the outsiders musical notes including my thoughts on the new cast and extensive yapping about tiny details (4/16/26 7pm)
hiii if you opened that read more tab then went âwoah that's longâ and want to send me an ask about a specific actor/ character/ scene/ song instead of reading through to look for it you can𫶠or read it all lol thatâs why i post these instead of only having them in my notes app
alright first iâm going to summarize some things that stuck out to me about how the new cast plays their characters. long story short i loved them. also dan darry and abby bev aren't in this part because i've seen them before
-caleb johnny!! there are no words!! he's just so sincere and genuine in his line delivery and he kind of wears his heart on his sleeve - like all of his emotions are pretty easy to read and you can see both how that makes him a target for the socs and how he can see the good in the world. also just really like his wig especially the bangs because they're so long and then so short after pony and johnny cut their hair in the church and it reminds me of the part in the book where ponyboy talks about how johhny's forehead is less tan than the rest of his skin because his bangs always cover it lol
-what can i say about sequoiia dally that hasn't been said like the singing the acting the dancing the stage presence. he loves and cares for johnny so much! and for the whole gang a lot too! you can see him start to spiral the second johnny even suggests going back and turning himself in and it just progresses from there until the end ugh
-sutton just has the sodapop curtis grin and idk how else to explain it. the way he was often smiling so big makes anytime his face dropped so much more impactful. also incredibly funny - like was getting laughs at parts i've never heard the audience laugh at lol. also also i like how since heâs new and dan berry has been in the cast it emphasizes soda and ponyboy being closer in age than soda and darry
-nicholas bob is just a guy who can be a huge jerk, not A Villain. i really like when guys play bob that way because it makes it make more sense why cherry would ever be with him in the first place. he's also pretty funny and it's very easy to see why the socs follow him
-victor paul is definitely mean but idk there's something about him. he seems really sad too and like almost acting to fit in rather than just fitting in. y'all already know how i feel about victor's singing get that man recording every song on earth so we can have them on repeat
-oh logan marcia what is going on with you. she judges cherry for interacting with greasers but openly flirts with two bit (and maybe not even for the first time - it was giving they already knew each other). she's funny but kind of in a mean way. she's upset in justice for tulsa but also seems resigned to the fact that this is the way things are. need to spin her around in my brain a bit more
-runako ace is a GORGEOUS dancer of course. very tight with steve and soda i know thatâs right. unfortunately idk what else to say for her but she's great
ok now on to the show notes!
covers: josh ponyboy, hailey cherry, henry steveÂ
-so uh i would die for caleb johnny and i think all the greasers would too. the amount of hugs he received in the opening number alone
-like when johnny and ponyboy are sitting on the tire singing the whole âif youâre not born into moneyâ part they must have jostled each other and bumped shoulders together ten times and were smiling so much đ«¶
-every nicholas bob choice is sooo interesting yâall. especially liked how almost cheerful he was in the first jumping scene but not in a cartoony villain way, more like âthis is what i want to do and no oneâs gonna stop meâ kind of way. also liked the pace of how he said the lines - felt more like he was thinking of them on the spot than reciting. for example when he said âyouâve been warnedâŠâ trip counted on his fingers 1, 2 and then bob went ââŠthree times - three strikes youâre out!â
-soda was trying to wipe the blood off ponyboyâs face with his hand and then wipe it on his pants and he got so annoyed that it didnât do much of anything lol. then he smiled so big like lightbulb moment before taking off his shirt and dunking it in the water and using that. darry took the shirt out of sodaâs hands like he thought he wasnât actually fixing it well lol
-grease got a hold!! was so!! after the song my thought was âcan they run that back i want to see it againâ
-after saying "you wish" ace slapped her butt and laugh what an icon
-henry was catching a vibe at the start of the song he was doing all kinds of little random dance moves
-i forget if it was in ggah or tulsa '67 but johnny jumped onto the hood of the car with such excitement that he fully would have slid the whole way across and onto the ground if soda hadn't caught him in a hug
-darry sounded so tired in ritf. also dan's voice sounds so good in that song
-"hey muscles, we're home!" is so normal i feel so normal about the implication that the curtis house is the gang's home
-the whole gang was locked in on ponyboy getting to go to the drive in haha. soda was smiling at darry so wide and johnny was smiling and nodding like "yes i will be there i am a good influence pony should be allowed to go"
