Photo Flash: Rosie O'Donnell Visits NEWSIES

Rosie O'Donnell, one of Broadway's biggest supporters, went to see the Tony Award-winning smash-hit musical Newsies at the Nederlander Theatre (208 W 41st St.) this weekend. Following the performance, Ms. O'Donnell went backstage to meet the cast, later tweeting, "LOVED IT SO MUCH - amazing talent on that stage!" Below, check out a photo of O'Donnell backstage with NEWSIES cast member Jack Scott!

Since bursting onto Broadway, Newsies has set and broken seven Nederlander Theatre house records, welcomed more than one million guests, and become the highest-grossing show of 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. One of Broadway's highest-profile hits, it has been featured nationally on "Dancing with the Stars," "The View," "ABC World News," "Nightline," "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade," and "The CBS Thanksgiving Day Parade."

Newsies features a Tony Award-winning score with music by eight-time Academy Award winner Alan Menken and lyrics by Jack Feldman, with a book by four-time Tony Award winner Harvey Fierstein. 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 Broadway company of Newsies also features Corey Cott as Jack Kelly, John Dossett as Joseph Pulitzer, Liana Hunt as Katherine, Lavon Fisher-Wilson as Medda Larkin, Jeremy Greenbaum as Davey, Andy Richardson as Crutchie and Luca Padovan and Zachary Unger alternating the role of Les.

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.

Photo Credit: Timothy Eaker