Spring Preview: Brotherhood, Self-Reflections and a Rumble with the Stars of The Outsiders

The Greasers and Socs of Broadway's The Outsiders convened on neutral territory for The Broadway Show's Spring Preview photo shoot. While a couple of fights broke out, it was primarily a lovefest filled with camaraderie, bromance, and some much-needed female energy from the one-and-only Cherry Valance (played by Emma Pittman, the show's lone female principal).

Correspondent Charlie Cooper got some on-set dish from the cast during the dynamic shoot, including a dispatch about an off-hours hang with their producer Angelina Jolie. Broadway.com, however, also caught up with the ensemble to hear their personal reflections on S.E. Hinton's classic coming-of-age tale. Learn more about each of these unique performers as they share how they personally align with their characters and when they feel most—and least—like an outsider.

BRODY GRANT—PONYBOY MICHAEL CURTIS
What do you admire most about your character?
His awareness, his soul.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
We are very artistically inclined and it took us a while to see it, accept it, believe in it, not judge it. I actually feel playing Ponyboy has given me the space to start believing in it.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
All throughout school I felt like an outsider in some way. Having moved, having been different, being artistic in places where that wasn’t the cool thing.
When have you most felt like an insider?
I don’t know if I ever have, and I don’t know if anyone ever truly is.

SKY LAKOTA-LYNCH—JOHNNY CADE
What do you admire most about your character?
Johnny’s ability to pick himself back up no matter the adversity and his unconditional love for his friends.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
Johnny and I are both extremely tender and observant of the world.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
Being the only person of color in a room or at a job.
When have you most felt like an insider?
Playing on respected sports teams or having an inside joke with friends.
 

BRENT COMER—DARREL CURTIS
What do you admire most about your character?
I admire Darrel’s resilience. He is faced with so much at such an early age and he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
I think we are both driven. We both strive for a better future for ourselves and for the ones we love.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
I think getting into the arts at a relatively late age. I still feel like an outsider as an artist sometimes—I think a lot of us do.
When have you most felt like an insider?
Joining this family :)

JASON SCHMIDT—SODAPOP CURTIS 
What do you admire most about your character?
Soda has a beautiful contentedness. Others like Darrel and Ponyboy long for more in life, which is both the catalyst for the book and part of what keeps them unhappy. Soda instead chooses to take himself and his situation for what it is. He finds all the different, witty, creative ways he can play the hand he’s been given.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
Growing up my mom always told me I had a big heart. In the cast of The Outsiders we often refer to Soda as the heart of the story. He fights to keep his family intact. He’s there for both his brothers when they need him most.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
My freshman year of high school I transferred from homeschooling to my local public school. While I grew up playing sports or doing theater with most of the kids I went to high school with, I think anyone knows that homeschooling isn’t the “coolest” background a kid could come from. Now, in each room I go into I look for the person that feels out of place and I try to invite them in. I’ve been that person.
When have you most felt like an insider?
Theater has always made me feel like an insider as it has for so many outsiders before me. It’s a beautifully accepting community. The level of empathy feels elevated because most of us have felt different at some point.

JOSHUA BOONE—DALLAS WINSTON
What do you admire most about your character?
I admire most that Dally has a strong sense of self. What you see is what you get. Regardless of the environment or circumstance, he's himself.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
One thing Dally and I have in common is a nomadic upbringing. Stability will always have its upsides, just as there is much to be gained by changing terrains.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
I've most felt like an outsider when moving into new environments. It's natural. Like a germ in a new ecosystem. New people and places make you stick out, especially when you have no intention of ingratiating yourself. Which is why it's a helpful tool to like being alone just as much as the desire to be around others.
When have you most felt like an insider?
I've most felt like an insider when alone with my thoughts. Duh. Lol

EMMA PITTMAN—CHERRY VALANCE
What do you admire most about your character?
Her ability to empathize with others even if she might be out of her comfort zone.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
At the core of who she is, Cherry wants there to be peace. I find that truth to be one I hold close to my heart too.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
When I moved to a new school in the 9th grade. It was super tough navigating a place to fit in.
When have you most felt like an insider?
Being a part of this company :)


 

DARYL TOFA—TWO-BIT MATTHEWS
What do you admire most about your character?
How much Two-Bit loves his friends.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
We both love driving and flirting with women.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
I’m the middle child in my family. All my friends played sports and I took up dance. I never had a group of friends that felt like family 'til my adult life.
When have you most felt like an insider?
When I’m in a room or space I feel accepted, safe and wanted.

DAN BERRY—PAUL HOLDEN
What do you admire most about your character?
I think Paul has a profound sense of self and pride in his community. It is what guides him and leads to his involvement in the Greasers’ story.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
Paul and I are both loyal to a fault. When we make bonds with people we make sure to back them and honor that connection. Both Paul and I are fierce friends who value the relationships we make with others.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
I transferred schools before my 7th-grade year and I remember feeling leagues behind everyone. I learned a very important skill that year in how to make friends and I still remind myself of that whenever I enter a new setting. It can be difficult to break down walls but once it’s done I can be more authentically myself and get so much more out of my relationships with others.
When have you most felt like an insider?
Honestly joining this cast. At first I was concerned about being one of the newest cast members aboard the show, but those fears were quickly extinguished when I met the incredible people attached to this production. They are some of the nicest, most curious, most intelligent actors and humans I’ve had the pleasure of working with and I have felt so included and am so fortunate to be working alongside them.

KEVIN WILLIAM PAUL—BOB SHELDON 
What do you admire most about your character?
I love the challenge of inhabiting humanity in a man who many deem altogether bad or evil on first take. Not shying away from the holistic truth, but rather leaning in and allowing the good, bad and ugly to shine through, so as to truly represent Bob and strengthen the story as a whole.
What is one thing you and your character have in common?
Well, for starters, I tend to wear a couple rings and Bob certainly has a penchant for them as well. Also, when I fall in love, I tend to fall pretty hard, and Bob adores Cherry like no other. Bob has a determination and at times, stubbornness, which I believe all leaders need to a certain degree, in order to overcome and see matters through.
When have you most felt like an outsider?
When I doubt myself. When I judge my instincts and question my motives to the point of indecision and essentially float away from who I am. Falling away from my truest values, that's the most "outsider" feeling of all. In essence, falling away from my loved ones.
When have you most felt like an insider?
When I'm with my community. Laughing with my family on a summer weekend. Running around the meadow in Central Park with my best friends. Sharing an intimate moment on a long walk and sunset with a special someone. Rivers of deep connection with another soul. And at times, sharing that presence with myself, late at night, while creating and organically releasing my intuition into whatever grips my focus. Pure glee and bliss. Oh, and dancing. Real, full out, lights down, sweaty, not a soul around, music blasting and no inhibitions, dancing. That gets my heart racing as well.

The Broadway Show Credits: Directed by Zack R. Smith | Producers: Paul Wontorek and Beth Stevens | Senior Producers: Caitlin Moynihan and Lindsey Sullivan | Videographer: Nick Shakra

Photo Credits: Photography by Emilio Madrid | Photo Assistants: Jakob Alesandro, Cooper Hammel Alan Padilla | Location: Eden Studio

Styling Credits: Styling: Eliza Yerry and Lilly Nielsen | Styling Assistants: Sophia Caltagirone and Ari Issa | Hair: Monique Gaffney | Make-up: Angella Valentine and Madison McLain