It seems that every production at the Aurora Theatre in Lawrenceville outdoes the previous one! I loved "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and I honestly didn't think anything could top their production of "Mamma Mia" however, I was wrong. Aurora's latest co-production with Atlantic Lyric Theatre, Disney's "Newsies" was absolutely spectacular!
I feel like "Newsies" is the boys' version of "Annie". It's a classic tale of an underdog, living a "hard knock" life, who dreams of a better "tomorrow" in "Santa Fe", decides to "seize the day" and becomes "the King of New York".
Inspired by the real-life Newsboy Strike of 1899, Jack Kelly (Greg Kamp) and his ragged band of mostly orphaned and homeless “newsies” decide to protest an unfair system in New York City when publisher Joseph Pulitzer raises the cost of the newspapers to the boys by a dime. Aided and encouraged by Katherine Plumber (Adrianna Trachell), a reporter who does a story on the situation, the protest soon becomes a strike and Jack's interest turns from Santa Fe to Katherine.
Other outstanding performances were Crutchie (Russell Alexander) the crippled newsie, Davey (Marcello Audino) the "brains" behind the strike with an amazing voice, Teddy Roosevelt (played Aurora's own Sales & Marketing genius, Al Stilo) and Les, Davey's little brother and the youngest newsie. He is played by 3 young actors: Zach Kubler, Vinny Montague or Jackson Williams and he practically steals the show! Be sure to watch for his final curtain call, it will leave you smiling all the way home!
It's easy to see why the 2012 Broadway show was nominated 8 times and won Tony Awards for Best Original Score and Best Choreography. Overall the music is very upbeat with catchy lyrics. ‘Carrying the Banner’, ‘Seize the Day’ and "The World Will Know" are all songs that you will find playing in your brain on repeat. "Something to Believe In" and "Santa Fe" are both beautifully haunting, but "That's Rich" and "Don't Come Knocking" by Metta Larkin (played by the incomparable Mahalia Jackson, who lives up to her namesake!) and the Bowery Beauties are both vaudevillian and uproariously funny!
As usual at the Aurora Theatre, the turn-of-the-century costumes, the very believable sets featuring three massive rolling steel towers that get a workout as they twist and turn to resemble various cityscapes, and the wonderful live orchestration were all superb.
However, the true star of this show was the choreography. Ricardo Aponte outdid himself with this one! The dance routines were ambitious and elaborate, taking advantage of every square foot of the stage. My favorite was the show-stopping tap-dance "King of New York". It gave new meaning to the words high energy! Showcasing backflips, pirouettes, kick lines and aerial splits galore, the sensationally talented newsies were played by Atarius Armstrong, Luke Badura, Aaron Carter, Kevin Dakake, Christopher De’Angelo, Zach Gamet, Sterling McClary, Peyton McDaniel, Evan Phillips, and Joseph Pendergrast. Instead of actors who could also sing and dance, these were strong, athletic dancers who could also act and sing. They were an absolute joy to watch!
I just don't have enough superlatives to adequately describe this show. It was one of the best performances that I have ever seen and I highly recommend it for your whole family, especially if you have boys! Just as I did, they will LOVE it!!
NEWSIES will play Aurora Theatre July 19-September 2, with tickets starting at $20. Regular, single tickets range from $30-$65 and can be purchased online or by calling the Box Office at 678-226-6222.
On October 19- November 4, Newsies will move to the Atlanta Lyric Theatre at Cobb Civic Center,
Jennie T. Anderson Theatre, 548 S. Marietta Parkway, Marietta, GA 30060. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the Box Office at 404-377-9948
