author: Amanda N. Gunther
Ain’t it a fine life? Carrying the banner to the hall (The lecture hall— of the admin building!) A mighty fine life! Carrying the banner tough and tall! And boy oh boy is them kids doing exactly that with this brilliant and energetic production of Disney’s Newsies! You read it here first, folks! And the papes don’t lie! Some sensationally talented kids are giving you two weekends worth of summertime entertainment over at Cockpit in Court Jr. (aka The Court Jesters Summer Theatre) and it’s totally and completely newsworthy! Directed by Liz Boyer Hunnicut with Musical Direction by Patty DeLisle and Choreography by Rachel Miller, this heartfelt, timeless story will bring you just what you need this summer: a feel-good headline with some amazing kids singing and dancing their hearts out!
With a top-notch production team— Sammy Jungwirth creating a two-tier, scaffolding-focused set with gates to ‘Newsies Square’ and doubling up as the show’s lighting designer with lots of appropriate hues of sunrise when called for, Robyn Alvarez and her Costume Collaborators (Theresa Foggo, Tricia Anderson, Addie Howard, Mary Leitch, Olga Mason) pulling every newsboy-cap and canvas messenger bag from the Bronx to Brooklyn and books, and Laura Miller lending her talents as scenic artist to those ‘Jack Kelly’ painted backdrops— the young performers taking the stage have a fantastic play space for showcasing their talents. Director Liz Boyer Hunnicutt keeps the pacing of the show moving lickety-split, just like the daily news, and she focuses on the story— really giving these ‘Newsies’ a chance to let each of their individual characters shine. Patty DeLisle, the show’s musical director, is pumping that stage full of resounding and smoothly blended harmonies, and of course you get razzle-dazzle, leaping-fly choreography from the talented Miss Rachel Miller. You won’t be able to take your eyes off those kids during those more enthusiastic routines— particularly the tap feature in “King of New York” and all of the twirl-spins that happen during any of the conflagratory numbers like “Seize the Day” and “The World Will Know.” Keep your eyes on Dance Captains Lily Anderson and Molly Foggo as well, helping keep everyone focused and executing Miller’s routines crisply and cleanly all throughout the performance.
When the show is chock-a-block with talent, you know every single ensemble member is going to make an impression. The ensemble— including Owen Ryscavage, Jashad Washington, Colton Roberts, Molly Foggo, Lily Anderson, Noah Anderson, Jayde Wild, Daniela Alvarez, Callie Fey, Emily Foggo, Eli Ginder, Nate Kaelber, McKenzie Nace, Gracie Roberts, Noah Testerman, Ryder Bordes, Kayla Marie Camarao, Amelia Trageser Campbell, Pablo Castro-Mendez, Meghan Chrzanowski, Colette Halcott, Natalie Heer, Lillyan Kilduff, Selena Mason, Kara Neat, Benjamin Virgilio— gives your roaring energy whether they’re playing a newsie, a scab, an adult in Pulitzer’s office, or a nun parading through the opening number. Keep an eye out for Benjamin Virgilio, who doubles up as one of the Delancy Brothers (you know, them bullyin’ goons what come for the Newsies?) but also as Mr. Jacobi, the diner-owner who gives all the kids their water. Virgilio’s comic timing and delivery as well as his vocal affectation for Mr. Jacobi is particularly hilarious and has the audience chuckling quite heartily during his cameo appearance in this role.
Kara Neat is another ensemble member who makes herself known in the grizzly role of Spot Conlon, you know, from Brooklyn? Keep your eye out for her in the second act because if Brooklyn’s there— everybody’s there! And you’ll get to enjoy Natalie Heer as Hannah, the office assistant to Mr. Pulitzer, as she New-Yorks her way through those spoken scenes with a fun accent and vivid facial expressions. Pablo Castro-Méndez plays Oscar, the other-half of The Delancy Brothers, both of whom show some excellent control when executing their stage-combat during the fight scenes. You get a nasty persona filled with vitriol from both Amelia Trageser Campbell as Weisel— or as the Newsies call the character, ‘Weasel’— and also from Jayde Wild who goes stalking around the stage as the nefarious Snyder the Spider! And you won’t want to miss Noah Testerman who doubles up as Teddy Roosevelt at the end of the performance, giving a rather stoic but humorous rendition of the Governor of New York (who would eventually become president!)
While villain doesn’t seem like quite the right word when it comes to the character of Joseph Pulitzer, Victor Scigala gives a level of tantrum-throwing intensity to the character that one could easily label Pulitzer as ‘The Bad Guy’ for all the Newsies out there busting their humps trying to make pennies. Scigala is larger than life in his portrayal of Pulitzer and has a solid, clear voice that works well for his solo songs, “The Bottom Line” and its reprise. You almost get that comedic edge to Scigala’s portrayal of Pulitzer (in true Disney Villain style…you know where they have to be just a little silly so as to not be too frightening for the younger members of the audience?) and you get a ‘matter-of-factness’ about him whenever he’s pitching the business end of the character, particularly when it comes to getting his way.
