The high-flying, smash Broadway musical will set the Queen Elizabeth stage on fire.
Breaking news! Disney’s NEWSIES has leapt its way into Vancouver and is ready to tear up the stage of the Queen Elizabeth Theatre starting tomorrow night. Presented by Broadway Across Canada, this Tony Award-winning musical may be the greatest dance musical ever, known for its fierce numbers and insane talent that has historically included top dancers from the dance competition circuit, So You Think You Can Dance, and renowned ballet companies.
Watch this trailer, courtesy of Disney on Broadway:
NEWSIES is the reason why I started dancing when I was a kid. It was originally a Disney feature film that came out in 1992 and starred Christian Bale in the lead role of Jack Kelly. Yes, Mr. Dark Knight himself was in a Disney musical! He sang, danced and charmed his way through the movie. When I saw this amazing movie as a child (it was directed by Kenny Ortega, who would later direct the High School Musical trilogy), I knew I had to start learning jazz runs ASAP.
Twenty years later, NEWSIES was transformed into a shiny Broadway musical, starring Broadway stud Jeremey Jordan (from TV’s Smash) and acclaimed male dancers such as Alex Wong and Ryan Steele. Choreographer Christopher Gattelli won the 2012 Tony Award for his work and the show features songs from the movie plus newly written material by Alan Menken (composer of The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast and Pocahontas) and Jack Feldman, and a book by four-time Tony Award-winner Harvey Fierstein. NEWSIES is directed by Jeff Calhoun.
The show tells the true story of the ‘Newsboy Strike of 1899’, when newspaper tycoons Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst (think the Miranda Priestlys of the publishing world), raised distribution prices of newspapers, making things unreasonably tough for young newsboys struggling to make ends meet. In the Broadway Across Canada production opening tomorrow night, Joey Barreiro plays newsboy leader, Jack Kelly, who bands the kids together and inspires them to fight for their rights.
Complete with dynamite dance numbers, a soaring score and world-class talent (including Michael Dameski, winner of So You Think You Can Dance Australia), this show is going to set the Queen Elizabeth stage on fire.
Cast member Michael J. Rios' Instagram pic shows how he warms up before a performance.
Want to add some newsboys to your Instagram pics? Simply download the NEWSIES Photo Booth app and you can sweeten your social media with your fav NEWSIES characters. Think how jealous you’ll make your followers when they scroll down their feeds and see you chillin’ with the boys #Winning #Fansies. Watch this demo to see how it’s done and don’t forget to include #NewsiesPhotoBooth when you post.
To give you some ideas, I've taken the liberty of testing out the app...
Disney’s NEWSIES runs in Vancouver from July 5 - 10. Visit Broadway Across Canada to purchase tickets.