Newsies production teaches students about dedication

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on March 8, 2025.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

St. Francis Junior High School Performing Arts students are ready to delight audiences with their latest production, Disney’s Newsies, running from March 11-15.
Dino Caputo, director talked to media about what those attending can expect to see next week and said that this production is a professional level production performed by junior high school students that have been trained to deliver nothing less than a professional show.
“We turn our gymnasium into a theatre,” said Caputo.”And I’ve said this for 20 years, but this is a professional show put on by junior high aged kids. Our expectation level is that of professionalism.”
He said they were focused on the process instead of the results during rehearsals and all the time spent working towards it, because they believe that if they take care of the process, the outcome will take care of itself.
“The Newsies is based in 1899 and the story of the paperboys, they go on strike against the owner of the New York paper because he tries to raise the prices on them,” said Caputo.
 He added that it is a little bit of a David and Goliath type of story where they are trying to “stick it to the man.”
 In terms of how long the process of getting the students ready to perform takes, Caputo said it actually began the year before.
 “The process actually starts a year in advance. So, it’s funny, because we’re working on Newsies right now, but we’re actually starting to talk about what’s going to happen next.”
They announced Newsies last year around March and they started the auditions in September. They announced their cast in October and they started rehearsing immediately.
 “They work with Kristen Mazzuca, who’s our choreographer and music director Chris Hartman, and they spend a lot of that time. Then come January, we start to put everything all together,” said Caputo.
The production is a co-curricular project and students have put a lot of extra hours after school towards it.
“It’s not during school, so there’s a big commitment and sacrifice that these kids make for the success of this for sure. We have about 75 students in total that participate,” said Caputo.
In the end, it’s understanding that there’s a process, and success just doesn’t happen overnight. There must be something that you put into it.
 “If we can teach them a work ethic along with skill and talent, that goes very far in everything you do, whether you want to, whatever you want to become,” said Caputo.
 He said that in their love of theatre, they try to teach students about the value of hard work and dedication, because not everyone is going to work in the theatre world.
 “We know that in some kids this might be the only theatre they do,” said Caputo. “But as long as they can have a cool memory of St. Francis and move ahead with understanding, that once they’re committed to something and show that work ethic to something, it’ll lead to success for sure.”
Three students shared their thoughts on what it means to be part of the production. Grade 9 students Wren Stele and Ariana Vercillo, and Grade 7 student Sheloumiel Asrat all agreed that it has been great to be part of it as they have met students from other grades that otherwise they would have never had the opportunity to meet.

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