In the early nineties, newbie screenwriters Bob Tzudiker and Noni White pitched an idea to Walt Disney Productions. They wanted to make a movie about the 1899 newsies strike where young boys were able to win against the likes of Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst. Disney ordered it and Christian Bale was cast in the main role of Jack Kelly. Then Disney decided to make it a musical, bringing award-winner Alan Menken on board with new lyricist Jack Feldman. The movie was far from a box office smash and Christian Bale swore off musicals forever.
But then something strange began to happen. Newsies became a cult classic. Fans grew to love the movie despite its flaws--or maybe for its flaws. The music grew more and more popular. And Disney decided to turn the property into a musical. Menken and Feldman agreed to write new songs as well as work with the ones they had already written for the movie. Pulitzer Prize winner Harvey Fierstein was brought on to revamp Tzudiker and White's screenplay, to make it more palatable for the stage (and to fix some of the more problematic aspects of the movie). The musical bowed at the Papermill Playhouse in New Jersey to critical raves as well as good word-of-mouth.
After it closed, it was rumored that Disney wanted to bring it to Broadway. And a few months later, it did. Opening March 12, 2012 in the Nederlander Theater, the same praise from Papermill followed it to Broadway. It was nominated for eight Tony Awards, including Best Actor for Jeremy Jordan and Best Musical. While it lost the top prize to "Once" and Jordan lost to Ben Kazee (of "Once"), Newsies still won two Tonys--Best Score and Best Choreography.
On Friday, July 12, 2014, I finally saw this musical.
EXTRA! EXTRA! SPOILERS BELOW!
