Go ahead and ask the young actors who are getting ready to present “Disney’s Newsies: The Broadway Musical” at KISS Theatre if they would have enjoyed a real-life job hawking newspapers back in 1899.
You’ll definitely hear the word “no.”
“Most of the time, it was really bad,” said Janelle Sando, 15, of Wyoming. “They lived on the streets and didn’t always know if they’d get a meal.”
“They didn’t get paid well and they didn’t get treated with respect,” said Lukas Kachinko, 14 of Hanover Township.
“They’re all kind of homeless,” said Alex Hanson, 15, of Avoca.
That said, the young people who will stage the musical in Wilkes-Barre Township tonight through Aug. 15 are thoroughly enjoying singing and dancing the roles of long-ago, David-versus-Goliath newsboys.
Rocco Pugliese, 19, of Wilkes-Barre Township, plays Jack Kelly, leader of a newsboy strike, who tries to get better working conditions for himself and his friends and eventually reaches a compromise with publisher Joseph Pulitzer.
“I know Jack Kelly wasn’t a real person, but he was based on two real people,” Pugliese said. “He’s the leader of the group, maybe not the smartest person in the group, but he’s very charismatic.”
Pugliese spoke during a rehearsal break on an evening when the cast was working on a riot scene.
“You fake the punch,” he said, describing part of the effort that goes into a fight scene. “And it’s really on the person receiving (the fake punch) to sell it, by the way they react to the momentum, or by showing pain.”
KISS Theatre originally planned to stage “Newsies” in April 2020, but the pandemic forced a postponement. The late Joe Sheridan had been slated to direct, but he passed away in December.
Current director Tim McDermott said he’s enjoying watching “Newsies” come together. The show “has something for everyone,” he said, with music director Hollie Major Baker working on the harmonies and choreographer Bernardine Vojtko injecting several styles of hoofing into a musical well known as a showcase for dancing.
“Bernie’s really pushing the cast further than they thought they could go,” McDermott said.
Some of the young cast members have also contributed to the choreography of the action-packed scenes.
“You see that metal ladder? I climb that,” Michael Vodzak, 15, of Wilkes-Barre Township said, proceeding to recount a dizzying list that included running and jumping and escorting another character across the stage.
Some of the rapid-succession moves had been his idea, he said.
“And our director gave us parts that fit our personalities,” said Katie Zeyher, 17, of Dallas, who portrays a character named Finch. “Finch seems like a softie, but if you touch a nerve he’ll go after you,” she said. “I can be that way.”
The musical also has a message, 14-year-old Lukas Kachinko said. “Fight for what you want, fight for what you believe in, make your voices be heard.”
As a present-day newspaper reporter circulated through the auditorium, she made a point of asking cast members if they ever read newspapers in real life — or if they just enjoy singing about them.
“I think my papa used to read them,” Pugliese said, referring to his grandfather.
Sigh. That’s not one but two generations ago.
It appeared the reporter wasn’t going to find any newspaper readers in the cast — until she spoke to Vodzak and Zeyher.
Zeyher plays volleyball and lacrosse for Dallas High School; Vodzak plays baseball for Wyoming Seminary. They both like to read what the sports section reports about their teams. So that’s something.
“Disney’s Newsies: The Broadway Musical” will be presented Aug. 6 through Aug. 15 with shows at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays in KISS Theatre’s Colleen Shea Auditorum, 400 East End Centre, Wilkes-Barre Township. For ticket information, see kisstheatre.org or call 570-829-1901 or contact info@kisstheatre.org/.