The Hopedale Drama Club Presents: The Outsiders

Determination. Love. Family. These are the themes that come to mind when reading S.E. Hinton’s classic novel The Outsiders. It’s 1965 in a small rural town in the Midwest, home to two gangs from very different walks of life. On one side, the Soc’s. Rich and privileged jocks who spend their free time picking on Greasers, the town’s deviants and less desirable characters. In the middle of this conflict lie Ponyboy (Joey Soares) and Johnny Cake (Piper Hampsch), two young Greasers trying to make a life for themselves away from the blood, switchblades, and bruises. Pony lives with his two older brothers, Sodapop (Collin Smith) and Darry (Missy Davis) and spends his days reading or watching movies, desperate to escape from his reality and live beyond the confines of his social status.
With the 7th graders at Hopedale Junior-Senior High School reading this book in their english classes, I caught up with Senior cast member Colin Smith to ask what he thought should be their biggest take away from the story as a whole. “For me as one of the brothers in the central family unit of the show, it has become a story about the importance of family,” he said. “And how sometimes the conflict a family can weigh heavily on their shoulders.”. Seeing this story acted out made that abundantly clear. Darry and Soda both care deeply for Pony but show it in different ways. Darry acts as the strict older brother serving almost as a father figure while Soda shows more of a mutual respect for Pony. Both Collin and Missy play these parts with such charisma it’s hard to believe the three aren’t actually related. And Joey Soares as Ponyboy delivers a knockout performance. Ponyboy is far from innocent but still holds onto hope of a better future and the subtleties that Joey brings draws you into his monologues and deeply moving conversations with characters like Johnny. There is no doubting that Piper Hampsch had a daunting task in playing Johnny Cake, an abused and neglected but still sweet soul who looks up to Ponyboy and the rest of the Greasers. Everything from her delivery and facial expressions to the subtle movements of her body language make you feel for her and her monologues with Pony really draw on the heartstrings. Bella Baci as Two-Bit delivers some hilarious comic relief from the darker scenes and Hannah Speroni as Dallas plays an interesting foil to the optimistic Ponyboy, acting as the stereotypical Greaser. Every performance brings something new to the table and with a wide range of actors from all different grades, backgrounds, and genders, the story’s central themes of individuality and hope shine through. Director Alex Wersted even points this out in the plays pamphlet with his Director’s Note; “I have chose to cast The Outsiders without the normal constraints of gender and it has led to the discovery of many interesting new themes in this classic story. Instead of a patriarchy, we have a matriarchy, as the leader of the Greasers and the Curtis household is a strong, female Darry.” Missy Davis as Darry certainly plays the role with a strength and grit that breaks down this gender stigma and brings the focus of the play back to the roots of family and away from who is wearing the leather jackets. “I have nothing but good things to say about the cast.” continues Collin, “Seeing them all jump into these roles with such vigor and becoming invested in the acting process and very fun to see.”. On top of the performances, Chris Chatham as Producer and the Stage Crew lead by Laura Buchanan have built sets and props that immerse the theater in the setting of this rural town along with lighting, sound effects, costumes, and music. Everything from the Curtis home to the old church and the park fountain looks incredible and realistic and draws the eyes of the audience and begs them to look deeper.
Congratulations to the Hopedale Drama Club on another successful performance and thank you to the Senior members of the cast and crew; Missy Davis, Collin Smith, Brittany Dupuis, Ryan Coyle, Rachel Szemethy, Kirollos Wassef, Leah Duperron, Sarah Cebula, Brian McMahon, Jennifer Holland, and Elenore Alves for the phenomenal work you have put into this and past performances.