On Saturday, the day I thought would never come finally came. It was finally time to make the almost four-hour trek to DC to see NEWSIES on Tour. I was so nervous leading up to this day. I wanted everything to go as smoothly as possible. Considering last time I made this attempt, it went anything but smooth.
But, I didn’t want my anxiety to get the best of me. I did my best to keep my eyes on the stars and my feet on the ground, I knew I could do this (10 points for you if you get this reference.) However, I’m going to be completely honest here, I wasn’t completely calm at all until I was sitting my center orchestra seat one row from the back of the house. It wasn’t until that moment that I breathed a sigh of relief and truly processed the fact that I was there, in the theatre, about to see the show.
- Standing outside the National Theatre
- The typical Playbill and stage photo.
As any fansie probably still thinks, we love the tour cast to absolute pieces because they’re bringing the show to life across the country, but, the Broadway casts will always be the standard that they have to attempt to live up to. And to my surprise (alright, I didn’t have complete doubt) each one of them did a fantastic job. Dan’s Jack Kelly was pretty much a perfect mesh of Jeremy and Corey’s performances.
Stephanie Styles was an absolute doll on stage. It was evident that she connects with this role to a high level and enjoys every minute of being on the stage. I did see a slight look of exhaustion on her face during “King of New York,” but that is to be expected during the second show of a two show day, or as they jokingly call it, a #TwoDowShay.
Don’t even talk to me about “Letter from the Refuge.” Bootleggers have been posting audio of this all over the place since the tour launched last year. And I will admit, I did listen to one recording, and got hit in the feels by it. However, that bootlegged audio doesn’t even compare to seeing Crutchie cramped up in the refuge singing his sorrows in the happiest tone. I absolutely loved this song and Zachary Sayle’s performance. This is one change that I stand firmly behind, considering in the Broadway production, we didn’t see Crutchie at all during Act 2 until the final song. If you haven't heard the song, here's a link to the Disney Playlist Sessions video!
I could go on and on mentioning all the things I liked about the rest of the cast members. Ben Cook’s pirouettes were on point, Josh Burrage’s flips were incredible, Angela Grovey stole the show as Medda, Chaz Wolcott’s smile captivated the audience, and the list goes on and on. I loved seeing Julian DeGuzman, JP Ferreri, and Mark Aldrich, who were part of the Broadway cast, up there on the stage.
And I’ll stop there.
The stage door was one of the sweetest moments of the evening. All though not everyone came to meet fansies (including Zachary, Jacob Kemp, and JP), the ones who did still had so much energy. From reactions such as “Yes! I love taking pictures!” to each one of them loving my canvas I asked them to sign instead of the Playbill, it was clear that each one of them love their jobs so much. One of my favorite moments was meeting Michael, and when we went to take a photo, the street light was covering his face, and he went “Ahh! Oh no I look like a ghost!” And then we moved and got a better photo. I also stood next to a fansie who gave Chaz the sweetest gift. Ben Cook’s family friends also came up to the line and he was so happy to see them. These are real people; they just happen to be on stage and traveling the country performing in an incredible show.
- Michael Ryan - Morris Delancey
- "Oh no! I look like a ghost!" - Michael Ryan
- Stephanie Styles - Katherine
- Angela Grovey - Medda Larkin
- Ben Cook - Race
- Joshua Burrage - Darcy, Jojo
- Chaz Wolcott - Buttons
- Jeff Heimbrock - Elmer, Spot Conlon
- Julian DeGuzman - Finch
featuring photobomb by Sky Flaherty - Albert
- Nico DeJesus - Romeo
So, I’ll end with this. Go see NEWSIES. If you’re pretty attached to the Broadway cast, trust me, these guys won’t disappoint you. If you’ve never seen the show, give it a chance. Go meet them at the stage door. Ask to take pictures. And just tell them that they’re doing a great job carrying this banner.
Well, because they are.
To find out if NEWSIES is carrying the banner close to you and to learn more about the show and cast, visit newsiesthemusical.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment