*

Newsies [Ghostlight]
Having been chastened by the reception of the over-produced stage versions of The Little Mermaid, Tarzan and to a certain extent Aida, the folks at Disney Theatrical seem to have changed course, switched gears, and concentrated on the writing and staging — rather than the sets and costumes — for Newsies. Here, we actually care about the characters and what happens to them, as opposed to simply watching actors swinging on ropes above trampolines or roller-blading under the sea. That act of caring makes Newsies the happiest and most pleasing Disney musical since The Lion King.

The show, which opened in March at the Nederlander, is based on the studio's ill-fated 1992 live action, singin' & dancin' feature. Which famously thudded at the box office, leaving all involved covered with soot (except for the resilient composer, Alan Menken). That was that, as they say; only that wasn't quite that. "Newsies," the film, found a new audience in the early days of cable TV; give kids a film they can enjoy and watch repeatedly, and they don't care about the grosses. As the video/DVD era came along, there was Disney's "Newsies" ready to find even more fans.

And Disney, with Newsies, has got themselves a hit. For this Newsies turns out to be pretty good, a show in the tradition of Oliver! and Annie. There is a story you can latch onto (albeit one that is somewhat simplistic); characters you can root for; tunes you can enjoyably tap your toe to, should you be the sort who taps your toe; and dancing that'll rouse you out of your seat. There are also no less than four performers who are better than pretty good: Jeremy Jordan and Kara Lindsay as the boy and girl, Andrew Keenan-Bolger and Ben Fankhauser as the hero's top comrades.

	Jeremy Jordan and company
	photo by Deen van Meer

Menken is in fine form here, perhaps his most tuneful form. I have always found his work to be far more enjoyable when he puts aside contemporary rhythms and allows himself free license to sit back, relax, and write rich melodies. He is well matched with the humorous and artful lyrics of Jack Feldman, with whom we wrote the "Newsies" film score 20 years ago. (The Broadway version includes six newly-written songs.) Feldman is best known for "Copacabana," a song he wrote with Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman back in 1978. At least he was best known for "Copacabana." Now, it seems like Newsies will finally establish Feldman along Broadway.

It should be noted that Menken presently has three new musicals running on Broadway, the others being Sister Act and Leap of Faith. This is quite a feat, and an uncommon occurrence. Doing a cursory glance at the record book, I can find only eight songwriters who have done this. (Going back to 1940, anyway; there might have been some in the early days, when a composer might write three or four shows a season). For the record, they were Rodgers and Hammerstein, for seven months in 1953; Jerry Herman, in 1969; Stephen Schwartz, in 1976; Andrew Lloyd Webber, in 1982; Tim Rice, in 2000; and Frank Wildhorn, in 1999. Are we missing anyone?

Fine art Newsies isn't, perhaps; but then, when was the last time you tapped your toe to fine art? With the arrival of awards month, I confess that my personal preference lies somewhere closer to guitar players in Dublin (Once) than newsboys in old New York. But no matter. I expect that Newsies will enjoy a long and prosperous life on Broadway, on the road, and overseas as well. Sure, they probably never heard of the villainous Joseph Pulitzer in Europe, Scandinavia or Japan; but I expect a large portion of the U.S. public never heard of him, either.

The original cast album of Newsies has now arrived, and it pretty well reflects the excitement you get onstage. Many of the musical numbers for the gang of newsies are simply exhilarating, typified by "King of New York." (A song as good as this would help propel a bad musical, even.) There is a pretty good ballad for the boy and the girl added since Paper Mill, "Something to Believe In"; and an especially pleasing song for the heroine called "Watch What Happens." (This latter set me smiling in the theatre when I first heard it in New Jersey, and did the same on Broadway.)

On the lesser side are two numbers which point to the weaknesses in the stage adaptation: "That's Rich," for Jack's burlesque queen friend, and "The Bottom Line" for Pulitzer and cronies. The writing of Pulitzer really ought to be stronger than it is; this character, played by John Dossett, mostly stands around sneering. Imagine how Newsies would soar if they had a villain like Annie's Miss Hannigan, with songs to match.

The newsies of Newsies have been criticized for their age; some say they look less like 15-year-olds and more like they have been shaving for 15 years. Seeing them at Paper Mill last fall and at the Nederlander in March, I found them thoroughly convincing; obviously not teenagers, but the combination of high spirits and exuberant dancing more than won me over. This, I'm afraid, doesn't quite apply to the recording. These same boys, divorced from the stage and the choreography, sound like full-fledged adults — and in that I must include Mr. Jordan. Which makes me glad I saw the show before hearing the recording. This is a minor quibble, but one I feel honor bound to note.

Neither Oliver! nor Annie are perfect musicals, in my opinion, but they both work. Let us add Newsies to their class — a nifty class in which to be.

Read about the Broadway production of Newsies in the Playbill Vault.

Visit PlaybillStore.com to view theatre-related recordings for sale.