Newsies Jr

On the surface a musical based on an American newspaper publisher raising prices at the expense of his young street distribution network which led to the Newsboy strike of 1899 doesn’t seem to be the obvious subject matter for an award winning musical but it does make complete sense that a junior version of the show should be compiled.  The audiences at the Dormston Mill Theatre needed no such qualms – as WBOS Youtheatre are no strangers to taking on challenges and once again, they were proved to be absolutely justified in staging this remarkable show.

Any potential youth led labour movement would need to be galvanised behind a charismatic and idealistic leader and the Newsies of the title are no exception – they found it in Melvin Umah’s Jack Kelly, and along with his sidekick, Crutchie, played by Jack Keasley we have the perfect combination. Their characterisations, perfect accents, sheer enthusiasm and musical and dramatic talent shone through delivering the impactful, and at times, moving story and numbers.

They were supported by some very strong performances including an insightful and intriguing portrayal of the reporter Katherine Plummer, played by Grace Boden. We also meet Davey and his younger brother, Les, played by, I assume, real life brothers, Freddie and Oscar Wetherall, giving the performances an extra frisson as their relationship develop. As Medda Larkin, a powerful and rich Vaudeville performer who supports the Newsies in their fight, played with a maturity beyond her years by Casey Michaela and with great vocal talent ably joined by her Vaudeville Dancers.

This is a great Youth Theatre show with many chances for anyone involved to shine, some brilliant production numbers, imaginatively choreographed by Claire Flavell including showstoppers like ‘Seize the Day’ and the rousing ‘Once and For All’. There are also some moving solo ballads including Jack Keasley’s ‘Letter From the Refuge’ which bought a tear to my eye in this heartwarming interpretation and Melvin Umah’s ‘Santa Fe’ as he doubts his abilities and questions his motivation – all credit to Musical Director, Amber Seddon, who created a great sound and some amazingly beautiful musical moments with some very difficult songs.

The stage was exploding with talent – The Newsies themselves threw themselves into their roles each playing their part to the full, alongside the evil newspaper publishers led by Jordan Obrien’s Joseph Pulitzer, who gauged the part perfectly with just the right amount of disgust for the annoying newspaper boys. 

Simple and effective scenery allowed for efficient scene changes conducted by members of the cast under the watchful eye of Stage Manager Nick Smith and Assistant Stage Manager Kate Hemingbrough, added to the hustle and bustle of the show with great lighting and sound balance meaning that dialogue and lyrics were clearly heard with grateful acknowledgment to The Lighting Factory.

This was a tremendous vehicle to illustrate the depth and breadth of talent of WBOS Youtheatre and they achieved it in shedloads – in fact it was their chance to ‘Seize the Day’ and they did brilliantly.

My most grateful thanks to WBOS Youtheatre for their kind invitation and warm welcome, it was very gratefully appreciated.

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