ASHLAND — Ashland High School’s biggest cast ever will hit the stage this weekend as students perform Disney’s “Newsies: The Muscial.”
The performance will be the school’s first full-scale production since the height of the pandemic and will resemble pre-COVID days in the 1,002-seat Archer Auditorium, said Richard Wasowski, a high school English teacher and the play’s director.
Newsies will be Wasowski’s 27th show at the high school — and it’s sure to be a hit, he said.
“It’ll be a nice, diverse experience for our kids,” Wasowski said, noting the cast is 67 large this year, with performers from preschool-aged on up to high school seniors. He said there has never been a cast this large.
Wasowski said there is one actor currently in preschool, two in elementary school and three in middle school. The rest are in high school. The young actors will represent the musical’s plot, which is loosely based on the New York City Newsboys’ Strike of 1899.
Wasowski said there weren’t only newsboys back then.
“There were female newsies in 1899. And we have girl newsies, too,” he said.
When released in 1992 as a film starring a younger Christian Bale, the movie bombed in the box office. It received mixed reviews at the time, but later gained a cult after it came out on home video.
It was ultimately adapted into a stage performance on Broadway. Since then, it has been nominated for eight Tony Awards, winning two.
“I didn’t realize how many people love this show,” Wasowski said. “I mean, the movie and Broadway show play all the time. And people in the last 10 years, it really does have a cult following. It’s kind of crazy.”
The English teacher said when he picks a show, he makes sure initially the school has the talent for the act. This year, the high school has several strong male singers, he said. But there are some great female roles, too.
“So we have that part covered,” he said.
When it comes to instrumentation, Wasowski said the school’s talent can cover that, too.
“Two of the pit’s keyboardists are seniors this year. And all of (the instrumentalists) are kids in the high school,” he said.
He also wanted a show with a large cast because last year’s winter musical was so small. Last year, the production included a filmed version of “Godspell,” originally an off-Broadway show that over the years has been adapted for Broadway and other theaters.
Ashland’s filmed adaptation of Godspell featured 15 performers in 10th, 11th and 12th grades. They filmed it and then later streamed the performance because of COVID restrictions, Wasowski said.
This year’s show will also incorporate a streaming element.
“But we’re not allowed to live stream,” Wasowski said. So the plan is to record Wednesday and Thursday before the show for dress rehearsals. He said they will choose the best performance for the streaming option — which will exist as an option for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The show premiers Friday at 7 p.m. with another performance following Saturday at the same time. There will be a matinee show at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Tickets are available for $6 and $8 apiece, depending on seating choice.
Spectators can call Wasowski at 419-289-7968, extension 3128, to reserve tickets that will be available at will call. They can also email him at riwasows@goarrows.org or purchase them at the high school between 3:30 and 5:30 p.m. on school days.