You’ve got a core of central Newsies— Lily Anderson playing Elmer, Molly Foggo playing Specs, Colton Roberts playing Albert, Jashad Washington playing Romeo, and Owen Ryscavage playing Race. This quintet of talented young performers each finds their moments to pop— mostly during “Carrying the Banner”, which is the introduction to the Newsies and their lifestyle as it were, and again during “King of New York” which is the kickoff to the top of Act II. Ryscavage in particularly has really mastered the New York borough sound (lower-upper-east-west-Manhattan to be specific!) and has exacting comic timing that will make you bust-a-gut laughing, especially when he starts talking about the clam with the fancy pearl inside! Keep an eye on these five in all the big numbers, particularly once the Newsies go on strike!
With a boisterous voice and matching personality, Emma Kessler as Miss Medda Larkin will let you know what’s what, especially when it comes to paying attention to her and the Bower Beauties! She gets a big feature solo, “That’s Rich” early in the first act and really gets to strut her stuff both vocally and as a stage presence and Kessler owns every moment of it with a big smile on her face, confidence in her vocals, and an overall sense of pride. Matching Kessler’s energy, though in a completely different vein of character is the precocious Luke DiBello, playing little Les, Davy’s brother. He’ll be telling you constantly to table the palaver and get a move on; he’s pricelessly hilarious and completely focused on making his character the center of attention whenever Les gets brought into a scene, particularly when they first enter Miss Medda’s theatre and he can’t stop gawking at the Bowery Gals! DiBello has a cute camaraderie with Cormac O’Malley, who plays the older brother character of Davy and the pair work wonders when first arriving at Newsies square. You get a real sense of O’Malley’s character during “Watch What Happens (Reprise)” in the second act, because the fire in his belly has finally caught up to his mouth and he’s no longer holding back. You get a great sampling of how strong O’Malley’s vocals are earlier in the performance, particularly during “The World Will Know” but it all comes together in the second act for the Davy character and you’ll be impressed.
Really focused on presenting the character of Crutchie with inner strength, a very impressive handle on how to use that ‘crutch’, Robbie Heer is an excellent performer in this role. When he ‘slips’ and nearly tumbles down from Jack’s ‘penthouse’ in the opening scene, you can feel your heart stop because he does it so convincingly. And he’s so attuned to the character that when he takes a beating with his own crutch from Snyder the Spider during the brawl scene, audience members were audibly gasping and panicking (Heer and Wild were so convincing in their roles that I think the audience forgot they were just acting!) Heer harmonizes with great tonal quality when he sings opposite Jack Kelly in “Santa Fe” and you get a really sentimental, heartfelt sound from him when he sings his solo “Letter from the Refuge” early in Act II as well.
With perfectly articulate patter and a boatload of enthusiastic energy, keep your eyes on Reese Bruning as she tackles the role of Katherine Plumber— just watch what happens! It’s pretty amazing. Bringing that sassy and sharp edge to the character from the moment we first encounter her on the street with the Newsies, Bruning is a versatile performer with perfect vocals that really makes her big swing number, “Watch What Happens” soar. Switching from staccato patter— and it’s a lot of words— into sweeping vocal sounds for that number is no small feat and its one that Bruning does with tremendous grace and ease. You even get to see her kick up her ‘heels’ so to speak in “King of New York” and there’s a lovely little tap-off moment between her and Specs (Molly Foggo. And shoutout to Rachel Miller for teaching these incredible young performers how to walk on their tap-heels at the top at that scene so that they don’t give away the surprise that they’re all about to bust-out into a tap-routine!) Bruning has quippy zingers that build up just the right amount of chemistry between her and Jack Kelly so that when they finally get to their little duet, “Something to Believe In” you really feel their connection.
The enigmatic, mercurial Jack Kelly is being perfected by Ethan Howard in this production of Newsies. There’s that accent— strong, clear, consistent, sliding over all that Newsie-terminology with ease— there’s the showmanship, which you get in spades all throughout each of Howard’s big numbers, and there’s the vocals— powerhouse, ready to light a fire and blaze the stage down and inspiring to all his fellow Newsies. Howard feels like a natural-born leader in the role and there’s a level of slightly smug confidence that keeps the character toeing the line of cockiness just on the right side of things. When he breaks down at the end of the first act, it’s a visceral experience but Howard doesn’t let those emotions strip his vocality for “Santa Fe (Reprise)” in that moment. Howard paints pictures with his voice, particularly in “I Never Planned On You” and “The World Will Know” and you get a sense of maturity burbling just beneath the surface of his character at all times. Truly carrying the banner of Newsies leadership, Ethan Howard is elevating Jack Kelly well above the rooftops with his talented performance.
Now is the time to seize the— tickets! Seize your chance to see these amazing kids perform Newsies this summer before it’s yesterday’s news!
Running Time: 2 hours and 20 minutes with one intermission
Newsies plays through June 30th 2024 with Cockpit in Court’s ‘Court Jesters’ in the Lecture Hall of the Administration Building at the Community College of Baltimore County Essex Campus— 7201 Rossville Boulevard in Baltimore, MD. For tickets call the box office at (443) 840-2426 or purchase them online.
