Review: THE OUTSIDERS at The Fisher Theatre
The Outsiders will be performing at the Fisher Theatre now through March 15, 2026.
The Outsiders is a Tony Award-winning musical fresh off Broadway. The show is about a 14-year-old boy growing up in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in the 1960s. This coming-of-age story features themes of love, hope, and the trials of two very different social classes sharing spaces in a small rural town. The Outsiders will be performing at the Fisher Theatre in Detroit now through March 15th, 2026.
If you read this book in high school for your English class or are expecting a similar version of the Francis Ford Coppola movie, you would be sorely mistaken. This is one of the most unique renditions I’ve ever seen of a classic novel. The Outsiders somehow brought new life to this classic material while simultaneously making it true to the original text. I walked into the show with little knowledge of the musical, except that it had won the Tony for Best Musical in 2024. I guess you could say I had Great Expectations that the show was gonna be something special. Little did I know that it was going to be my favorite performance of the year.
The show is narrated by Ponyboy Curtis, played by Nolan White. White is making his national tour debut in the show. Sometimes, when an actor is so new to performing on a national stage, the audience can tell that they’re a little bit green; however, this was not the case for Nolan White. Nolan White led the show with the grace and professionalism of a well-seasoned vet. It’s hard for me to pick a standout from this cast because if this cast were an album, there would be no skips. However, I would like to highlight Travis Roy Rogers, who played Daryl Curtis. Travis Roy Rogers deserves all the flowers for his performance of “Runs in the Family”. He set the tone right away as the pseudo patriarch of the family, and his performance was so well received that when he would performed some of the runs in that song, one audience member actually snapped and said: “Okay, clock that one”. Another performance that stood out to me was Emma Hearn as Cherry Valance. With such a male-dominated cast, I can imagine a lot of people might only focus on the boys, but I couldn’t look away when she was on stage. Emma Hearn's flawless voice and unshakeable acting style had me invested in the story between her and Ponyboy. Her performance made me wish Cherry Valance had more stage time.
This show is so incredible for so many reasons. The cast was amazing but I would be remiss if I didn’t praise the lighting designer Brian MacDevitt and Choregraphers Rick Kuperman & Jeff Kuperman. This show would not be what it is without these two departments. The stage manager of this show, Travis Blackwell, also deserves so much recognition for the perfectly timed stage queues. Stage Management is often overlooked because when executed perfectly it seems flawless from a viewer standpoint. Converesely, if even one queue is late or gets missed it really takes away a little bit of the magic from the performance.
Do you want to see a show with some of the most exciting and breathtaking stage combat you’ve ever seen? Do you want to see a cast perform some of the most buttery smooth vocals currently on tour? Then I implore you to get tickets for The Outsiders performing at the Fisher Theatre through March 15th. Run, don’t walk, to get your tickets because this show is the one that you will likely walk away with your jaw on the floor. Get your tickets here.
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