The Outsiders is a stage adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s classic novel about two rival teen groups divided by class—the Greasers, who come from the poorer side of town, and the Socs, who are wealthy and privileged. The story centers on Ponyboy Curtis, a sensitive and thoughtful Greaser who lives with his older brothers Darry and Sodapop after their parents die.

When Ponyboy and his best friend Johnny Cade are attacked by a group of Socs, Johnny kills one of them in self-defense. Terrified, the two boys hide out in an abandoned church, where they begin to see that people are not always defined by where they come from. A fire breaks out at the church, and the boys save some trapped children—but Johnny is severely injured.

Back home, tensions between the Greasers and Socs explode into a violent rumble. The Greasers win, but soon after, Johnny dies from his injuries, leaving Ponyboy heartbroken. Dally, devastated by Johnny’s death, deliberately gets himself killed by the police.

In the end, Ponyboy decides to tell their story as a way to make sense of the pain and to show that everyone—Greasers and Socs alike—fights their own battles. The play closes with his message to “stay gold,” a reminder to hold onto goodness and innocence in a hard world.