Review: NEWSIES Sells at Fort Wayne Civic Theatre

Celeste and Dylan:

Our subject today is pretty simple... newspapers and the people who sell 'em. We are going to start this review by asking you to try to picture a special kind of super-tabloid. This Fort Wayne Civic Theatre adaptation of the 1992 Disney movie musical - itself inspired by the New York newsboy strike of 1899 comes roaring to life on stage, and this show certainly takes it to you. Seriously though... You don't hear lines like "We've got a union!" coming from "The Little Mermaid." Now, imagine that newspaper set to music, and you've got "Newsies the Musical," which opened on last Saturday night at the Fort Wayne Civic Theatre.

The songs by Alan Menken and Jack Feldman like "Carrying the Banner," "The World Will Know," "Seize the Day," are brought to life with a certain fire by the cast, and there's some serious talent on the stage. These are songs, who cues from the hard-sell tactics, are brought to life by feisty lads and ladies of the urban jungle in New York City. Like the publishers of successful tabloids throughout history, the production team and actors behind "Newsies" know exactly what it's selling.

Mobilized by the charisma and sheer strength of Jack (Alex Leavell) and the brains of the more restrained Davey (Eric Smead), the young newsies are initiated by fire into the art of unionizing and business negotiations. Their fold includes the brave, little guy with a crutch, named Crutchie (Will Francis) and the wisecracking, triple threat child prodigy (Parker Nagel).

But contract negotiations and business dealings doesn't stop them from burning energy and dancing. As choreographed and directed by Leslie Beauchamp, they keep coming at the audience in full-speed phalanxes, fortified by every step in a Broadway 101 dance book. There are back flips, cartwheels, somersaults, and kick lines, not to mention enough pirouettes and other ballet moves to fill a one full season of "Swan Lake." Acting, dancing, and singing like that is no easy task, especially when you may not be technically trained, but it was well executed.

For scenery this show is tough. The original Disney production used a great deal of scaffolding as the boys run around the city, hawking their papers. Adam Fletcher, the designer, came up with a smart idea in creating moveable scenery that the cast could run up and down on.

Some heavy confidence combined with the guts to defy the odds and overcome newspaper villains is what's up for the night. Menken's score easily resonates and was comprised of catchy tunes. With the benefit of a great production team, some great vocals, and fancy acrobatic dance moves, Newsies at Fort Wayne Civic Theatre was a crowd-pleaser. It shows through August 12th.

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