Twelve-year-old Hogan Fulton's parents are thrilled that their son just landed the lead role in "Billy Elliot the Musical" in London. But Jill, an accountant, and her husband, Buzz, an aerospace engineer, are also scratching their heads. The Newbury Park couple can't figure out how they turned out such an artistically gifted son.

"We're not performing people at all," Jill said. "When he was like 3, he got the soundtrack to Mulan' and started dancing to it. I thought, Is this normal?'"

"I guess it's our recessive genes that came together," Jill said with a shrug.

Hogan has no idea why he loves dance so much either, but it's all he wants to do, and he's always known it.

"I think it was the music I was attracted to," Hogan said. "I would watch Disney movies and dance around."

Hogan, who attends Redwood Middle School in Thousand Oaks, is currently playing the role of Kurt in "The Sound of Music." Staged by the Actors' Repertory Theatre of Simi, the production opens Saturday and runs through April 6 at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center. The show is double-cast, so the other boy playing Kurt will take on the role full time after Hogan leaves for London.

Hogan "picks things up right away," "Sound of Music" director David Daniels said. "He's a really talented, nice kid. It's great how he gets along with the other kids, which is a good thing for somebody who's going to be doing what he's doing."

Hogan is scheduled to leave for London on March 6. He'll stay in England for nine months to star in "Billy Elliot," a tale about a young boy who wants to be a dancer. The musical is based on the 2000 movie and features a score composed by Elton John.

The London production of "Billy Elliot," which opened May 11, 2005, at the Victoria Palace Theatre, is being staged by Working Title Films and Old Vic Productions. It's booked at the theater through December, when Hogan will return home to Newbury Park.

"This really is the adventure of a lifetime," said Kim Maselli, artistic director at California Dance Theatre in Agoura Hills, one of two studios where Hogan studies. He also takes classes at Bobbie's School of Performing Arts in Newbury Park.

Maselli said she knew from the moment that Hogan hit the dance floor four years ago that he was extraordinarily gifted.

"The first thing I noticed was that, for his age, his technique was impeccable," Maselli said. "He's an old soul."

"People call him a prodigy," said dance classmate Sami Staskies, 13, of Thousand Oaks. "He's so controlled with everything."

When Hogan is dancing, he picks up choreography like a sponge, Maselli said. She gestured to Hogan, who stood in the studio lobby giggling with his friends as they texted each other on their phones.

"Outside the studio, he's a normal 12-year-old kid," she said. "He gets in the studio and this aura comes over him."

On Feb. 22, Jill and Buzz brought a sheet cake-sized cookie to California Dance Theatre to thank the studio and Hogan's classmates for supporting him. As they munched on pieces of mega-cookie, about 20 of Hogan's classmates — all girls — chorused their congratulations in between cascades of giggles:

"Good luck, Hogan!"

"Can we have your autograph?"

"We love you and are so proud of you!"

Dressed in basketball shorts, a T-shirt and black ballet slippers, a red-faced Hogan fielded hugs and questions about his London engagement.

"He hates me right now," Jill grinned, referring to the cookie surprise.

At a stage when most kids are petrified about what peers think of them, Hogan doesn't worry about being the only boy in his dance class.

When asked why, he just shrugged and giggled. One of his classmates, Whitney Walsh, 12, of Thousand Oaks offered a response instead:

"If you really care about something, you don't care," she said.

@TO-1-Text Subhed:Landing the part

Hogan found out about the Billy Elliot role on a Web site that advertised open auditions in New York.

In November 2006, he auditioned in New York to play the role of Billy or Billy's best friend. According to http://www.billyelliotthemusical.com, about 3,000 boys attended open auditions in England, Australia and the U.S. in hopes of landing a role.

Hogan's parents willingly drive or fly him to auditions. "It's easy to be supportive because he is so passionate about it," Buzz said. Hogan's 15-year-old brother, Nolan, doesn't share his brother's passion. "He hates dance," according to his mother.

Hogan got a callback in June. As he and his mom were flying home from New York, Jill's cell phone rang. It was the producers calling to let Hogan know tht he had landed the part of Billy Elliot. Hogan said he was so excited that he jumped out of his seat and danced around.

Once he is in England, Hogan will rotate the Billy Elliot part with three other boys. All four will attend rehearsals at the Billy Elliot School in London's West End. The school's sole purpose is to train boys who take the title role. Hogan also spent six months training at a Billy Elliot School in Australia. The show opened in Sydney in November.

Jill said Hogan was originally scheduled to star in the upcoming New York production of "Billy Elliot," which is set to open on Broadway in September. But Hogan's sudden growth spurt caused the producers to send him as quickly as they could to star in the London production.

The onset of puberty is constantly chasing Billys off the stage.

"Puberty's a big problem for them with their voices changing," Jill said. "There are four keys to every song. When you're singing in the fourth (lowest) key, you know you're on your way out."

Asked if he has any stage fright about performing in such a large venue, Hogan said, "I think that's normal. I get energy from it."

@TO-1-Text Subhed:Staying grounded

While Hogan is gone, he will attend an online school to keep up with his education. The production company will fly Jill or Buzz over once a month to be with Hogan. The rest of the time, they will try to do video chats, as they did when Hogan was in Australia.

"I talked to him via Skype," Jill said, referring to an international online video service. "I saw him every day. I'm like, Blow your nose!'"

Maselli sees her share of stage moms and dads, which is why she finds parents like the Fultons a refreshing change.

"That's part of why he's so humble and down to earth," Maselli said. "Nobody has been pumping greatness into his head."

"They (my parents) don't want me to get all conceited about it," Hogan said.

Not that he doesn't have a fan base, almost exclusively female, owing to the fact that dance tends to attract girls.

"His life is always 400-to-1 girls to boys," Jill said. "He has a lot of girls, a LOT of girls, texting him."

"She sends me pictures of her break dancing," Hogan joked about classmate Whitney, to which she protested, "Nuh-UH!"

"Could you not text internationally?" Jill said to Hogan. "Because I believe it costs me a lot of money."