‘Newsies’ returns in a production from Performance Now in Lakewood

It’s a curious thing that the musical Newsies continues to be so popular given the decline of the newspaper industry in recent decades. The family-friendly show no doubt has many audience members for whom the idea of a print newspaper delivered by a human being is as alien as a rotary phone or, indeed, a typewriter.

But Newsies is an engaging retelling of a real-life incident with all the pieces-parts of a standard musical: a hero’s journey, David vs. Goliath/good vs. evil, a romance alongside the main action — and a satisfying ending that ties it all up.

There are currently two productions of Newsies in Colorado; one opening Jan. 12 at The Arts Hub in Lafayette and the other up now at Lakewood Cultural Center. I took my 11-year-old granddaughter to see the latter one, a production of Performance Now Theatre Company, to see what someone her age thought of a long-ago newspaper strike.

Directed by Bernie Cardell, this Newsies is a solid production of a Disney tale adapted from the 1992 film. The high-energy musical has a good-sized cast and a lot of moving parts that Cardell manages well against a bare, scaffold-centric set.

We meet our hero, “papes” deliverer Jack Kelly (Levi Randolph) at the top of the show talking to his buddy Crutchie (Eli Schroeder) about wanting to get out of New York City altogether and travel to Santa Fe. But it’s not long before he’s pulled into the thick of urban combat when he and his fellow newspaper boys (the newsies), form an ad-hoc union to protest changes made by New York World publisher Joseph Pulitzer (David Kincannon). Jack wasn’t really planning on leading the charge, but his big mouth has the rest of the newsies convinced he’s the guy. Reluctantly, Jack assumes the role of strike leader.

Based on a true story

Before long, he’s at the epicenter of a city-wide strike of newsies that consumes the entire metro area — all based on a true story from 1899. Along with gaining the attention of figures like Pulitzer and, later, Gov. Teddy Roosevelt (Keith Hershman), Jack meets cub reporter Katherine Plumber (Sarah Atkinson) who, we soon learn, is writing under an assumed byline as her daddy is Pulitzer himself.

As Jack, Randolph has a strong singing voice and plenty of dancing talent. And he does a nice job managing a NY accent while building up the character as a blustering dreamer — all talk and bravado on the exterior while his real self longs to pursue his artistic side. He and Atkinson establish a believable rapport from the get-go, moving along the well-trod narrative of combative flirting to a super-charged first kiss that jolts Jack out of his cave. For her part, Atkinson is a delight as the female lead, with a lovely voice and an earnest take on the powerful woman determined to break free from her own family’s expectations.

Another standout is Michaela Murray as Medda Larkin. The owner of a cabaret theatre, she provides a safe space for Jack when he takes refuge in her place, full of doubt following the strike’s first setback. Although she’s only in a few scenes, Murray fills the theatre with her powerful singing voice and big personality; the kind of actor I look forward to seeing in more roles ahead.

Also key to the story are fellow newsie and “brains” of the strike Davey (Wm. Riley Holmes) and his little brother Les. Filling this role with brio is fifth-grader Adella Weldon, who fully imbues the street-smart, wise-cracking imp ready and willing to look pathetic if it means selling a few extra papers.

High-flying dance numbers

Although the performances overall represent a mixed bag of actors at different stages of their careers, the one thing they all have in common is the ability to hit their marks on all of the big dance numbers choreographed by Rebecca Scott Dean. The story calls for a lot of foot-stomping, all-hands-style pieces that are nicely designed and carried out. The ensemble includes a number of high-flying, acrobatic dancers who bring some of that Broadway flair to the show. The only hitch I saw was in some of the transitions between numbers, with cast members looking unsure of what they’re meant to do when idle.

Another area of concerns is the audio, with the pit orchestra often stepping on the actors’ lines making it difficult at times to hear what they’re saying. For me, the orchestra sounded just a bit off as a unit, and some attention should certainly be paid to the mix to ensure the music isn’t overwhelming the action on stage.

But for the most part the fast-paced scenes, impressively choreographed musical numbers and the enthusiasm of the performers makes up for any downsides, and the sold-out matinee I saw this past Sunday was well received by the audience (and my granddaughter like it a lot). Newsies is only up for two more weekends and tickets are selling fast so if you want to catch this one, act soon.