EXTRA! EXTRA! SING ALL ABOUT IT!
Wildsong Productions is back with a rousing production of Newsies, doing the best they can with a so-so-script. In Harvey Fierstein’s stage book adaptation of the same-titled 1992 Disney musical film, we meet a group of impoverished young men, most of whom are orphans. Inspired by a true story from 1899, their source of survival income is hawking newspapers on the street for mogel Joseph Pulitzer (Michael Harrison). The “newsies” (as this rag-tag group of boys are known) have to lay out their own money for the papers, sell every copy to make a small profit, and suffer any losses personally, should they be left with any unsold papers. Pulitzer decides he can eke out a slightly better profit by raising the cost of the bundle of papers that the newsies have to lay out from fifty cents to sixty. For these young men (a heavily cross-gender cast at Wildsong), that 20% increase, which they discover upon arriving with their fifty cents in hand, is a devastating blow.
Enter big hearted Jack Kelly (Sara Blanche Hayes), a bright newsie who tries to look out for the others as best he can with the little he has, especially a dear friend called Crutchie (Anton Schneiderwind) who struggles with a lame leg. Despite the fact that the newsies aren’t employees and have no foundation to start a union, Jack gets help and encouragement from another newsie named Davey (Jacob Lopez). They convince their peers, the lower Manhattan paper sellers, to strike, but the impact is meager without the support of the other areas, especially the more-respected Brooklyn contingent. Without Brooklyn’s support, a true strike won’t be effective, as that’s what would convince the other areas to follow suit. He finds additional support in a charming young reporter (Esme Birndorf) to whom he is attracted, though her focus is more upon the good he could be doing than his flirtations. The plot from there focuses on Kelly’s attempt to gain support, garner publicity, and figure out a plan that would make Pulitzer take notice for the good of Kelly’s chosen family of newsies.
Alan Menkin’s music, given lyrics by Jack Feldman, certainly have some catchy points, peaking with the wonderfully harmonious “Once and for All” in Act II. Another terrific moment has Schneiderwind, as Crutchie, writing a heartfelt letter to Kelly. Sweet young Crutchie sings what he’s scribbling down, in a touching attempt to share some the horror of life at The Refuge, a disgusting city-run orphanage, while not wanting to say so much that he might sadden his friend Jack too much.
The book is a mixed bag. It’s longer than it needs to be and there’s too much time spent on will-we-or-won’t-we do the strike. Despite the fact that it’s loosely based on a true story (or maybe because of that), everything feels rather predictable. It makes the resulting script feel like this is intended for a teen audience, rather than theater-savvy ones.
Within that limitation, what brings the show together is a strong performance by Hayes, who captures Kelly’s likeability, cleverness, and vulnerability so successfully. Brooke Aliceon and Rachel Mink do a fine job directing the action, but can’t fully overcome lines that just sound corny in many places because that’s the book they have to work with. Maya Juarez has come up with some great choreography for the theater’s new lower-and-wider stage, but performances vary. Some solo moments are downright acrobatic, especially by outstanding ensemble dancer Alara Jones. Group numbers ranged, though, from many tightly-executed numbers to several that ended up off-timed, especially when dancers turned the wrong way, throwing off the symmetry. That said, the cast maintained a bold and upbeat energy that holds our attention. Playful period costuming by Brooke Aliceon and Erik Ramirez sets the tone nicely.
In the end, it’s a pleasant show and would make a great family outing for those with teens, especially if it were an attempt to introduce them to theatre. A safe choice, perhaps, for Wildsong, given their excellent history on darker material, but perhaps they needed a little feel-good levity for a change of pace and Newsies brings that.
photos by Brooke Aliceon courtesy of Wildsong
Newsies
Wildsong Productions
Wildsong Theatre and Arts Collective
4944 Newport Ave. in Ocean Beach, San Diego
Thurs, Fri & Sat at 8; Sun at 2
ends on September 8, 2024
for tickets, visit Wildsong