Inside are photos from the film, the story, and some details of making the transition from stage to screen. [100][101], The television show Curb Your Enthusiasm extensively referenced West Side Story in the 2009 season seven episode "Officer Krupke". Tony was played by Kurt Peterson, with Victoria Mallory as Maria. Although I think I've seen just about every musical there is from the forties to the seventies, I'd never seen West Side Story until last night. Maria and Tony begin meeting in secret, planning to run away. "[85] Among the social themes explored in the musical are "bigotry, cultural misunderstanding and the social failure to fully integrate and empower young people in constructive ways".[85]. [97][98] Kushner reportedly kept the story closer to the original Broadway musical than the 1961 film, stating that "[T]here are aspects of urban life in '57, '58, '59 that weren't touched on in the 1961 movie that we are focusing on. The two contacted Robbins, who was enthusiastic about a musical with a Latin beat. The feuding families become two warring New York City gangs--the white Jets led by Riff and the Latino Sharks, led by Bernardo. Bernstein's score for the musical includes "Jet Song", "Something's Coming", "Maria", "Tonight", "America", "Cool", "One Hand, One Heart", "I Feel Pretty", "Somewhere", "Gee, Officer Krupke" and "A Boy Like That". It goes terribly wrong, and before the lovers know what's happened, tragedy strikes and doesn't stop until the climactic and heartbreaking ending. A female girlie club entertainer in Weimar Republic era Berlin romances two men while the Nazi Party rises to power around them. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. West Side Story is an upcoming American romantic musical drama film directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg, with a screenplay by Tony Kushner and choreography by Justin Peck. [78] A Philippine version played in 2008 at the Meralco Theater. Watch it on a big screen if you can. [47] [94] The soundtrack album won a Grammy Award and was ranked No. [2] The young protagonist, Tony, a former member of the Jets and best friend of the gang's leader, Riff, falls in love with Maria, the sister of Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks. The show lampoons the musical's tragic love story, and also lip-synching and drag shows. Sondheim found Larry Kert and Chita Rivera, who created the roles of Tony and Anita, respectively. Rita Moreno (Anita) was the first Latina actress ever to win an Oscar. This list of West Side Story actors includes any West Side Story actresses and all other actors from the film. The feuding families become two warring New York City gangs--the white Jets led by Riff and the Latino Sharks, led by Bernardo. The sound of approaching police sirens is heard, and everyone scatters, except Tony, who stands in shock at what he has done. The cast starred Steven Pacey as Tony and Jan Hartley as Maria. "[84], Bernstein's score for West Side Story blends "jazz, Latin rhythms, symphonic sweep and musical-comedy conventions in groundbreaking ways for Broadway". Bernardo believes that he will fight Tony, but must settle for fighting Diesel, Riff's second-in-command, instead. A silent film production company and cast make a difficult transition to sound. Two youngsters from rival New York City gangs fall in love, but tensions between their respective friends build toward tragedy. An adaptation of the 1957 musical, West Side Story explores forbidden love and the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds. The set consists mostly of large screens featuring video, several cast members carry iPhones, and the Jets are not all white. The radioactive fallout from West Side Story must still be descending on Broadway this morning. A naive hustler travels from Texas to New York City to seek personal fortune, finding a new friend in the process. The production transferred to London's West End opening at the Prince Edward Theatre in October 1998, transferring to the Prince of Wales Theatre where it closed in January 2000. [106], In 1963, the magazine Mad published "East Side Story" which was set at the United Nations building on the East Side of Manhattan, a parody of the Cold War, with the two rival gangs led by John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev, by writer Frank Jacobs and illustrator Mort Drucker. Sondheim did not care for Laurents' opinion. [96], A 2021 film adaptation, written by Tony Kushner, directed by Steven Spielberg and choreographed by Justin Peck, was filmed in 2019. And then we had the really tough problem of casting it, because the characters had to be able not only to sing but dance and act and be taken for teenagers. Their hatred escalates to a point where neither can coexist with any form of understanding. Just as Tony sees Maria alive, Chino arrives and shoots Tony. Doc arrives and stops them. But when Riff's best friend (and former Jet) Tony and Bernardo's younger sister Maria meet at a dance, no one can do anything to stop their love. Maria sends Tony to stop it, hoping it can end the violence. she yells. [citation needed], A 2000 Hong Kong production had Cantonese lyrics and featured Hong Kong rock star Paul Wong as Tony. Play it loud. And unlike the typical Broadway musical of the 1950s and before, West Side Story does not offer audiences a happy ending. Tony, Maria, Anita, Bernardo and the Sharks, and Riff and the Jets all anticipate the events to come that night ("Tonight Quintet"). 18 wins & 10 nominations. For other uses, see, Stage musical with a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. [39] The original scenic, lighting, and costume designs were used. Super Panavision's aspect ratio is not as wide as Cinemascope's 2.35:1, and every square inch of screen space was used for one or another important element of composition.Bernstein's music is a tour de force. [59] The original balletic, finger snapping choreography is replaced by swaggering, hip-hop and latin-influenced dancing. Prince refused to spend money on new construction, and Smith was obliged to improve what he had as best he could with very little money to do it. [75][76], The Novosibirsk Globus Theatre staged the musical in Russia in 2007 under the leadership of conductor Keith Clark, a former pupil of Bernstein's, who also conducted the 2010 Moscow production. Language arts classes can draw close comparisons between West Side Story and Romeo and Juliet with a lesson that compares and contrasts the characters and plot points from both stories. They plan to run away together. [59] The production also drew some criticism for its casting of Ramasar, who has been accused of sexually inappopriate behaviour and was fired from the New York City Ballet and suspended from Carousel, as well as the graphic staging of the Jets' assault and attempted rape of Anita which, together, "sends a message that women’s bodies are collateral damage in male artistic success". In Hawaii in 1941, a private is cruelly punished for not boxing on his unit's team, while his captain's wife and second-in-command are falling in love. ... Robbins' energetic choreography and Bernstein's grand score accentuated the satiric, hard-edged lyrics of Sondheim, and Laurents' capture of the angry voice of urban youth. Diesel is renamed Ice. However, the Spanish lyrics sung by the Sharks in the "Tonight" (Quintet) remained in Spanish. Robbins directed and choreographed, and it was co-choreographed by Peter Gennaro, with scenery by Oliver Smith. The production continued for over a year. A: “I would say scoring. It goes terribly wrong, and before the lovers know what's happened, tragedy strikes and doesn't stop until the climactic and heartbreaking ending. West Side Story was one of those times. The two met at The Beverly Hills Hotel, and the conversation turned to juvenile delinquent gangs, a fairly recent social phenomenon that had received major coverage on the front pages of the morning newspapers due to a Chicano turf war. The cast featured Matt Cavenaugh as Tony, Josefina Scaglione as Maria, and Karen Olivo as Anita. Riff meets Tony while he's working at Doc's Drugstore to persuade him to come. Only the bodies of Riff and Bernardo remain. She appears on her fire escape, and the two profess their love for one another ("Tonight"). Robbins was involved with Bells Are Ringing, then Bernstein with Candide, and in January 1957 A Clearing in the Woods, Laurents' latest play, opened and quickly closed. 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