See the headline:
Newsies Make Front Page News At Beth Tfiloh Community Theatre Summer 2022
That’s right! They’ll be out there— for two more performances— carrying the banner, side by side! Yes, they’re out there— filling all their parents’ (and friends and families’) hearts with pride! Newsies on a mission— kill the competition! They are out there— giving one of the most rousing, engaging, and talented productions of Disney’s Newsies that the Baltimore area has seen in quite a long, long while! Directed by Diane M. Smith with Musical Direction by Charlotte Evans Crowley, and Choreography by Rachel Miller, the Beth Tfiloh Community Theatre’s production of Newsies is truly king of Maryland this summer.
With a deceptively simple aesthetic, Set Designer Evan Margolis, Scenic Artist Laura Miller, and Projection Designs (SL Show Tech) bring you right to Newsies Square, and basically all over turn of the century New York City. Props go out to SL Show Tech with the very innovative sweeping glide scenes all through the buildings of Manhattan, particularly when Jack Kelly is on the run from Snyder the Spider (Eitan Murinson). Laura Miller (and her painting assistants Diane Smith, Evan Margolis, Gideon Rosen, Noah Sagel, Sammy Jungwirth, and the BT Performing Arts Studio Tech Campers) vividly bring to life the ‘backdrops’ that the Jack Kelly character paints, while Evan Margolis takes the traditional scaffolding— featured in nearly every production of Newsies to date— to the next level. Margolis decoupages a collage of newspaper print all over the visible surfaces of the scaffolding, giving the scenery that ‘extra layer’ of Newsies.
Lighting Designer Diane M. Smith and Nick Logue keep the lighting theatrical without overcomplicating it. There are mostly warm moments, a few colorfully lit ones, but on the whole the lighting is highly functional without being distracting. Smith deserves an extra shoutout for her conception and production of the printing press scenic prop; it looks like it rolled straight out of a museum. Costume Designer & Coordinator Lizzie Jaspan (with her assistants Abby Ostrow and Ella La Fiandra) really conceptualize the grungy, street-savvy look of the Newsies, with their earthtones featured in vests, shirts, shoulder bag, and of course, their newsboy caps. You get a good feel from the sartorial selection that Jaspan and her assistants have gathered for exactly when and where this production is taking place, in addition to knowing— just by looking— what this production is all about.
Director Diane M. Smith has brought some incredibly talented people to the stage, playing a lot of these young performers to their strengths— be it character acting, striking singing, dancing, or some combination of all three. Working alongside Musical Director Charlotte Evans, the pair get some extraordinary performances out of the entire ensemble. Everyone from the ruthless Joseph Pulitzer (Brian Singer), who has a pristinely velvet coated singing voice, to the boisterous Miss Medda Larkin (Orly Krupp), whose tremendously buoyant and bold personality spins circles all around her solo featured scenes— there’s a continuous parade of talent streaming across the stage from start to finish. There are not high enough praises to be spoken about this extremely talented and convivial company of performers who make this experience of Newsies, whether you’re a first time viewer or this is your dozenth production, nothing short of phenomenal.
And of course, half of that extraordinary talent is seen in all of the show’s talented dancers, who are choreographed by Rachel Miller. The iconic newspaper dance is there and there’s so much tumbling, cartwheeling and high-leaping that the audience goes nuts every time a big dance routine gets underway. Miller has a keen understanding of the show’s music and how to effectively represent the dancing talent that is contained within the cast— everything from the big marching numbers during “The World Will Know” and “Seize The Day” to the robust tap routines seen in “King of New York.” There’s something thrilling for everyone to enjoy in this production.
The show is populated with young performers and performers young at heart. And the most noticeable of those in the latter category is Jamin Mears, not because he’s playing Mr. Jacobi, the Mayor, the Stage Manager, and Weisel, but because all four of his characters are distinctively different! Mears’ Mr. Jacobi has sharp comic timing even though he’s only featured briefly in two different scenes, and his biting snappy rendition of Weisel is enough to make any Newsie hit the street in a hurry. It’s his portrayal of the Mayor, though again brief, with the highly affected accent and the delightful upstanding posture that tickles the funny-bone, even if it is just a tertiary-periphery character. The same can be said for Zachary Byrd, whose principal role is one of the Newsie boys, Albert, but who gets wholly and hilariously noticed when he takes up the role of Governor Teddy Roosevelt. Byrd gives a great rendition of this wise and yet cheeky Governor and really makes those few moments near the end of the performance pop.
There’s also Sebastian Maizel, doing double duty as Newsie Romeo and as Nunzio, the barber in Pulitzer’s office. As Nunzio, again only briefly, Maizel gives us this iconic, affected accent that really brings the character to life. As Romeo, he’s got comic timing and animated physical gestures and body language down to a science. There are so many people doubling up roles in this production— like all of the Bowery Beauties, Nuns, and Scabs, who then also play people like Bill an Darcy— Abby Ostrow and Lizzie Jaspan, respectively— or the wise-cracking, head-busting Delancey Brothers, Oscar and Morris— Julia Morgereth and Ashley Case, respectively— and then the interoffice staff of Mr. Pulitzer, featuring Taylor Fruhling, Jamie Morgereth, Orly Krupp, and Rachel Murinson. And let’s not forget the bold and daring Spot Conlon (Ava Correlli) of BROOKLYN! It takes a village of people willing to double and triple— and in some cases, quadruple— up on their roles to have as brilliant, engaging, and successful a production as Beth Tfiloh Community Theatre has with Newsies.
