The Details…
• Book by Arthur Laurent
• Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
– Mentored by Oscar Hammerstein II (friends with son,
Jimmy)
– Show was his big break-Broadway debut
• Music by Leonard Bernstein
– Famous American composer, musician, and conductor
– Post at Boston Symphony Orchestra
• Premiered in 1957
• Show lasted for 732 performances
• Romeo and Juliet
The Details…
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Set in the mid 1950’s-Present time
New York’s West Side/Hell’s Kitchen district
Rivalry of two teenage gangs
Highlighted current ethnic and cultural problems,
not reflecting on past customs
• Used dance in the same way as Oklahoma to tell
parts of the story
• Though did not last terribly long on Broadway, it
is considered to be one of the best musicals
written
The Details…
• In 1949, the plot was originally to be about an Italian-American
Catholic family vs. a Jewish family living in Lower East Side of
Manhattan during the Easter-Passover season.
• East-Side Story
• Jerome Robbins, Arthur Laurent, and Leonard Berstein parted ways,
shelved for 5 years
• Years later the three collaborated again, Sondheim joined scene
• Sondheim changed storyline to be about Polish vs. Puerto Ricans
• Production period was timely with news of gang wars throughout
NYC
• Dance scene music was arranged into a Symphonic Suite by
Bernstein that is commonly performed
• The tritone—musical device Bernstein used
The Characters
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Tony-The best friend of Riff and former Jet leader who has turned to an honest
life. He is good-looking, self assured, and passionate. Falls in love with Maria.
Maria-The beautiful, younger sister of Bernardo who has recently arrived from
Puerto Rico. She is excited and enthusiastic, yet obedient.
Sharks:
– Bernardo-Maria's older brother who is the leader of the Sharks. On the surface, he is a
seemingly cool character. But inside, he is filled with passion and anger.
– Chino-Maria's quiet, intense, and angry suitor that she eventually rejects for Tony.
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Jets:
– Riff-The intelligent yet slightly wacky current leader of the Jets.
– Baby John-The youngest member and biggest "scaredicat.“
– Diesel-A Jet who is very physically imposing.
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Anita-Bernardo's intelligent, flashy and sexy girlfriend.
Doc-The fatherly owner of the drugstore where the Jets and Sharks hang out.
Officer Krupke-A large, goon-like police officer in uniform.
Romeo and Juliet
• Used Romeo and Juliet story to show the
travesties of gang problems in NYC in a
contemporary light.
• Tony-Romeo
• Maria-Juliet
• Bernardo-Tybalt
• Anita-Nurse
• Riff-Mercution
• Doc-Friar Lawrence
• Chino-Paris
The Story
• The musical opens with a fight between the Jets
(Americans) and the Sharks (Puerto Ricans)
• Officers break up the fight, Sharks leave.
• Jets plan a “rumble” with the Sharks.
• Riff convinces Tony to go to the dance
• He agrees, but doesn’t want a part of gang life
• We meet Maria working at a wedding dress shop
with Anita.
• She has been promised in marriage to Chino
The Story…
• At the neighborhood dance, tension fills the room
• Tony and Maria meet, dance, forget the world around
them. (Maria)
• Bernardo breaks them up.
• Riff and Bernardo agree to meet at the War Council at
Doc’s.
• That night Tony finds Maria’s apartment, serenades her
and they profess their love (Tonight)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II2uaRmlQNg Maria
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_QffCZs-bg Tonight
The Story
• The Shark girls discuss the difference between Puerto
Rico and the US (America)
• Doc tries to convince the Jet’s to call off the rumble,
but refuse.
• Sharks and Jets agree on a fair fight, no weapons.
• Lt. Schrank comes in, tries to find location of fight
• Tony and Maria meet and talk about their dream
wedding. She asks him to stop the fight and he agrees.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QS7wWzwak4
(America)
The Story…
• At the rumble, Tony tries to stop the two groups
from fighting.
• Bernardo tries to provoke Tony, who keeps his
composure.
• Riff tries to fight Bernardo in defense of Tony, and
knifes appear.
• Bernardo kills Riff, then Tony kills Bernardo
(Maria’s brother) in a fit of rage. A full out brawl
ensues
• When the cops come, they all flee, leaving the
dead bodies of Riff and Bernado on stage
Act 2…
• Maria daydreams with her friends about seeing Tony (I Feel Pretty)
• Chino comes in with the bad news
• Tony comes that night to see Maria, where she hits him until he
calms her down.
• They plan to run away together, and find themselves in a dream
world (Somewhere)
• The cops chase after the Jets, who escape from Lt. Krupke.
• Anybody (a wannabe Jet) tells them that Chino is after Tony with a
gun. They scatter to find him.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BQMgCy-n6U Somewhere
The tension mounts…
• Grieving Anita finds that Maria had just been
with Tony, and demands to know how she can
love a man who killed her brother (A Boy Like
That)
• Maria responds with (I Have a Love) and Anita
understands and respects her. She tells her
Chino has a gun.
• Lt. Shank comes to question Maria, so Anita
goes to Doc’s to tell Tony to wait
Things Take a Turn for the Worse…
• Anita is confronted by the angry Jets who
spew racist innuendos and insults, and nearly
rape her.
• Doc comes in and stops them.
• Anita scolds them, saying Bernardo was right
about who they “really” are.
• Anita lies saying her reason to come was to
tell Tony that Chino killed Maria
• Doc relates the news to Tony who begs to die
The “almost” ending…
• Just as Tony sees Maria alive, Chino arrives and
shoots Tony.
• Maria holds Tony in her arms as he dies, with
both the Jets and Sharks watching.
• Jets try to start fighting again, but Maria grabs
and brandishes Chino’s gun, telling everyone that
hatred is what killed Tony and now she can kill
because she hates too.
• What will happen next???
The Results
• Nominated for a Best Musical but lost to Music Man in 1957.
– Much easier show to digest than W.S.S.
• After 732 shows, it went on a national tour and returned for another 253
shows.
• Has been subject to several revivals in America and productions
throughout the world
• 1961 movie won 10 Academy Awards out of 11 nominations
• 2009 Revival
– Arthur Laurent revised the book to make it more relevent
– "This show will be radically different from any other production of West Side
Story ever done. The musical theatre and cultural conventions of 1957 made it
next to impossible for the characters to have authenticity. Every member of
both gangs was always a potential killer even then. Now they actually will be.
Only Tony and Maria try to live in a different world…“
– Changed some of the lines to Spanish
– On Broadway now (since March 19th)
Audience Reaction
• While critics speculated about the comic-tragic darkness of the musical,
audiences were captivated. The story appealed to society's undercurrent
of rebellion from authority that surfaced in 1950s films like Rebel Without
a Cause. West Side Story took this one step farther by combining the
classic and the hip. 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. The play was
criticized for glamorizing gangs, and its portrayal of Puerto Ricans and lack
of authentic Latin casting were weaknesses. Yet, the song "America"
shows the triumph of the spirit over the obstacles often faced by
immigrants. The musical also made points in its description of troubled
youth and the devastating effects of poverty and racism. Juvenile
delinquency is seen as an ailment of society: "No one wants a fella with a
social disease!" One writer summed up the reasons for the show's
popularity in these terms: "On the cusp of the 1960s, American society,
still recovering from the enormous upheaval of World War II, was seeking
stability and control.“ ~Time Magazine