The Outsiders the musical is based on the book, The Outsiders written by S.E. Hinton. The first time this musical went on the Broadway stage was on April 11th, 2024 at the Bernard B. Jacob Theatre in New York. Recently though, the musical was in the Fisher Theatre right here in Detroit, Michigan. The musical consists of two acts, and about 19 different musical numbers. The cast for this musical is Noah Pacht or Nolan White as Ponyboy, depending on showtime, Caleb Mathura as Johnny, SeQuiia as Dally, Dan Berry as Darrel, Sutton James Kaylor as Soda, and so many other amazing actors.
As soon as this musical first went on Broadway, it was a fan favorite across all showings, especially the love for the cast. The cast for The Outsiders musical was very interactive with the fans, and they were very active on social media. The cast would sometimes even go Live on Instagram during intermissions to talk to fans. The cast was one of the many reasons why this musical was so popular from opening night. The kindness from the cast, and the engagement they had with the audience, made people want to go see multiple different shows, buy merch, etc.
Speaking of engagement from the cast, during the show the cast actively acts with the audience on the floor as well. During the opening act of the musical, Ponyboy sits with the audience and at the end of Act 2, Ponyboy hands out the journal to an audience member. This is another example of why this musical became so popular. People on social media would talk about a “Ponyboy seat”, which is just the seat Ponyboy sits in at the beginning of the show. But the excitement of being able to interact with the cast encouraged more people to buy tickets
On March 8th, the Lamphere Theatre Club went to see The Outsiders the musical. A member of that club, Jordyn Williams, had great things to say about the musical. She states, “It was my first time seeing The Outsiders, and it was really cool. The train part was my favorite, the part where Ponyboy was drowning was engaging because of the effects they added and I really loved the “Stay Gold” song.” Overall, everything she had to say about this musical was positive and she liked all the effects that the musical had to offer.
On March 10th, I went to see this musical along with my family and can say it was as good as everyone says it is. The cast was great and did a wonderful job on all the musical numbers, and acting in general. The musical numbers were my favorite part, I thought they were super engaging and catchy. Along with what Jordyn said, I also think the effects of the musical were very cool. The flashing lights and sound effects made it feel so real and had the audience locked in on what was happening in the musical
Overall, the musical was amazing and very engaging, although showtimes are done and you can’t see it on Broadway anymore. I recommend listening to the soundtrack because the songs were super catchy and fun to listen to.