The Outsiders Musical a Review and Changes to the Story

Ever since I was introduced to the 1967 novel “The Outsiders” in seventh grade, I have been obsessed. In the story, Ponyboy Curtis’ “English Assignment” tells the narrative of his friends, Johnny Cade and Dallas Winston’s deaths and the events leading up to them. Author Susan Eloise “S.E.” Hinton began writing the book at the age of 16 and got it published after she graduated high school. In the spring of 1980, a school librarian by the name of Jo Ellen Misakianin, in Fresno, California, wrote to film director Francis Ford Coppola on behalf of the students and staff at Lone Star School asking the director to consider pitching a movie idea to Hinton. Jo Ellen included a copy of the book and a petition signed by the students. After reading the story of the Curtis brothers, Coppola was touched and approached S.E. Hinton about a film adaptation. 

The film was released on March 25th, 1983, with a budget of $10 million, grossing $33.7 million and working to jump start the careers of many of the actors including big names like Tom Cruise, Ralph Macchio, and Rob Lowe. Even with many cut scenes, like when Pony gets jumped by Bob Sheldon and his Soc friends and the courtroom scene (both of which are accessible  online), the film still closely follows the writing of S.E. Hinton, making both works a staple of English classes across the United States. 

When I discovered that an Outsiders Musical was coming to Broadway, I was skeptical, asking myself, “how could a story like that be turned into a musical?” I was very nervous to hear the reviews about it and refused to even give the music a listen upon its release for streaming on May 22nd, 2024.

It wasn’t until the end of June that I gave the cast album a chance, and when I finally did, I was transported back to seventh grade, absolutely enthralled with the story and with the present lyrical version. While hearing the album, the listener may be unaware of any changes to the storyline until the song “Little Brother,” which is Dallas “Dally” Winston’s solo song. Just about a week later, I convinced my cousin to spend $420 on a ticket to sit in the center orchestra. While the seats were PHENOMENAL, I regret not sitting in the front row. The high price of the tickets reflected the aftermath of having won four Tony Awards (Best Musical, Best Director, Best Lighting Design, and Best Sound Design).

I saw the show on Saturday, July 20th, at 8 p.m., this performance featured three understudies: Trevor Wayne (Ponyboy Curtis), Josh Strobl (Johnny Cade), and Henry Julián Gendron (Two-Bit Matthews). All three understudies were absolutely amazing and I was on the edge of my seat, gobsmacked by the talent they held in being able to perform,  sometimes at the last minute for a show. What I really liked about the performance was the bond between Trevor Wayne’s Ponyboy and Josh Strobl’s Johnny, as the two of them embodied the exact picture I had of their two characters when I had read the book for the first time all those years ago. 

As I mentioned previously, there were some differences between the book and the musical that I was initially skeptical of. This will contain some spoilers of the musical differences!

1. Characters
   • Randy Anderson- Randy Anderson in the book is Bob Sheldon’s friend. In the musical version, he is replaced by Paul, another soc who actually had a past friendship with Darrel Curtis through football at Will Rogers High School.
   • Steve Randle- Usually always by Sodapop Curtis’ side, he is given a smaller role compared to the now highlighted Two-Bit Matthews. Steve is still involved with the greaser gang, but takes more of an ensemble role for this version of the story. 
   • Ace- Ace is a new Greaser, the only girl a part of the gang who adds some pop to Soda’s storyline as she is always flirting with him.
2. Cherry Valance has a bigger role in this version of the story, and honestly, I’m here for it. This Cherry Valance (typically played by Emma Pitman), sticks up for herself against Socs in a refreshing way after Bob dies. In the book, she was only used as a way to communicate between the Socs and Greasers. Her reaction to the death of her boyfriend Bob also didn’t get shown in the book, whereas in the song Justice for Tulsa, she asks herself “could this have gone a different way,” referencing his murder, knowing he was taunting the Greasers. She also talks about the side many didn’t see of him, singing “I saw a side of you I wish they’d known, like a secret you could never share, the part of you that truly cared.” In the same song she goes from sorrow to rage, specifically against Paul, as he played a role in his death, indirectly, as he and Bob had been jumping Johnny for a while.

After Pony returned to Tulsa from Windrixville and Johnny and Dally died, Cherry started to volunteer at the hospital where Johnny died. When his mother didn’t pick up his items, Cherry is the one to bring the book to Pony rather than the nurse giving him the copy of Gone With the Wind, in which Johnny had written a letter to Pony. 

And now for the BIGGEST change that the creative team changed to the story. When I first found out about this change, I did not think it fit into the story until seeing it live.

3. Dallas Winston’s Death- By reading the book and watching the film, you know that Dallas Winston dies after a breakdown reaction from Johnny’s death. When Johnny died in the hospital, Dally finally broke down, running out of the hospital to do something stupid. In the original story, Dallas had a ‘heater’ and decided to rob a store, and in turn getting the police called on him and eventually getting killed by gunfire. In the musical, they change the story to be less violent. Rather than the “suicide by cop” in the book, Dallas has a breakdown where he then runs to the tracks that split the East and West sides of Tulsa, Oklahoma and consequently jumps in front of the oncoming train. As he is going through this, Dally is singing about how he failed his “little brother” (Johnny Cade) and how unfair it is in Tulsa for the Greasers. 

This musical adaptation of the novel was produced amazingly and I am so glad that I got the opportunity to witness the talent and hardwork that the actors and creatives put into it, in person. I wish it a long-run on Broadway and cannot wait to see it again someday in the future. My time in “Tulsa” is a memory that I will truly never forget. 

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