I so wish I'd been able to take my kids to the show on Tuesday night - they would have LOVED IT! It's perfectly appropriate for kids 7 and up (but by no means does that make it "a kids' show"). And while I am sure little girls will love it, if you have boys - well, consider this their Annie. When the newsies begin singing "Carrying The Banner," I instantly thought of "It's the Hard Knock Life" - with homeless / orphan boys instead of girls. And wow can they dance. And tumble. And make you laugh. I couldn't keep my kids out late after our long weekend, but I'm looking into tickets to take them on Sunday because I really want to go back again myself!
I never saw the movie Newsies, which came out in 1992 and starred Christian Bale (then a teenager). I can't wait to see it now. Somehow I missed this Newsies craze. But I guess if you are a "Fansie" you already know it. (I just watched my first you tube video from the movie a few minutes ago.)
Though the movie was a box office dud (per my theatre program), it became a sensation when released on video. It opened on Broadway in 2012 with a planned run of 12 weeks - and played for more than two years, even garnering two Tony® Awards! With music & lyrics by Disney hitmakers Alan Menken (The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast) and Jack Feldman, you can't help but want to hear these songs again and again. And if you are familiar with those aforementioned Disney classics, this show will have a recognizable sound to it. Not a bad thing at all. By the time the cast is singing "Seize The Day" you might forget my Annie reference altogether...as the newsies march on and strike for what's right, the music and theme are more along the lines of Les Miserables (albeit more comedic).
Photo: Deen van Meer
Set in New York City at the turn of the century, NEWSIES is the rousing tale of Jack Kelly, a charismatic newsboy and leader of a ragged band of teenaged ‘newsies,’ who dreams only of a better life far from the hardship of the streets. But when publishing titans Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise distribution prices at the newsboys’ expense, Jack finds a cause to fight for and rallies newsies from across the city to strike for what’s right.
NEWSIES is inspired by the real-life ‘Newsboy Strike of 1899,’ when newsboy Kid Blink led a band of orphan and runaway newsies on a two-week-long action against Pulitzer, Hearst and other powerful newspaper publishers.
The stage version introduces seven brand-new songs by the original team of Menken and Feldman while keeping many of the beloved songs from the film, including ‘Carrying the Banner, ‘Seize the Day,’ ‘King of New York’ and ‘Santa Fe.’
NEWSIES will play Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Tickets are available by visiting foxtheatre.org/newsies, calling 1-855-285-8499 or visiting the Fox Theatre Box Office (660 Peachtree St NE, Atlanta, GA 30308).
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ABOUT NEWSIES
NEWSIES, the new American musical, features a Tony® Award-winning score with music by eight-time Academy Award® winner Alan Menken and lyrics by Jack Feldman, a book by four-time Tony® Award winner Harvey Fierstein and is produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, NEWSIES is directed by Tony® nominee Jeff Calhoun and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli, who won a 2012 Tony Award® for his work. The entire creative team is reuniting to bring the break-out smash musical to audiences across North America.
When it opened on March 29, 2012 NEWSIES was intended for a Broadway run of just 101 performances. The show’s fiercely devoted fans had other ideas, however; they propelled the show to a run of 1005 performances, attendance of more than 1 million and a gross of over $100M.
While on Broadway, NEWSIES set and broke seven Nederlander Theatre house records and became the highest-grossing show from the 2011-12 Broadway season. The show received 23 major theatrical nominations – including eight Tony Award® nods – and won Tony®, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Score and Choreography.
Since the film’s 1992 theatrical release and subsequent DVD release, NEWSIES has grown into a cult phenomenon, and for years had been the single most requested title of all the Disney musical films not yet adapted for the stage. (The film featured a screenplay by Bob Tzudiker & Noni White (Tarzan, 102 Dalmatians).)
For more information, visit NewsiesTheMusical.com/Tour, Facebook.com/Newsies and Twitter.com/Newsies.
The Atlanta engagement of NEWSIES is presented by arrangement with Fifth Third Bank Broadway in Atlanta and is a subscription offering of the 2014/2015 series.
*I was provided with complimentary tickets to the show in return for this write up and review. Opinions, however, are my own.
