westsidestory

West Side Story” is a Convoluted Mess if You Don’t...
The New “West Side Story” is a Convoluted Mess if You Don’t Know Better, “60 Minutes” and CBS’s Bill Whitaker Did an Accurate Report

by Roger Friedman

Tonight, CBS’s Bill Whitaker did an excellent report on the mess that is Ivo von Hove’s “West Side Story.” The musical revival opens this Thursday.
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Scott Rudin To Be Interviewed on 60 MINUTES About the WEST SIDE STORY Revival

by TV News Desk

Audiences will no doubt recognize the quintessential American musical West Side Story when its latest revival opens next week. Its unforgettable music, lyrics and story are the same. But this radical reimagining injects a modern twist to the classic story: a video element meant to intensify and augment the action. Bill Whitaker and 60 MINUTES cameras were given unprecedented access to the production, filming its rehearsals and interviewing its creators. The story about the new West Side Story will be broadcast on 60 MINUTES Sunday, Feb. 16 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Video clip from the interview

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A Radical Restaging of “West Side Story”
In the new Broadway production, avant-garde choreography incorporates salsa and hip-hop.

When “West Side Story” débuted, in 1957, critics praised its lush, syncopated score, by Leonard Bernstein; its sardonic lyrics, by Stephen Sondheim; and the profane energy of Arthur Laurents’s script. But the choreography of Jerome Robbins, who also directed the musical, was its greatest revelation: his finger-snapping gang members seamlessly combined ballet moves with the body language of the street. In the subsequent six decades, some critics have suggested that the show’s portrayal of gang warfare was a bit romantic. Others have noted that the creators weren’t versed in Latino culture. Nevertheless, whenever “West Side Story” was revived on Broadway, the Sharks and the Jets moved exactly as Robbins had imagined them.
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WEST SIDE STORY Has Broken All-Time Broadway Theatre House Record

by BWW News Desk

Producers Scott Rudin / Barry Diller / David Geffen announced today that the Broadway return of the Jerome Robbins / Arthur Laurents / Leonard Bernstein / Stephen Sondheim musical, West Side Story, has once again broken the all-time Broadway Theatre house record for a single week, with a gross of $1,807,025.94. In 7 performances the previous week, West Side Story broke the record (with a gross of $1,497,319) held by Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella ($1,479,889.97, established on 12/29/13, for an 8-performance week).

This new record also represents an all-time box office high in the storied 62-year life of West Side Story on Broadway.
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‘West Side Story’ Breaks $1M In First Week On Broadway

By Greg Evans

Well, that was fast: Director Ivo van Hove’s West Side Story joined Broadway’s Million Dollar Club after only six previews, grossing $1,254,440 in its first week of performances.

The musical revival, with all-new choreography by Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, filled all seats at the Broadway Theatre for the week ending December 15, with a hefty $120 average ticket price pushing box office receipts to 97% of the production’s potential.

The strong showing chipped in to keep total Broadway box office of $38,869,141 about even with the previous week, despite a roster of 34 productions that’s one fewer than the week before. Total attendance was 302,872, about 2% more than the previous week.

West Side Story, featuring a record-setting cast of 32 Broadway first-timers, certainly is one of the most anticipated shows of the season, stoked by van Hove’s reputation, the beloved score and an intriguing New York TV ad campaign that preceded the show by months. And West Side Story doesn’t even officially open until February 6.

https://deadline.com/2019/12/west-side-story-broadway-box-office-1-million-christmas-carol-house-record-broadway-box-office-1202810553/

How Ivo Van Hove Remixed West Side Story for the 21st Century

By Adam Green

WHEN WEST SIDE STORY opened on Broadway more than 60 years ago, it shocked critics with its savage depiction of racially motivated teenage gang violence on the streets of New York City—even as Leonard Bernstein’s ravishing jazz- and Latin-inflected symphonic score, Stephen Sondheim’s virtuosic lyrics, and Jerome Robbins’s hormonally kinetic dances beguiled audiences, who fell in love with librettist Arthur Laurents’s retelling of Romeo and Juliet. ( Read more... )

West Side Story Broadway revival finds its Tony and Maria

By Rosy Cordero

The forthcoming revival of West Side Story has found its leads.

The full lineup for the beloved show, which will open at the Broadway Theater, was announced on Wednesday. The production, based on the Arthur Laurents book of the same name, tells the story of two teenagers caught in the middle of opposing gangs when they fall in love.
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WEST SIDE STORY Revival Accepting Video Submissions for Roles of Maria & Anita

by BWW News Desk

The much-anticipated Broadway revival of West Side Story is continuing its nationwide search for actors to fill the roles of Maria and Anita. Directed by Ivo van Hove and choreographed by Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, the production is seeking actors who authentically identify as Latina for the roles. The breakdown is as follows:
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Broadway-Bound WEST SIDE STORY Will Hold LA Open Call for Dancers and LatinX Principals

by BWW News Desk

The much-anticipated Broadway revival of West Side Story is continuing its nationwide search for LatinX performers for the principal roles of Maria, Anita, and Bernardo, as well as contemporary dancers of all ethnicities, to join director Ivo van Hove and choreographer Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker for this reimagining of one of the most famous theatrical works of all time. ( Read more... )