Michael Ball (singer) solo concert at the classical music festival. Ball appeared in the Royal Variety Performance at the Empire Theatre in Liverpool on 3 December 2007 singing "You Can't Stop the Beat" with the rest of the cast from "Hairspray", the musical he was appearing in at the time. He continued in the role of Edna Turnblad in the musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre until 29 April 2009. On 2 March 2008, Ball appeared as the guest on the BBC Radio 4 show "Desert Island Discs", during which he talked about his early life and his career, including his struggle with stage
Jake Pratt Ransom, Jr.. The "Scarborough Evening News" on 5 June 2009 reported that Pratt had joined the cast of "Billy Elliot the Musical". On 1 June 2009 he made his West End debut, taking the role of Billy's best friend, Michael. Pratt did a comic performance for his audition, which got him the role of Michael. He moved into the Billy Elliot house, along with the other youngsters who play the lead roles in the musical. In 2011, Pratt was cast as Nigel in the Stratford production of Matilda the Musical, and rejoined the West End, where he played Tommy. Jake