Billy Elliot at the Regent Theatre

Billy Elliot is a film released in 2000 about a young boy who took up ballet against his family's wishes but eventually fulfilled his dream of becoming a dancer. The film was set with the backdrop of the 1984-1985 Miner's Strike and Thatcherism so it was not only a story of a boy who dreams a different dream to those of his gender but also of the radical difference of Margaret Thatcher's policies at the time.

Margaret Thatcher was the British Prime Minister from 1975 to 1990. She is remembered as the first woman British Prime Minister. Often called the Iron Lady, she has an uncompromising leadership style that saw her sticking to her guns even in the face of riots, high unemployment and assassination attempt. Her policies around reducing trade union's influence for a flexible workforce, deregulation and privatisation of state owned companies made her unpopular among workers.

Coal mines in the 1970s were subsidised by the government. The mines may be making losses but continue to operate because of the trade unions fighting for the protection of miners' jobs and operations continue to be subsidised by the government. Thatcher wanted to close inefficient mines and rely more on imported coal which led to the longest strike. Eventually after a year of strike, many miners struggled financially and eventually went back down the mines. Many pits were eventually closed and the rest privatised.

The show is as much about Billy's personal dream as is about the Miner's Strike with many strong scenes such as riot police clashing with the picketers and the miners chanting curses against Thatcher making the knowledge into the events of the time necessary.

I also enjoyed the dancing in the show which was mostly tap dancing, a little ballet and modern dancing. There is a fun and memorable scene in the show where giant dresses appeared and danced tap which I enjoyed immensely. It was full of colour and humour, and disguises the difficulty of tap dancing while wearing a huge costume.

I think Billy's choice of becoming a dancer draws a similarity with Thatcher's policies - it is different, unpopular and is a step towards trying something that breaks with tradition in order to have a better life.

Billy Elliot will be in Melbourne until 19 April 2020.