The Outsiders, a 2024 musical based on the 1967 S.E. Hinton novel about coming-of-age in 1960s Tulsa, Oklahoma, returns to Chicago in its first national Broadway tour. The word “returns” implies what almost was: The Outsiders was supposed to have its pre-Broadway opening at the Goodman Theatre before the pandemic put an end to that notion.
Despite its delayed beginning, The Outsiders production team wasn’t about to give up. Good thing it didn’t. The show, directed by Danya Taymor and written by Adam Rapp and Justin Levine, won four Tony Awards and is among the rare hits of current Broadway offerings. Amazingly, the show’s $22 million cost recently was recouped during its third year on Broadway. Only a couple of other current Broadway shows can boast as much. That says a lot about this musical’s powerful draw for audiences of all ages.
Generations of young Americans grew up reading this novel in middle school. The heartfelt novel beautifully captures the universal truth of teenage angst: the feeling that one will always be “an outsider.” In addition to reading the novel, even more Americans probably have viewed the 1983 Francis Ford Coppola film, starring Tom Cruise and Rob Lowe. Fueled by such familiarity, The Outsiders had a lot going for it from the start.
In a plot reminiscent of another classic musical, West Side Story, the clash here is between the Greasers and the Socs (short for socialites). From the opening number (by Jamestown Revival duo and Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance, with additional material by Justin Levine), The Outsiders pulses with a youthful energy that continues to build until its climactic “rumble scene” between the two groups in a city park.
The animosity between these groups is brilliantly directed by Taymor. The production succeeds not just because of its special effects, but on the physicality of its characters. The actors are seemingly always in motion—bouncing on the hood of an abandoned car, climbing the bars of a jungle gym, or hopping over stray pieces of lumber.
Like the novelist, the musical’s book writers add just the right amount of background to keep audiences rooting for the Greasers. Main character (and Greaser) Ponyboy Curtis (Nolan White) is recently orphaned (both parents died in a car accident). Now the family is held together by former Greaser and slightly older brother Darrel (Travis Roy Rogers), with help from middle brother “Sodapop” (Corbin Drew Ross). One suspects that Sodapop’s depression over his break-up with a girlfriend is heightened by the recent death of their parents. In a touching family scene, it is Sodapop (who isn’t the fizziest flavor on the soda shelf) who reminds his tired, overworked older brother that their only hope at getting through life is to stick together.
Both of the brothers realize that Ponyboy is the family’s hope. When he’s not hanging with his Greaser friends and defending his “turf,” Ponyboy reads chapters of Great Expectations by flashlight in bed, or he recites a Robert Frost poem. He’s even prone to talking about the beauty of sunsets. Such is the life of a sensitive kid in a world that treats him like garbage.
As leading lady “Cherry” Valence, Emma Hearn displays her theatrical chops but one questions her credibility as a teenage girl. She sings and moves with such polish as the “Soc queen” that it’s no wonder she turns every male head when she walks by. However, Cherry proves she’s no “mean girl.” She reaches out to Ponyboy and they surprisingly discover some commonality that neither had anticipated. Their tender duet, “I Could Talk to You All Night,” is one of the musical’s rare romantic moments.
The plot has a few shaky points, such as this one: why would the impeccably dressed Socs want to “rule” over a city park that’s nothing more than rusted climbing gyms and discarded spare tires on a crusty dirt lot? And why would a pair of Greaser runaways, sought by the police for questioning after a recent murder, be suddenly forgiven after rescuing children from a burning building?
The fast-paced action does a good job of hiding some of these flaws, thanks in no small part to the musical’s set design (Tatiana Kahvegian), its award-winning lighting (Brian Macdevitt) and magnificent fight choreography (by Rick and Jeff Kuperman). The show’s score is not a stand-out, but it is pleasantly delivered by these actors, who sound as good as they move. Overall, the show’s various elements meld into a full-blown emotional experience that may have audiences chuckling one minute and tearing up the next.
The cast is superlative in almost every respect, including the wistful and occasionally shy White as Ponyboy. Also noteworthy are his character’s best friend, Johnny Cade (Bonale Fambrini), and Ponyboy’s brothers, the moody and unfiltered Darrel (Rogers) and the unwittingly comic Sodapop (Ross). Also outstanding is a slightly older neighbor and former Greaser, Dallas (Tyler Jordan Wesley). Just out of prison, Dallas serves as a substitute father figure to both Ponyboy and Johnny. Like the younger boys, Dallas’ parents are not in the picture. In fact, the only actual “adult” in this show is a brief appearance by a cop.
The Outsiders plays through February 22 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St. Tickets are available at www.broadwayinchicago.com. The show runs 2 hours and 30 minutes, with one intermission.
For more information on this and other productions, see theatreinchicago.com.
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