Then of course, there’s the Newsies themselves— Race, Albert, Tommy, Finch, Romeo, Mush, Specs, Henry, Elmer, Jojo, and Buttons (played by Max Ozbolt, Zachary Byrd, Maytal Fleisher, Emma Hammett, Sebastian Maizel, Ava Correlli, Soren Lange, Ella La Fiandra, Molly Foggo, Sofia Alvarez, Samara Silverman, respectively.) This bunch of insanely talented, incredibly enthusiastic, and astonishingly energetic performers will stomp, slam, sing, dance, and shout their way straight into your hearts. The passion and determination they present in the larger group numbers— like “The World Will Know”— has you stomping right along in your seat before you even realize it. Already we’ve pointed out some of the noteworthy performers (and too many of them were doing stunning flips and cartwheels and dancer spins to list each one) but the one we’d be remiss if somehow he got skipped was Max Ozbolt as Race. With the most indefatigable energy of anyone seen on any stage in quite some time, Ozbolt is rearing to go! He’s got over-the-top animated facial features, which he works perfectly into the character of Race, and you get a chance to really see his singing and dancing capabilities when he takes off like a shot during “King of New York.”
Les (Colton Roberts) may be the tiniest of the Newsies (and possibly the youngest member of the cast) but, as some writer-guy-from-England probably said— though he but little, he is fierce! Roberts will have you tabling the palaver and busting a gut with giggles over just how precocious he is. When he busts into a scene with his little one-liners, holy cannoli is it hilarious. This kid has got gumption and then some! With a powerful voice that holds his own against kids twice his age— especially during the powerhouse quartet number, “Watch What Happens (Reprise)”— it is safe to say Roberts could easily have a career in performance ahead of him. And while Les may be Davie’s little brother, his character has quite a bit in common with Crutchie (Zev Auerhan), in the sense that they’re both underdogs and the audience falls immediately in love with them. Zev Auerhan, as the Newsie with a limp, is perfect for the role. And when he sings his solo feature, “Letter from the Refuge” you really get a feel for his vocal capabilities and his impressive talent for infusing balanced emotion into the song.
In the role of Davey, Shameer Mirza radiates resplendence. There is a certain hesitancy to the character, which Mirza handles brilliantly, blending that against the profound determination that arises as his character grows throughout the performance. Mirza has impressive vocals and is the balancing force, playing opposite of Matthew Trulli’s Jack Kelly. While the Jack Kelly character is all dynamism, magnetism and conflagration-esque fire, Mirza is the sensible reason that rings true throughout the production, finding equilibrium for the cause, bringing unity amongst the Newsies. You really get to hear Mirza shine during “Seize the Day” those with buttery warm vocals that just enchant and remind you that you’re meant to take hold of your own destiny and live it to its fullest.
It’s a Disney show so there’s bound to be a little romance, and you can’t have a little romance if you don’t have some upstart, smart-mouthed character to buck heads with the protagonist. For Disney’s Newsies, that’s Katherine Plumber (Rachel Miller.) Revisiting the role, Miller brings an edgy, older quality to her performance, which really make “Watch What Happens” a fantastical number in which she patters with perfect articulation and delivers that heightened sense of mania that only a slightly insecure writer trying to make it own merit could understand. Miller has a strong stage presence, plays well against the Jack Kelly character, and delivers her half of the slightly superfluous love ballad, “Something to Believe In”, beautifully. (The story of Newsies is just as strong, if not stronger, without this mushy-gushy gooball of a number…but it’s a Disney show…) Miller fills out the role of Katherine Plumber quite well and is a welcomed addition to the cast.
With soaring vocals that could easily reach Santa Fe in one swoop, Matthew Trulli is giving an undeniable vivacity to Jack Kelly. What’s more is that Trulli brings a humanity to the character beyond the “angry-go-west, young man” complex that so often is at the forefront of most Jack Kelly portrayals. There is a realness and a rawness that you see full-stop during his explosive “Santa Fe (Reprise/Act I Finale)” number and it just hits your heart hardcore. With a firm grip on that New York City street-savvy accent, Trulli delivers a believable presentation of Jack Kelly that would make anyone follow him into a strike. There’s passion and promise and intensity and emotional understanding in all of the songs that Trulli sings, not just an extreme showcase of his vocal range and talents. Blending ethos and pathos perfectly into a number in such a way that raw vocal talent is vying for the lead over the feeling behind it is a seasoned technique that few performers as young as Trulli possess, and you are getting that mastery 100 percent every time he sings a song. He’s even got a few dance moves up his pantlegs. Trulli is brilliant as Jack Kelly, tying the whole Newsies experience together in one sensational experience.
Now is the time to seize— your tickets to Beth Tfiloh’s Newsies. It’s a sparkling, spectacular production with so much heart and talent bursting off of the stage that you’ll be truly sorry and sore if you miss it this summer.
Running Time: 2 hours and 30 minutes with one intermission
Newsies plays through August 24, 2022 with Beth Tfiloh Community Theatre located in the Mintzes Theatre of the Rosen Arts Center on the Beth Tfiloh Congregation and Community School Campus— 3300 Old Court Road in Pikesville, MD. Tickets are available for purchase at the door, by calling the box office at 410-413-2417, or in advance online.