-johnny and soda hugged and ace took clothing from the laundry and two bit stopped to talk to darry as they all exit in the ritf scene
-the scene before great expectations is sutton's best and i stand by that. he's so silly supportive older brother and all smiley until he's so sad and upset about sandy and their parents. so good
-great expectations from the lower center mezz holyyyyy
-johnny was crying a LOT in the scene outside his house and could not get it together for a long time. like when he was all "yeah i'm cool" it was clear dallas was thinking uh you're not but okay
-dally's voice in that scene as he talks to johnny ohhh he cares about him so much he just wants to help
-also at the end of the scene the way dallas said "me, you, ponyboy" in a different teasing voice hmm why would he be teasing johnny about ponyboy i wonder. and johnny smiled and turned away like he was happy but embarrassed too c'mon now
-when i tell you two bit literally melted to the floor when he saw marcia dancing. he also flung his arms out dramatically and was like yelling incoherently with the biggest smile on his faceÂ
-it was so bad that dally took pity on him and legit tapped marcia on the shoulder and gestured to two bit and then marbit talked for a moment before bev pulled her awayÂ
-oh but before that since the dancing was not over marcia legit pulled her skirt up her leg a little bit and looked at dally all flirty before she could go talk to two bit what a choiceÂ
-paul weirdly like kissed cherry's sweater or at least put it close to his face while bob is holding the sweater and cherry's dancing with chet? bob was also confused lol victor what was that
-at some point he was also laying on the car upside down like with his head near the headlights and feet up on the windshield? ok paul whatever
-chet and paul both were locked onto dallas and cherry talking from the start. they were leaned in and paul even got up like he was going to say or do something but that's when cherry threw the coke
-after ponyboy popped the collar of his jacket up while walking up by the girls at the drive in johnny started to do the same but really just pulled the back of his vest up so far it covered part of his head like he was hiding behind it
-cherry and marcia seemed a lot older than ponyboy and johnny. i know they're around johnny's age but that was the vibe with these actors and how they were talking
-cherry got choked up while talking about her family pre icttyan
-at the "look at all them socs staring at us" line marcia mouthed something like "what are you doing??" to cherry
-johnny and steve were chatting it up while watching the movie in icttyan and steve wrapped his arm around johnnyâs shoulders
-bob wasn't really yelling in the breakup scene and was even getting a lot of laughs but then when he said "cherry get in the car" for the last time his voice was so stern and the "now" was very demanding and intimidating. sucked all the laughter out of the room it was so correct
-cherry was crying when she asked ponyboy not to take it the wrong way if she didn't say hi at school :(
-ritfr. yes. very good. especially liked johnny and soda talking intensely about something while darry and ponyboy continued to argue (maybe what had happened at the drive in?) and how much soda was talking to and holding onto pony and darry. they really were fighting through him like he wasn't even there ugh
-johnny seemed really hesitant to say that yeah he did think about wanting to disappear a lot and so idk hopeless in that scene before faft and then the song totally changed his mind
-josh and caleb's voices mixed so well it that song it was gorgeous
-pb&j somehow had time for one of them to say "let's go" and start climbing down all excited and happy before the socs showed upđ they wanted to run away together but not the way they end up having tođ
-paul said "give him to me i want him" about johnny while smiling evilly
-one thing about josh strobl is he will spit as much as possible directly into bob's face
-ponyboy was truly fighting for his life i feel like the socs holding him in the fountain were falling down and struggling more than normal
-caleb johnny's reaction to bob's death was suuuch a choice. he was audibly crying and breathing fast and trying to wipe the blood off his hands on his jeans. my boy was panicked :( plus idk if they added more fake blood or what but it was alll over his hands, arms, shirt, jeans, face
-dallyâs jacket on josh pony is so oversized which is so correct
-dallyâs care for johnny and ponyboy in rrb is so clear itâs actually sickening. he had an arm around one or both of them almost constantly. also vocals obviously!!
-idk what was going on with two bit, soda, and darry during rrb but something sure was
-paul saying âit was ponyboy curtisâ right at cherry and then turning to the cop to say âand johnny cadeâ ohh evil choice
-johnny struggled to pronounce "peroxide" instead of "hydrogen" like i've heard in a lot of other shows
-âthis canât be reeeealâ that singing canât be real victor you are so good
-two bit yelling for marcia to help him when he gets jumped :(
-johnny seemed almost in disbelief at what ponyboy was saying in damd and then in turn pony was shocked at johnnyâs whole âi had no reason to live back in tulsaâ verse. ow.
