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Review: Disney's Newsies

For my birthday my fiancé bought tickets to see Disney’s Newsies at the Troubadour Theatre in Wembley. This show opened in November and has just extended its run until 30th July. I wasn’t sure what to expect and I was blown away with what I saw.


Background


This musical is adapted from the 1992 Disney movie News Boys. Based on the true story of the Newsboys strike in 1899 in New York against the papers of Joseph Pulitzer after he put the prices of their bundles up. The original musical opened on Broadway in 2012 and was filmed live on stage in 2017 which you can watch on Disney +. This is the first time that UK audiences will be able to experience this new innovative production.


Staging




I didn’t know what to expect when I walked into the theatre and I was in awe of the staging. You have the main stage which has the metal structure but around the outside of the seating they had extra structures that the actors ran around and up and down to get around and back onto the stage. It has to be one of the most immersive shows I have ever been to because there is so much going on around you and you feel like you are in New York. We were sat in Brooklyn meaning we couldn’t always see what was behind us but we had the actors running past us. Whilst waiting for the show you have the sounds of New York being played. I appreciate little things like this for a show because it adds to the experience.


Cast


Starting with our lead character Jack Kelly we had the understudy, George Crawford, he was incredible, his voice for the songs was amazing. He suited everyone he was onstage with in regards to how he interacted and matching their voices with singing. Matthew Duckett as Crutchie was a great comic relief at times and again great at showing his emotions. Bronte Barbe as Katherine Plumber was amazing. I loved the character and how she really wanted to help these boys. Her relationship with George's Jack was lovely and you could see the chemistry. Ryan Kopel who played Davy was a great sidekick to Jack and was the perfect level of nervousness to Jack’s confidence and it was good to see his character grow in confidence throughout the show. It was great to see Cameron Blakely perform again as Joseph Pulitzer, as I had previously seen him as Gomez in the Addams Family. However, this show is nothing without the ensemble. The level of talent they have is extraordinary, the different types of dance that are on show and then the vocals, just incredible.


Music


The music of this show is by Alan Menken who is responsible for all the Disney movie scores from the 90s mainly. Some of my favourites were The World Will Know, Watch What Happens, Seize the Day, Santa Fe, King of New York and Something to Believe In. Every song was incredible and I could listen to the soundtrack over and over again.


Theatre


Until this show opened in November I didn’t know there was a theatre located in Wembley. It was easy to get to as it is about 10 minutes walk from Wembley Park tube station and is easily signposted if you are unsure. When you walk in you are presented with the huge open space which is filled with places to sit and the bar and merchandise stand. It has photos of the cast dotted around. In regards to our seats we were seated in Brooklyn and I couldn’t fault our seats, they were perfect and the seats themselves were very comfortable to sit in.


Final thoughts

Overall, I absolutely loved the show, it has immediately gone into my top 5 shows I have seen and I would go back and see it, if I could. I was blown away by the talent that was on show and I actually prefer it to the concert version that is on Disney +. I know if I’ve loved a musical if I’ve come away and just can’t stop talking about it and have had the soundtrack on loop, which is exactly what has happened since I saw the show. I would recommend this to everyone who loves musical theatre and Disney, you have to see this show.


Link to book tickets: Newsies tickets


Hope you enjoyed this


Stacey x



 

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