Disney's hit musical Newsies opened on Broadway at the Nederlander Theatre March 29. Directed by Jeff Calhoun with choreography by Christopher Gattelli, the production played 16 previews and 1,004 performances before closing August 24, 2014. Newsies earned eight Tony Award nominations and won Best Original Score and Best Choreography.
Inspired by the real-life Newsboy Strike of 1899, Newsies tells the story of newsboy Jack Kelly, who dreams of a better life far from the hardship of the streets. When Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise distribution prices, Jack finds a cause to fight for and rallies his army of newsies to strike. It originated as a Disney movie musical in 1992 before being adapted for the stage, debuting at Paper Mill Playhouse in 2011. The stage version introduced seven new songs to the musical, including a song written specifically for the tour, “Letter from the Refuge,” while keeping many of the songs from the 1992 film, including “Carrying the Banner,” “Seize the Day,” “King of New York,” and “Santa Fe.”
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Newsies features music by eight-time Oscar winner Alan Menken, lyrics by Jack Feldman, and a book by four-time Tony winner Harvey Fierstein,
The Broadway production starred Jordan as Jack Kelly, John Dossett as Joseph Pulitzer, Lindsay as Katherine, Capathia Jenkins as Medda Larkin, Fankhauser as Davey, Keenan-Bolger as Crutchie, and Lewis Grosso and Matthew Schecter as Les. Rounding out the cast were Aaron J. Albano, Mark Aldrich, Tommy Bracco, John E. Brandy, Ryan Breslin, Kevin Carolan, Kyle Coffman, Mike Faist, Julie Foldesi, Garett Hawe, Thayne Jasperson, Evan Kasrzak, Jess LeProtto, Stuart Marland, Andy Richardson, Ryan Steele, Brendon Stimson, Nick Sullivan, Ephraim M. Sykes, Laurie Veldheer, and Alex Wong with Caitlyn Caughell, Maichael Fatica, Jack Scott, and Stuart Zagnit as swings.
Newsies featured scenic design by Tobin Ost, costume design by Jess Goldstein, lighting design by Jeff Croiter, sound design by Ken Travis, and projection design by Sven Ortel with stage management by Thomas J. Gates, Becky Timothy Eaker, and Becky Fleming. Visit the Playbill Vault for the complete cast and creative team.
