‘Explosive and visceral’: The Outsiders tells tale of teen rebellion

Tonbridge’s latest School Play, The Outsiders, which tells the story of a gang of teenagers on a quest to find purpose in the world, enjoyed a successful week-long run at the EM Forster Theatre in late November.

Based on the work by SE Hinton, The Outsiders is set in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1967. The production featured a cast of 25, including several members of local girls’ schools.

Starring roles went to Corey Little (WH4), Freddie Hill (OH4), Ollie Butcher (PS3), Tom Metcalfe (WH4), Lucas Saunders-Aroma (PS4), Bong-Ra Nzdi (OH4) and Sacha Gibson (HS4), alongside Ivy Portman-Smith and Eliza Bruce.

Gavin Bruce, Director of Theatre, said: “Our production mixed live and recorded film footage with music and stylised staging effects to bring the story to life. We used influences from the Kneehigh and Complicite Theatre companies to create an explosive and visceral version of this classic teen novel.”

SE Hinton was just 15 when she penned her novel of teenage rebellion. In the 1980s, The Outsiders was made into a film by Francis Ford Coppola, launching the careers of many of the ‘Brat Pack’ generation of actors including Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillion, Emilio Estevez and, in his debut role, Tom Cruise.