Shows Archive - Community Players

Set in turn-of-the-century New York City, Newsies is the rousing tale of Jack Kelly, a charismatic newsboy and leader of a band of teenaged "newsies." When titans of publishing raise distribution prices at the newsboys’ expense, Jack rallies newsies from across the city to strike against the unfair conditions and fight for what's right!

Based on the 1992 motion picture and inspired by a true story, Newsies features a Tony Award-winning score by Alan Menken (Little Shop of Horrors, Sister Act) and Jack Feldman and a book by Tony Award winner Harvey Fierstein (Kinky Boots). Featuring the now classic songs “Carrying the Banner,” “Seize the Day,” and “Santa Fe,” Newsies is packed with non-stop thrills and a timeless message, perfect for the whole family and every audience.

It has been an unparalleled privilege to direct Newsies, and to tell the story of how children whose lives had been crushed by poverty risked everything to make a better life for themselves, by risking it all and striking against those who were out to exploit them.

Newsies is based on real events that happened in July of 1899 in New York City, when newspaper sales ground to a halt because of the Newsie strike. What is so profound about this strike is that it was led by and for children. As a result of the strike, Newsies were able to incur no loss to themselves when they found they had unsold newspapers. Joseph Pulitzer agreed to buy back those unsold papers. This helped the Newsies gain a more solid economic footing. This “Children’s Crusade” was one of many strikes which led to the child labor laws we know today. Newsies is a story about heroes, young people who could have been as young as six years of age who organized to make their voices heard, and paved the way to protect our most precious and valuable citizens, our children.

The Spanish-American war is often referred to as the first media war-it was the first war in which the press played a significant role in shaping public opinion. Through the use of sensationalized reporting and provocative (if misleading) headlines, newspapers such as the New York World and the New York Journal provided the public with detailed information from the frontlines. These attention-grabbing headlines and overdramatic retellings played a huge role in pushing public support for the United States to enter war with Spain. The owners of the of the World and the Journal, Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, inspired by the increase in sales due to wartime coverage, found a way to increase their profits further by undercutting those at the very bottom of the tall tower they occupied.

In the late 1800s, New York streets were filled with the cries of newsies. Newsboys and girls could buy 100 papers for 50 cents, selling each paper for a dollar and making a nice return on their 50 cent investment. Hearst and Pulitzer decided the way to make more money was to raise the distribution price to 60 cents for 100 papers.

Newsies were young, poor, often orphaned children. They lived in dilapidated tenements where they often brought home their earnings to help feed their brother and sisters. They could be found in poorly funded lodging houses and many more lived on the streets. Selling newspapers gave them a chance to earn real money, often much more than they would earn in a factory or other work considered suitable at the time for children. They relied on headlines to sell papers and when the wartime headlines began to wane, so did newspaper sales. The price increase remained, however, and the newsies began to struggle.

Inspired by the increase in labor unions across the country, the newsies joined together to start a union of their own-they held rallies and organized across all five boroughs, New Jersey and beyond. They were joined in the support by members of the Vaudeville community, the adults who ran the standing newsstands, and even members of the press. Their strike lasted two weeks and ended with equitable change for the newsboys and inspired lasting improvements in the form of increased worker unions, labor laws and child labor restrictions.

Their story is incredible not just because they were children; it is incredible they were children; it is incredible because the divide in wealth and power between the two opposing sides was so very deep. The lyrics to Once And For All perfectly illustrates this: “This is for the kids shining shoes in the street with no shoes on their feet everyday”. The newsboys strike of 1899 was a true David & Goliath tale: no one believed a group of dirty, ragtag, street kids could take on Pulitzer and Hearst and win-but they did. They showed the world (and the World) that when humans band together–we are unstoppable.

As we look forward to the celebrations and traditions of the season, the 2023 edition of Holiday on Robinhood Lane hopes to share the many things we all love about this time of year. Memories of Home, our theme this year, will allow the cast and audience to remember together what they have experienced with the ones they love during this time of year.

With an original script, Holiday will give us a glimpse of the memories and traditions that connect us all. Featuring vocal performance, spoken word, movement, and more, Holiday on Robinhood Lane is CPT’s gift to our community. It is a celebration that is filled with joy, peace, and love. We hope to give each person involved a memory that they will cherish for a lifetime.

Welcome to our home here on Robinhood Lane! When you think about the holidays, what do you remember most? We can all look back to the times we celebrated with our loved ones. With our original script, Holiday on Robinhood Lane: Memories of Home and an original song, Memories of Home, we invite you to celebrate with our family and remember fondly your very own stories. We welcome you all with love and look to you to help us create a space where everyone is cherished.

Our collective lived experiences and cultural traditions weave a tapestry of celebration as unique and vibrant as the stars in the sky. This show reaches across generations and harvests a space of inclusion and love. We have surely enjoyed creating this story for you all and call you to join our family! We’re so glad you’re here!

Peace. Shalom. Salaam. Shanti. Peace.

Young Frankenstein

Auditions

January 15-17, 2024 @ 7pm

Preview

March 7, 2024

Performances

March 8-10, 15-17 & 22-24, 2024

Preview, Fridays & Saturdays @ 7:30pm • Sundays @ 2:30pm

Venue

Community Players Theatre

Light Advisory

This show contains flashing and strobe lights.

Content Advisory

Due to its slightly irreverent yet good-natured humor, Young Frankenstein might not be suitable for very young children — but teens (and those above their teen years!) will best enjoy this uproarious musical comedy.

Recommended for ages 13 and up for adult themes and language. (There is no official rating system for live theatre.) We encourage you to use your judgment based on your own research of the show, your own sensibilities, and a child's age and maturity level.

Grandson of the infamous Victor Frankenstein, Frederick Frankenstein (pronounced "Fronk-en-steen") inherits his family's estate in Transylvania. With the help of a hunchbacked sidekick, Igor (pronounced "Eye-gore"), and a leggy lab assistant, Inga (pronounced normally), Frederick finds himself in the mad scientist shoes of his ancestors. "It's alive!" he exclaims as he brings to life a creature to rival his grandfather's. Eventually, of course, the monster escapes and hilarity continuously abounds.

Every bit as relevant to audience members who will remember the Mel Brooks original as it will be to newcomers, Young Frankenstein has all the of panache of the screen sensation with a little extra theatrical flair. With such memorable tunes as "The Transylvania Mania," "He Vas My Boyfriend" and "Puttin' on the Ritz," Young Frankenstein is scientifically proven, monstrously good entertainment.

I have a confession. I have a crush on Mel Brooks. Our production of Young Frankenstein is a love letter to him and to the incomparable Gene Wilder, who conceived the notion of Victor Frankensteins’s descendant returning to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps by sparking life into lifeless tissue thereby creating "The Monster." Also, we honor Mary Shelley, who in her genius wrote the original novel, Frankenstein in 1818. Shelley glimpsed into the future and warned that humanity would eventually have to grapple with what wonders science can create, and the consequences thereof.

-Marcia Weiss

12 Angry Jurors, based on the 1954 teleplay ‘12 Angry Men’ by Reginald Rose and adapted for film in 1957, tells the story of 12 jurors charged with the unenviable task of deciding a young man’s fate. Accused of brutally murdering his father, the young man’s life hangs in the balance as a jury of his peers battle reasonable doubt, prejudice, and their own morality in a cramped, overheated deliberation room. Tempers flare as the reality of a death sentence weighs on the minds of these 12 strangers, the life or death of the accused foisted upon them. Guilty or not guilty. Life or death. Freedom or damnation. Each juror must vote.