Breaking news: Seize the day! Get tickets, if they’re still available! Disney’s “Newsies,” staged by the I’m a Bright Kid Foundation at Paliku Theatre at Windward Community University, is quite a revelation.
It’s a dance-centric show, with oodles of bright moments, and a remarkable experience with much to embrace!
Let me count the ways:
- This is clearly and immediately the best end-of-summer show, reflecting a joyous cast of young folks and a handful of seasoned performers. No secret here – it’s the kids that’ll win you over, as the energized “newsies” — 17 in all (including a couple of girls playing newsboys). They’ve got spunk, energy, desire and mobility, reflecting the kind of unity and esprit of a genuine team effort. There are many standouts, who are carrying on the wisdom and spirit of the late Ron Bright, who planted seeds while a drama mentor at Castle High School, who continued his prolific theatricals at Paliku Theatre until his death. This is an endeavor reflecting his inspiration and a milestone of sorts, in an unstated but visible and audible passing-of-the-torch moment for the current team of talented artisans on and off stage.
- Cast standouts: Genesis Kaeo as the indefatigable Jack Kelly, leader of the “newsies,” or paper carriers and hawkers; Lennox Kepa as Crutchie, Kelly’s loyal sidekick; Seanalei Nishimura, as an ascending news reporter and the show’s love interest; Devon Nekoba, a very familiar stage and radio talent (dating back to the Mr. B. era), for his multiple roles and costuming and, yes, even wigs; Kalani Hicks, as publisher Joseph Pulitzer, the villain of the piece; Alison Maldonado, as diva Medda Lark, in her pink feather boa; and Tom Holowach, as President Roosevelt, in a late-in-the-show cameo.
- The offstage movers and shapers are the unsung heroes of this venture, guiding the cast from the get-go. Director Mary Chesnut Hicks and choreographer Ahnya Chang are co-captain visionaries, inspiring the troupers and the other team techies to flourish (loved the snappy tap-dancing and aerial dynamic leaps); Clarke Bright, musical director, hits all the right notes with a 10-member orchestra, perhaps the largest number of musicians in community theater, in an expanded “pit” that is now visible, not hidden ‘neath the stage; Roslyn Catracchia, vocal director, is new to the IABK ‘ohana and shares her mana‘o beautifully. And kudos to set designer DeAnne Kennedy, whose functional and practical two-pieces of matching architectural edifices with ladders and stairways that serve as dorms or second-tier sing-and-dance space, all moveable and magical in ever-changing motifs, the best set in local theater in a long time; lighting design by Janine Myers, sound design by Steven Nelson, costume design by Anna Foster (smart palate for the youths, comprising caps, vests and trousers in era-appropriate beiges and browns, with a green vest to isolate Jack Kelly from the corps); hair and make-up design by Kevin Murata, and props design by Annie Yoshida embellish the entire experience.
The best-known tune in the show is “Seize the Day,” performed by the ensemble in both Acts 1 and 2, delivering an expected punch. There’s strength in numbers, too, like “The World Will Know,” a pledge of power, though the wistful, quiet moments, like Jack Kelly’s anthem of his Sante Fe dream in the opening moments of the show, and Crutchie’s symbolic and earnest revelation to his Jack, in his “Letter From the Refuge.”
Finally, a Bright Kid show always provide a few quirky asides. Like, Bright family members always wind up as pit musicians (Lynelle Bright, Chris Bright), onstage performers (Drew Bright as Specs, Caity Bright as Hannah) or committee volunteers, like costume construction members Jodi Bright Stein and Paraluman Stice-Durkin); plus kinfolk from recent productions (Azaliah Kekuna as Mike, yes, a girl playing a boy); she’s the sister of Ezekiel Kekuna, an ex-Bright Kid wrapping up his gig as Young Simba in Broadway’s “The Lion King.” These family ties often bring a twinkle to the wrinkle of an all-in-the-‘ohana tradition…
The show opened last Friday (Aug. 9), with performances continuing at 4:30 p.m. today (Aug. 11), and 7:30 p.m. Aug. 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, and 24, with matinees at 4 p.m. Aug. 18, and 25.
And that’s Show Biz…
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‘Newsies’
What: A Disney musical, presented by the I’m a Bright Kids Foundation, featuring music by Alan Menkin, lyrics by Jack Feldman, and book by Harvey Fierstein; based on a 1999 Disney film by Bob Tzudiker and Noni White, inspired by a real-life strike by a rag-tag group of newspaper carriers, who challenged a powerhouse journalist,Joseph Pulitzer.
Where: Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College
When: Remaining shows at 4 p.m. today (Aug. 11) and 7:30 p.m. Aug. 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, and 24, and matinees at 4 p.m. Aug 18, and 25
Tickets: premium, $44; adults 18 to 64, $35; seniors 65+, students 12-17, military with ID, $29; children 6 to 11, $24; at https://cur8.com/24380/project/85292 or www.imabrightkid.org/tickets …