Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon in Damn Yankees - Who's ... Jerome Robbins: Dance Training and Choreography St... Jerome Robbins: Family, Culture and Ancestry Part VI, Jerome Robbins: Family, Culture and Ancestry Part V, Jerome Robbins: Family, Culture and Ancestry Part IV, Jerome Robbins: Family, Culture and Ancestry Part II, Jerome Robbins: Family, Culture and Ancestry Part I. As a child, Trikonis studied dancing and replaced a dancer in the original 1957 Broadway “West Side Story” cast. He also directed and produced several TV and film features. Outside of “West Side Story,” Trikonis had a modest acting career with films appearing in 15 other movies or television shows including, “Pajama Party” (1964) and “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” (1964). [37], A UK national tour started in 1997 and starred David Habbin as Tony, Katie Knight Adams as Maria and Anna-Jane Casey as Anita. It returned to the Winter Garden Theater in New York in April 1960 for another 249 performance engagement, closing in December.[34]. Some of the Jets are unsure of his loyalty, but Riff is adamant that Tony is still one of them ("Jet Song"). Doc relates the news to Tony, who has been dreaming of heading to the countryside to have children with Maria. "Director's Cut – At 90, Playwright Still Vibrant, Vicious", See Simeone, Nigel (2009) "Leonard Bernstein: West Side Story", pp. Die Musik stammt von Leonard Bernstein, die Gesangstexte von Stephen Sondheim und das Buch von Arthur Laurents. I miss it, and I’ll always be ready to see it again (and, of course, sing along with all the performers!). Recordings of West Side Story include the following: The 1961 film adaptation of the musical received praise from critics and the public, and became the second-highest-grossing film of the year in the United States. A live, semi-staged 2013 recording by the San Francisco Symphony under Music Director Michael Tilson Thomas, featuring Cheyenne Jackson, This page was last edited on 24 October 2020, at 05:40. Another song, "Kid Stuff", was added and quickly removed during the Washington, D.C. tryout when Laurents convinced the others it was helping tip the balance of the show into typical musical comedy.[14]. . The radioactive fallout from West Side Story must still be descending on Broadway this morning. Blissfully unaware of the gangs' plans for that night, Maria daydreams with her friends, Rosalia, Consuelo, Teresita and Francisca, about seeing Tony ("I Feel Pretty"). He gave the ensemble more freedom than Broadway dancers had previously been given to interpret their roles, and the dancers were thrilled to be treated like actors instead of just choreographed bodies. He liked it but decided to ask Abbott, his longtime mentor, for his opinion, and Abbott advised him to turn it down. Tayir was a choreographer and created the dances for 67 episodes of “Shindig!” from 1964 to 1966. [11] Meanwhile, Laurents had written a new draft of the book changing the characters' backgrounds: Anton, once an Irish American, was now of Polish and Irish descent, and the formerly Jewish Maria had become a Puerto Rican. The other reviews generally joined in speculation about how the new work would influence the course of musical theater. [60], The New York City Center Light Opera Company production played for a limited engagement of 31 performances from April 8, 1964 to May 3, 1964. The Shark Girls: Rita Moreno, Yvonne Wilder, Joanne Miya, Maria Henley, Suzie Kaye. I think that Susie Kaye is not in that image, so the lineup should actually be Moreno, Wilder, Miya, Gwenn Norman, Henley. Maria and Tony begin meeting in secret, planning to run away. Now, there's no turning back--and in a classic Shakespearean fashion--there can be no easy way out. Anybodys arrives and tells the Jets she has been spying on the Puerto Ricans; she has discovered that Chino is looking for Tony with a gun. [95][96] 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 girl has survived the Holocaust and emigrated from Israel; the conflict was to be centered around anti-Semitism of the Catholic "Jets" towards the Jewish "Emeralds" (a name that made its way into the script as a reference). Members Edit. [59], As of March 12, 2020, the show suspended production, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, until June 1, 2021 at the earliest. Robbins won the Tony Award for his choreography and Oliver Smith won for his scenic designs. Pepe is one of the more prominently featured Sharks. In 1947, Jerome Robbins approached Leonard Bernstein and Arthur Laurents about collaborating on a contemporary musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. He also worked actively to end racial stereotypes in films through the Great Leap, where he directed and choreographed concerts and productions. The next day, Maria is in a very happy mood at the bridal shop, as she anticipates seeing Tony again. For other uses, see. It closed September 28, 1985. A 1958 production at the Manchester Opera House transferred to London, where it opened at Her Majesty's Theatre in the West End on December 12, 1958, and ran until June 1961 with a total of 1,039 performances. While filming “West Side Story,” Feld got sick during the number “Cool.” The dancers would go outside to cool off and go back into the hot garage and he got pneumonia. 