shaped to fit Tavares’ strengths with the addition of hip-hop moves. That signature number and Billy’s “Angry Dance” are the young performer’s favorite moments in the show “because it’s a challenge—and I like challenges,” he says. "Each time, I try to make it better and do different stuff. I feed off the crowd’s energy, especially at the end. When we’re doing our final bows and everyone’s standing up, I think, ‘OK, good—I must have done a good show.'” Away from the theater, Tavares relaxes by solving Rubik’s Cube and playing Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story on his Nintendo DS. His goals are simple: “I definitely want to keep dancing and do more musicals, because I love performing for people.”