Student-led show closes March 21

Extra! Extra! Now is the time to seize the day!

Coeur d'Alene Charter Academy's production of "Newsies" opens at 7 tonight. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

In "Newsies," the tyrannical newspaper magnate, Joseph Pulitzer, just raised the price of papers. The poor newsboys are left to shoulder the burden of this unprecedented price hike.

But the kids won’t have it. Under the relentless charisma of Jack Kelly, the Newsies of New York City must forge friendships and wield the power of the press to fight for their rightful place in society. Will they succeed and get the respect they deserve, or will Goliath crush David in this intergenerational conflict of might and right? Only time will tell.

This year, Coeur d’Alene Charter's spring musical looks a little different behind the scenes. Director Dana Robinette, the figurehead of Charter Drama for the past decade, is in her third trimester of pregnancy. Because of this, she chose to delegate many aspects of the show, including choreography, set design and prop construction, to a few trusted students. Under the leadership of these students, the production has come to life in brilliant ways.

It is rare for directors, even at the high school level, to hand over the responsibility for choreography to students. Regardless, Alyx Matthews and Aubri Curry dutifully undertook the job of choreographing every musical number of the show. Both seniors in high school and former Charter students, they devoted over 80 hours to creating every piece of movement. They also patiently taught the cast of 35 kids the steps to each dance. While, admittedly, not every step of the process was easy, both Matthews and Curry are “very grateful for the opportunity to choreograph the show," they said in a March 4 news release.

Set design and props are other areas where students stepped in. Kylah Chavez led a small group of student artists in designing and creating set pieces for the production. The group’s artistic talents are visible in the various backdrops and paintings that occupy the stage throughout the play. Ella Metzler and Raena Edmiston constructed the show's major props. They spent over 60 hours woodworking and crafting newspaper stacks, and they even built a version of a 1899 Platin Printing Press completely from scratch.

Under the leadership of senior trombonist Eddie Bardwell, the pit orchestra, with all 11 members being Charter students, clocked nearly 50 hours of rehearsal time in the buildup to opening night. The school is one of the few in the area that has a student-led pit orchestra year in and year out.

"Newsies" closes March 21. All showtimes are at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6;30 p.m.

Tickets are available online through Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy’s school website at cdacharter.square.site. General admission at the door is $10. Student tickets are $5. Checks are accepted.

Info: cdacharter.org