Short & Sweet critic Melanie Andreani reviews Newsies with Diana Martinez of Broadway in Chicago
Short & Sweet guest critic Melanie Andreani of Palatine found herself completely sucked into the plot and the characters of Broadway in Chicago's production of Newsies. "You're just cheering for them," she says. Andreani also drew upon her background in dance to assess the choregraphy and dancers, and says she "really appreciate[s] the talent and skill" of the performers.
See below for a review by Diana Martinez of Broadway in Chicago:
Extra! Extra! Newsies Explodes with Energy!
Disney's high-energy musical Newsies comes direct from Broadway where it was the Tony Award-Winner for Best Score and Best Choreography. The book, written by Harvey Fierstein, is based on the 1992 movie, which was inspired by a real-life band of underdog newsboys from New York City in 1899, which went up against the most powerful men in the newspaper business. These desperate street kids banded together to change the way William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer abused child labor -the newsboys who were the main source of news distribution. It's a powerful tribute to standing up for what you believe in.
A group of dolled-up, teenage girls next to me were "out of their minds" in their enthusiasm for the production. One girl turned to me before the show began and blurted out, "I can't wait for it to start - I loved the movie so much!" Not having seen the movie, it only took me a few minutes into the show to understand why most any teenage girl would love this show - it's loaded with a crew of tough, street-smart, driven, athletic, handsome young men! And this cast of guys did not disappoint. The show is filled with heart and the cast explodes with amazing athletic dancing that is relevant to the story and true to the characters. It's easy to fall in love with this gang of underdogs who worked for only .30 cents a day and were the main source of distribution in the 1890's. The audience showed their enthusiasm to see these underdogs win with bursts of applause and whistles at the end of every production number. What really grabbed me is what shrewd marketing geniuses these kids became, learning how to entice the buyer - from dramatizing a headline to working the sympathy card. What's more intriguing is seeing how these young men transformed from boys to men learning from the very headlines they sold. Because of their basic need to survive they had the strength to band together and negotiate against the establishment for fair working conditions.
Leading role Jack Kelly, played by Dan DeLuca, has the right balance of rebellion and rugged bad boy, mixed with lots of heart that makes him easy to root for. The sweet and charming nerd Davey, played by Jacob Kemp, with his little brother Les, played by Vincent Crocilla, juxtaposes him beautifully. The real hero of the show is choreographer Christopher Gattelli, whose refreshing choreography is exciting, creative, athletic, and relevant to the characters and plot, which is so rare.
Newsies is in town through January 4th at the Oriental Theatre and the show runs about 2 hours and 30 minutes with an intermission. It's the perfect show to bring your whole family to, but teenagers especially will enjoy it.