Watch What Happens: a review of Newsies at NGU
Emma Ogren, Assistant Editor
Photo by Emma Ogren
On the warm evening of April 16, 2026, people lined up and anxiously awaited to get into the doors of the Billingsley Theatre. Students are excited to see their friends perform and professors are praying that everything goes the way it’s supposed to.
The opening night of North Greenville University’s production of Disney’s Newsies has been highly anticipated for months. Announced in February of 2025, these performances were a long time coming.
Rehearsals for the show started on February 23, 2026, and a mere two months later, opening night rolled around. I sat in my seat and waited for the lights to be dimmed and the show to start.
I am a lifelong, self-proclaimed theater kid and Newsies has always been one of my favorite shows. I had the pleasure of seeing a semi-professional rendition of it in July 2025 and was excited to see how NGU’s version compared.
Let me be the first to say, I was not disappointed.
The cast was fun, dynamic and continued to keep up their energy through the two and a half hours in which they performed. With explosive dance numbers and highly emotional music, these students showed the audience the heart behind their craft.
The story of Newsies surrounds the ideas of courage and resilience. Jack Kelly, a 17-year-old orphan, leads his group of kids who sell newspapers for cents on the street. As a union, they fought against unfair labor practices and the strikes and rallies they held brought eyes to exploitation of young workers.
Paden Lipe, who graduated NGU in 2020, took on the challenge of portraying Jack Kelly and opposite of him was Anslee Johnson, junior theatre major, who played Katherine Plumber.
Lipe’s depiction of Kelly was very convincing; from the accent to the emotion behind every statement, I felt transported into a world of both hurt and hope. It was easy to believe that he wanted what was best for the kids he was standing up for. However, I could also hear the fear in his inflection in the times that it was needed.
I also believe that Johnson was the correct choice for Plumber. She has a very strong voice that fit a character who was willing to take risks and go against everything she was raised on to do right. Plumber has always been a character that has stayed in the back of my mind because, to me, she truly is what a fictional character should do. She is an inspiration as she continued to stand up for the newsies and help them, even if it meant she would be punished, because it was the correct thing to do.
Another thing about Johnson’s performance that stood out to me was her rendition of “Watch What Happens,” which is Plumber’s solo. It was very fast-paced, witty and not at all a simple song to perform, but Johnson did it with grace and her diction allowed me to understand every word.
A choice that was interesting, but seemed necessary given the cast, was casting females in male roles and making the characters women. An example of this was making most of the newsies girls and having them wear more feminine outfits that included skirts and ruffles.
Another example of this was casting senior theatre major Alyse Barret as Davey. This is a historically male role, and I did think that this casting choice changed the dynamic slightly.
Davey and Kelly have the type of relationship that I would consider a “bromance.” Throughout their highs and lows through the strike they are able to come together to become friends for life. But when you put a woman in that role it really highlights certain aspects that I hadn’t noticed before. Personally, it felt like Davey and Plumber were hashing it out for Kelly’s attention and in a show where everyone needs to be a team, it felt off.
However, I do still think that Barret did a wonderful job in the role that she was given. She was able to hit the low notes that her character had, and she truly was a leader for the newsies and the cast in all. At one point, her mic was having technical difficulties, and she continued on with poise and grace, not letting it affect her performance.
Sophomore psychology major Briana Williams played Wiesel, the person who sells the newspapers to the newsies. She explained, “Being an antagonist is really fun until you have to hide your enthusiasm. I found it so difficult to be angry in the midst of all the excitement and joy of the musical. Looking out at my friends and family while grimacing and barking orders at the newsies was a new and very difficult experience.”
Freshman English and digital media major Rosalie Bradley played flute in the pit orchestra.
About the first performance she said, “I really enjoy playing in pit orchestras. Orchestra members don’t show up until tech week, but it’s awesome to see how everyone’s hard work comes together and how much the audience enjoys it.”
Junior health science major KJ Nelson said after the show, “They crushed it. Everyone did so good and I’m so proud of them.”
