North Sanpete to perform ‘Newsies’ starting Jan. 16
Newspaper carriers sing out in fight for their rights
By Robert Green
01-10-2019
PLEASANT—The North Sanpete High School drama department will perform Newsies, the smash-hit musical by Disney, next week.
“This is by far the largest musical we have done in recent memory,” said theater teacher Alex Barlow. “These students have been working incredibly hard and it shows. This is a production that you don’t want to miss”
The performance will run from Jan. 16 to Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. each evening at the North Sanpete High School.
Tickets are $8 for general admission, $7 for students/seniors or $25 for a family pass (up to 4).
The local production is directed by Alex Barlow; music direction is by Dr. Lara Billings and choreography is by Sarah Anderson.
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 actions of Kid Blink during the newsboy strike of 1899.
The musical features a score by eight-time Academy Award winner Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Sister Act) and Jack Feldman and a book by four-time Tony Award winner Harvey Fierstein (La Cage aux Folles, Torch Song Trilogy).
The stage version introduces eight brand-new songs by the original team of Menken and Feldman, including a song written specifically for the national tour called “Letter from the Refuge,” while keeping many of the beloved songs from the film, including “Carrying the Banner,” ”Seize the Day,” “King of New York” and “Santa Fe.”
Since the film’s 1992 theatrical release and subsequent DVD release, Newsies has grown into a cult phenomenon, and for years was the single most requested title of all the Disney musical films not yet adapted for the stage.
