“What really gets the blood flowing is the showmanship and the staging.”
One cannot fail to see the serendipitous irony of Newsies: The Musical’s UK premiere. The official website, in sepia tones of old newsprint, has the format of a daily rag. “Newsies Go On Strike! Read More” is the headline splashed across the homepage. Similar headlines dominate the front pages of the evening tabloids that litter the street corners as we make our way to the theatre, negotiating the travel chaos caused by the current strike action. If nothing else, the timing of “Newsies” is spot on.
The struggles of the protagonists; the issues of homelessness, exploitation, security, solidarity and capitalism are going to resonate strongly, even though the plot, based on historical fact, is over a century old. As the dawn of the twentieth century approaches, the ubiquitous bands of teenage newspaper sellers dream of a better life away from the hardship of the streets of New York City. These young men, and women, come together to fight the exploitation of the wealthy publishing tycoons who are callously hiking up the prices they pay for the papers they sell.
The realism is spot on. Morgan Large’s impressive scaffold set immerses us right into the heart of Manhattan. The grim fire escapes and sidewalks soon burst into the cacophonous chorus as the ‘Newsies’ come scampering from all corners of the auditorium to explode onto the stage in a glorious, rush hour frenzy. It seems they are celebrating their misfortunes. Indeed, lead player Jack Kelly (Michael Ahomka-Lindsay) is portrayed as having chosen his fate. Consequently Ahomka-Lindsay lacks the fire of the real life ‘Kid Blink’ on which the character is based. Kid Blink was not yet a teenager when he addressed over two thousand strikers to lead them in the battle against the publishers. Jack Kelly’s character replaces fire with charm and courage with charisma, throwing in a roving eye for the daughter of the enemy.
If the plot is sweetened somewhat (this is based on a Disney film after all), the execution is a sharp, exhilarating and sometimes overwhelming spectacle. Director Matt Cole’s choreography is both bombastic and balletic. Not always in tune with the subject matter, it nevertheless thrills us and coaxes us into repeated standing ovations – even before interval. The space is as wide as it is high and at one point the dancers even occupy the airspace during the stunning number “King of New York” at the opening of Act Two. The more plaintive ballads do not fare so well, with the lyrics occasionally getting lost in the cavernous auditorium. Likewise, the subtleties and subplots lose their way amidst the sheer, larger-than-life displays.
Bronté Barbé, as Katherine Plumber, a young reporter eager for a story, shadows Kelly in his fight for justice, spreading the word, assuaging his doubts and eventually becoming his ally. A touch two-dimensional to totally believe in the passion that spurs her on, Barbé has the requisite defiance to win us over. Newspaper tycoon, Joseph Pulitzer, is unavoidably a caricature but Cameron Blakely makes the best of the Scrooge-like bad guy turned good(ish). But it is clear that we are not required to dig deep into character or plot. That vein is thin. What really gets the blood flowing is the showmanship and the staging.
“Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground” is a piece of advice given to the strikers, “and you will win”. It’s no spoiler to reveal that they did indeed win. But these stunning triple-threat performers won our standing ovation too – even though they rarely kept their feet on the ground. They are the stars that we, the audience, keep our eyes on.
THE TONY® AWARD-WINNING BROADWAY MUSICAL WILL PLAY CINEMAS ON 19 FEBRUARY IN THE UK, GERMANY, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
PRODUCED BY DISNEY THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS AND DISTRIBUTED BY ARTS ALLIANCE DISTRIBUTION LTD, NEWSIES WILL BE RELEASED IN THE US ON 16 FEBRUARY AND IN OTHER COUNTRIES ON OR AFTER 22 FEBRUARY
BASED ON THE 1992 FILM, NEWSIES BECAME DISNEY’S SINGLE MOST REQUESTED TITLE TO BE ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE
Audiences will be able to experience the Tony® Award-winning musical NEWSIES in cinemas for the first time when it makes its cinema debut on Sunday 19 February 2017 in the UK, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand following the US on 16 February and cinemas in certain other countries on or after 22 February. Disney Theatrical Productions is the international distributor alongside Arts Alliance Distribution, Ltd.
Based on the 1992 film and produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, NEWSIES, the Broadway Musical, features a Tony® Award-winning score with music by eight-time Academy Award® winner Alan Menken (The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin) and lyrics by Jack Feldman, Tony Award-winning choreography by Christopher Gattelli, and book by four-time Tony Award winner Harvey Fierstein (Kinky Boots). The fan-following for NEWSIES became a phenomenon over the years since its release on home video, becoming Disney’s single most requested title to be adapted for the stage.
Inspired by the real-life ‘Newsboy Strike of 1899,’ NEWSIES is set in New York City at the turn of the century and tells the tale of newsboy Jack Kelly, a charismatic and rebellious leader of a group of “newsies” who dreams of a life far from the hardship of the streets. When publishing titans Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise distribution prices at the newsboys’ expense, Jack rallies his army of newsies to strike.
Jeremy Jordan (Supergirl, The Last 5 Years) will be reprising his Tony Award-nominated performance as “Jack Kelly”. NEWSIES played on Broadway from March 2012 – August 2014 and toured the US from October 2014 – October 2016.
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