-we love a damd hug thatâs a real hug
-darry was yelling almost immediately in the scene with him and dally but dallas didn't get any louder until closer to the end. it was almost like once he saw how close darry was to fighting him he thought it was sadly funny to try to instigate him into doing so
-darry immediately started crying the second soda throws him and dally apart and had to take quite a few seconds to compose himself to start singing. dally angrily hit the hood of the car on his way out
-official recording of dan darry and sutton soda throwing in the towel WHEN. also the sad look on darry's face basically that whole song is physically painful to see
-soda was kneeling down next to darry for the whole last verse of the song with his hand over darry's on his knee and then they were at the same height so they could also hug really tightly
-johnny was so eager to explain how the sunrise was so pretty while ponyboy was still like đ and after he said the poem johnny went "what was that?" in such a teasing way
-caleb also added a little "oh yeah i swear" after ponyboy is in disbelief that johnny said he looks like paul newman but it was still kind of more teasing
-ponyboy seemed incredibly hesitant to react at all when johnny asked if he liked cherry and then johnny said the "she is pretty as hell" line really soft and directly to pony almost like permission that if he had a crush it'd be ok? but ponyboy was adamant mostly that she's different than the other socs. what i'm saying is aroace ponyboy is alive and well
-the way johnny yelled "dal-LY!!!" with so much excitement in a little sing song voice and launched himself into dally's arms ohhh
-dally however was just so distracted by ponyboy's hair haha
-idk how sutton got laughs on "sincerely, soda" but there was just something about it
-when i tell you i have never seen dally the way he was when johnny suggested going back to turn himself in. sequoiia truly plays it like thatâs the first time dally considers he could really lose johnny! itâs the beginning of the end!! as the conversation went on dally was yelling so close to johnnyâs face their foreheads were literally touching
-dally protecting johnny in the fire before and during hth𫶠let's not think about the implications right now
-runako or jena from the booth was serving vocals in hth go off girl
-cherry barely came into the hospital room when she asked to talk to ponyboy outside. she only started walking closer when he walked even further away to the other side of johnny
-everyone say thank you hailey hopeless war!
-why was the socs pouring one out for bob at the fountain so loud though lol the water noise was so random at that moment
-paul said "darrel?" like either genuinely surprised to see him or acting surprised which is interesting regardless. meanwhile darry's like "paulđ"
-i'm sorry my complaining in the past was not correct you in fact can see all the parts at the beginning of the rumble at once but unfortunately only in my experience from the center mezz. it was very awesome.
-soda yelled "dally! yeah!!" and hugged him after the rumble. ace yelled "we did it!" darry was hugging ponyboy while checking to make sure he was alright. he was trying to do the same for soda but the kid was so hyped up it was like darry figured eh he must be fine lol
-it was one of those times that the gang is so excited and loud until two bit says "i wish it was one of us" and it's immediately sobering
-johnny chuckling at âi keep thinking i cursed youâ before smiling as he said âstay gold, ponyboyâ ohh oh ohhhh. he was like âthis idiot still does not get it (affectionate)â
-ponyboy was literally laying on the ground curled up in a ball crying after johnny died :( and then when soda came over he put his head in his lap and was like rubbing his back and scratching his head :(
-also soda was so upset himself and crying while hugging ace. she was the one who pointed ponyboy out to him before going to hug steve
-little brotherđ the way dally absolutely screamed âdoes anybody caaaareâ with his whole self while cryingđ and then he was almost stumbling around while he movedđ
-ponyboy and dally made eye contact on the âbut dally wasnât just any boyâ line and then dally started crying AGAIN yâall it was diabolical
-sodaâs very dramatic hand up to signal darry to stop talking to ponyboy before he started talking about school lol he was so fed up. soda really went you canNOT be seriously going about this the wrong way again with just that gesture
-the way danâs voice breaks during the âyouâre our brother and we love youâ part is actually one of the most heartbreaking sounds that exist
-cherry cried when trying to talk to ponyboy :( and he was fully sobbing into johnnyâs clothes like his whole body was shaking :( soda was still crying when he said âyou ainât even gonna read it?â too :(
-"you still have a lot of time to make yourself what you want" and the absolute hope on johnny's face and in his voice for "tell dally" both broke me. "i don't think he knows" like it just dawned on him and it's so important oh my gosh caleb whyy
-josh did the "i ain't just a greaser" part with so much 14-year-old sincerity while darry and soda and the audience were like ?? okay?? and it ended up being way funnier than i've seen it played before
-during the finale darry was smiling and pointing to ponyboy's notebook like he was showing soda how good the writing was before passing it over to him. they're so proud of their baby
stage door: hailey, runako, nicholas, seqouiia, josh, dan, cole, victor, sutton, caleb
-bob/cop lore overheard from a person nearby asking nicholas about it: bob being the cop is "according to the director supposed to be him if he was poor" meaning i guess like an alternate universe where bob lived to adulthood but didn't have so much money that he wouldn't have that kind of job. but nicholas thinks they just didn't have anyone else available and there's no deep reason why it's the same actor for both lol ("they all line up i'm the only guy left")
-after telling sutton he was so funny he was all âyeah i was having a good time out there. honestly some of those choices were not plannedâ hahaha
-caleb is on vocal rest but his dramatic facial expressions and gestures about peopleâs comments were sooo. like i told him iâve seen the show ten times and i love how he plays johnny and it felt so different than what iâve seen before and he was like đźđđ„čđ„°
-unrelated to anything because i havenât even seen him but noah pacht having the âi wish i was a kid again when i had all the answersâ twttin quote in his bio made me feel many emotions
