RIALTO CHATTER: NEWSIES Headed to the Stage with Spring Reading?

Wayman Wong of the NY Daily News has revealed that Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken has told him that he and lyricist Jack Feldman (who together provided the music for the 1992 film) are working on bringing the show to the stage, with a reading scheduled for the Spring of 2010 and a new book being written by Harvey Fierstein. 

Newsies was a 1992 Disney live-action musical film starring Christian Bale, David Moscow, and Bill Pullman. Robert Duvall and Ann-Margret also appeared in supporting roles. The movie gained a cult following after its initial failure at the box office.

The film marked the directorial debut of choreographer Kenny Ortega (Dirty Dancing, High School Musical, This is It and upcoming In The Heights).

The film is based on the true story of the 1899 newsboys strike, in which the pint-sized newsboys delivering the New York papers went on strike against the unfair practices of news magnates Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst. The film features 12 songs and multiple dance sequences including Carrying the Banner, Santa Fe, My Lovey-Dovey Baby, The World Will Know, Seize the Day, King of New York, Hard Times, Hard Times, Once and For All and more.