“The Outsiders” is incredible.
The show is based on the 1967 novel by the same name, and is at Bass Concert Hall on The University of Texas at Austin campus this week. This cannot be stressed enough: You must go see it.
“The Outsiders,” if you also haven’t brushed up on the book since seventh grade, follows Ponyboy Curtis as he navigates life as a Greaser in 1967 Tulsa, Oklahoma. Curtis, his brothers Sodapop and Darrel, and their Greaser gang members experience life on the literal wrong side of the tracks. They’re targeted by their affluent peers, the Socs (pronounced “sew-shiz”).
This musical has something for everyone. If you’ve been having a “West Side Story” itch, it will scratch it. In need of an inspiring story about a boy with dreams bigger than his small town? You’ve got it. Are you due for a cry about the beauty of friendship and the families we create? Absolutely.
Ponyboy, who is played by Nolan White, narrates the story, speaking directly to the audience. You’ll know you’re in for a show like never before shortly after the lights dim – Ponyboy is attacked by the Socs and the way extreme violence is executed in this show is stunning. It is done again and again throughout via thoughtful light work, slow-motion movement, and extraordinary choreography.
Gang violence should always be illustrated with acrobatic feats and pirouettes – we learned that ages ago. But the way “The Outsiders” does this is out of this world. It will knock you off your feet. You will start to become concerned with how often you get goosebumps during the show’s two-and-a-half-hour run time. The moves are as impactful as they are graceful.
The cast also has a little bit of home with them – Tyler Jordan Wesley, who nearly steals the show as Dallas Winston; and Emma Hearn, the saccharine Cheery Valance, are both graduates of Texas State University. And oh my do they do Central Texas proud. Be sure to remember their names. I’m not kidding.
In the second act, the Greasers and Socs meet up for their big rumble. What happens next is worth the Tony award for “Best Musical” the show received last year alone. With music behind them, the actors are silent as they do what can only be described as dance fighting. Water falls on top of the cast as they pound each other in the face and torso. I don’t want to reveal anything else!
The scene lasts long enough for you to savor each moment and goes quick enough that it leaves you wanting just a little bit more.
Bass Concert Hall’s Tuesday audience was silent for, it had to be, 10 full seconds when the fight scene ended before an uproar of shouts and claps and screams took over the auditorium.
“The Outsiders” is so well done and may be one of the best things to pass through Austin in years.
Tickets for the remainder of the show’s Austin run are scarce, but start at $60 and can be purchased online.
You only have a few opportunities left to get your butt to Bass Concert Hall: The show runs tonight, Friday night, and twice on Saturday and Sunday.
