The Outsiders: Stay Gold
The Outsiders/Matthew Murphy
Stay Gold. Just about every single person who attended school in the United States can resonate with this line from S.E. Hinton’s, The Outsiders, a classic story that continues to make readers feel seen to this day. The vast cultural awareness of the book and the worldwide phenomenon of the movie creates a sense of pressure when adapting the story into a new art form. Still, director Danya Taymor’s musical production soars above any lingering pressure and adds a new dimension to the beloved story. The Outsiders on Broadway with its already ravenous fanbase, young attractive cast, and innovative production value has what it takes to become a cult classic in its own right.
On a summer Saturday night, the Jacobs Theatre is sold out but the air buzzes with a significantly younger energy than Broadway is accustomed to. A third of the audience is made up of middle school-aged kids who seem to just have read The Outsiders in their English class. This young, excited energy radiates between the audience and the stage throughout the nearly 2.5-hour production. On and off stage, The Outsiders can be summed up in one word: ENERGY. This high-octane production, even in its quiet moments sustains an infectious energy that has audiences leaving the theatre in awe.
“The Outsiders can be summed up in one word: ENERGY”
In line with most new productions today, the Outsiders begins informally as the audience murmurs die down when Ponyboy Curtis (Brody Grant) makes his way through the audience to the stage to sit on a tire and write in his notebook before the show officially begins. The opening song “Tulsa ‘67” sets the scene, introducing the landscape of the story for the small percentage of audience members who don’t already know. From there, the musical tells the all too familiar story (Romeo & Juliet, West Side Story) of a boy from the wrong side of the tracks fighting for what he believes in and falling for a girl he shouldn’t. However, what makes The Outsiders different is the source material in its strong thematic development. In a similar vein, the musical, featuring a book by Adam Rapp finds a unique footing in telling this familiar story.
The Outsiders/Matthew Murphy
The score, with music and lyrics by Jamestown Revival and Justin Levine, falls in line with the high-energy nature of the show but at times it seems like that is all it does, fall in line. Apart from a handful of standout moments including Ponyboy’s early soliloquy “Great Expectations”, Dallas’ (Joshua Boone) final haunting “Little Brother”, and Johnny’s (Sky Lakota-Lynch) heartbreaking “Stay Gold” all of which may simply be chalked up to the tony nominated performances by the actors, the score showcases more cheese than gold. A truly fantastic musical makes its songs feel necessary to tell the story, it answers the question, why does this story need to be a musical? While the score here cannot answer that question with clarity, it does sustain the energy the production needs and that appears to be enough to serve its purpose. It even leaves audiences singing catchy lines like "Let it be known that the grease got a hold on you.”
As an ensemble, the cast blends seamlessly showcasing how much fun they are truly having on stage every night with particular standout performances from the three tony-nominated actors Grant, Boone, and Lakota-Lynch. Some character development issues lead certain performances to fall a bit shallow which in contrast to the aforementioned three performances is a problem that glares bright.
The Outsiders/Matthew Murphy
The TRUE star of the show, as recognized at last week’s Tony Awards, is the staging (Director Danya Taymor), lighting (Brian MacDevitt & Hana S. Kim), and sound design (Cody Spencer) that make the sheer production value of this show worth the ticket. Particularly showcased along with innovative fight choreography (Rick & Jeff Kuperman) in the famous “rumble” scene the production elements announce themselves as what makes this show truly great. This pinnacle of the show is portrayed so uniquely that despite it not being a musical number, voracious applause is given akin to one.
The Outsiders/Matthew Murphy
Even where The Outsiders falls flat in technical musical theatre terms, it is stirring a love for live theatre in a new generation. That is a feat in itself to be commended. While critics may say this success is due to an attractive young cast or cheesy musical theatre conventions, the heart of this story is what continues to resonate no matter the medium it’s told in. Audiences may gravitate towards The Outsiders for a multitude of reasons, but they go back because of the story. Because we all feel like outsiders at some point, but what matters most is the people who love and champion us. And this production showcases that poignantly.
The Outsiders: A New Musical is currently playing at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre in New York, New York.
By Aidan O’Connor
