ABOUT

"Handsome, wily Billy Dawson is stunning and extremely funny..."

-Colin Douglas, Chicago Theatre Review

"...panache and charm, as well as a good amount of tongue-in-cheek attitude."

- Christopher Kidder-Mostrom, New City Stage

"Dawson is fantastic as Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm... His solo "In Praise of Women" is a master class in how to act a song."

-Jen Poiry, WhatzUp

Billy (They/He) is an artist that has been wowing audiences across the globe. Originally from Fort Wayne, Indiana, after school they moved to Chicago and began working with companies like Paramount Theatre, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Porchlight Music Theatre, BoHo Theatre, Light Opera Works, Music Theatre Works, and Brown Paper Box Co. He has also sung in numerous concerts and cabarets with companies like Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Harbor Country Opera, Chicago Artists Chorale. They made their international debut performing at Universal Studios in Osaka, Japan. In addition to performing on stage, Billy has been an On-Air Personality for The CW, and co-hosted their own radio show!

They can currently be seen as Corny Collins in the North American Tour of the smash hit musical, Hairspray!

In his free time, Billy enjoys listening to music, spending time with friends and family, sipping on a fresh cup of coffee. Their dream duet partners are Audra McDonald, Shoshana Bean, Sarah Vaughan, and Kurt Elling. His binge-watching favorites include; Marvel, The Crown, Will & Grace, The Golden Girls, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team, Schitt's Creek, and RuPaul's Drag Race because his mother raised him right.

"This is not an easy part to play. It is not a "make-up role." A change in hairstyle and Dawson's powerful acting are all that separate Jekyll from Hyde. It is a performance that could so easily go awry, but Dawson makes Jekyll's fantastical struggles and his slow self-destruction utterly believable and riveting."

-Stephen Penhollow, WhatzUp

"Billy's pretty good..."

-Susan Dawson, Billy's Mom

"Dawson's booming operatic vocals never flag..."

-Catey Sullivan, Chicago Sun-Times

"Billy Dawson, who proves to be a Broadway caliber performer from start to finish."

-Alan Bresloff, Around The Town Chicago

"Mr. Dawson has truly left his mark on the musical stage with this role and will, without doubt, soon become Chicago’s newest leading man."

-Colin Douglas, Chicago Theatre Review