1 on the Billboard chart for a record 54 weeks. Excellent! West Side Story: The Names Behind the Jets and Sharks Posted on October 18, 2016 by Jnpickens When I was 14 in 2002, I watched “ West Side Story ” for the first time and became obsessed with the movie musical, which premiered 55 years ago in New York City on Oct. 18, 1961. In Romeo and Juliet, it was the same, except it was the lack of … Only after he completed it did the group realize it was little more than a musicalization of themes that had already been covered in plays like Abie's Irish Rose. The Jets get antsy while waiting for the Sharks inside Doc's Drugstore. He originated this role in the 1957 role and reprised the character in the 1961 film. [5] Eager to write his first musical, Laurents immediately agreed. His painted backdrops were stunning, but the sets were, for the most part, either shabby looking or too stylized. Thank you for reading, Roni! The original orchestra consisted of 31 players: a large Broadway pit orchestra enhanced to include 5 percussionists, a guitarist and a piano/celesta player.[85]. The next day, Maria is in a very happy mood at the bridal shop, as she anticipates seeing Tony again. Another song, "Kid Stuff", was added and quickly removed during the Washington, D.C. tryout when Laurents convinced the others it was helping tip the balance of the show into typical musical comedy.[14]. Harvey Evans (Mouthpiece): Billed as Harvey Hohnecker, Evans played Mouthpiece, another Jet who is more in the background. Anita makes Maria a dress to wear to the neighborhood dance. [84] Ramin, Kostal and Bernstein are billed as orchestrators for the show. 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. Thanks from Argentina’s fan of Lenny.-. [59], As of March 12, 2020, the show suspended production, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, until June 1, 2021 at the earliest. [16] Columbia Records initially declined to record the cast album, saying the score was too depressing and too difficult. Maria flees to her bedroom, praying that Chino is lying. She performs in “I Feel Pretty and the “Dance at the Gym.” Along with the 1961 film, Kaye was in 18 other films such as “Tammy and the Doctor” (1963) and “Clambake” (1967) with Elvis Presley. The gang separates to find Tony. Robbins won the Tony Award for his choreography and Oliver Smith won for his scenic designs. [103] The 2005 short musical comedy film West Bank Story, which won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film, concerns a love story between a Jew and a Palestinian and parodies several aspects of West Side Story. Rocco is one of the members who is not featured as prominently. [citation needed] The Japanese Takarazuka Revue has performed the show twice. “West Side Story” was the only film Abbott acted in. [1] It was inspired by William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. The radioactive fallout from West Side Story must still be descending on Broadway this morning. Ultimately, some of the cast were teenagers, some were 21, some were 30 but looked 16. [citation needed] In 1962, the West End (H. M. Tennent) production launched a five-month Scandinavian tour opening in Copenhagen, continuing to Oslo, Gothenburg, Stockholm and Helsinki. Sondheim did not care for Laurents' opinion. They meet the rest of the gang. Juvenile delinquency is seen as an ailment of society: "No one wants a fella with a social disease!" It returned to the Winter Garden Theater in New York in April 1960 for another 249 performance engagement, closing in December.[34]. The tomboy Anybodys, who stubbornly wishes that she could become a Jet, tells Tony to flee from the scene at the last moment and flees with the knives. Norman was only in a total of three films, including “West Side Story.” In 1964, Norman played Bernardo on the New York City Center production of “West Side Story.” There was little information to be found about Norman, though it seems he’s still alive and may previously have taught dance in North Carolina. The cast includes Shereen Pimentel as Maria, Isaac Cole Powell as Tony, Amar Ramasar as Bernardo, Thomas Jay Ryan as Lt. Schrank and Yesenia Ayala as Anita, who is also set to appear in the upcoming film remake. The story is set in the Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City in the mid 1950s, a multiracial, blue-collar neighborhood. Bernstein suggested they rework East Side Story and set it in Los Angeles, but Laurents felt he was more familiar with Puerto Ricans in the United States and Harlem than he was with Mexican Americans and Olvera Street. The writer concluded: "On the cusp of the 1960s, American society, still recovering from the enormous upheaval of World War II, was seeking stability and control. The production's national tour was launched on July 1, 1959, in Denver and then played in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Boston. Andre Tayir (Chile): Andre Tayir played Shark gang member, Chile. David Winters (A-Rab): David Winters played Baby John in the original Broadway cast. a. they both want to win the dance competition and bring home the trophy? The production was directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins, orchestrated by Sid Ramin and Irwin Kostal, and produced by Robert E. Griffith and Harold Prince, with lighting designed by Jean Rosenthal. [39] The original scenic, lighting, and costume designs were used. The music of "Gee, Officer Krupke" was pulled from the Venice scene in Candide. The sharks are Puerto Rican immigrants. Yvonne is also an artist and currently has art exhibited at the Santa Monica Art Institute. Tony attempts to intervene, inadvertently leading to Riff being fatally stabbed by Bernardo. She had a reoccurring role on the TV show “Arrest and Trial” from 1963 to 1964.