In 1957, four rising artistic giants created a groundbreaking stage production that rewrote every rule of musical theater — but one.
“West Side Story” would forge Arthur Laurents’ street-smart script with Jerome Robbins’ ruthless choreography with Leonard Bernstein’s operatic score with Stephen Sondheim’s poetic lyrics into the gritty story of rival gangs battling to the death for supremacy over a few measly blocks of Hell’s Kitchen.
The result was a sinister story that incorporated attempted rape, racism and gang warfare into an ageless romance between lovers from warring families. But while the inherently artificial world of musical theater had never been so raw, or so real, at once, the late Laurents admitted in 2009 that “musical theater conventions of 1957 made it next to impossible for it to have authenticity.”
It was, in one important way, still a conventional musical comedy.
“When Arthur went back and looked at his script from a 21st-century perspective, he knew it had become a period piece,” said David Saint, who directed the national touring production that visits Denver starting Tuesday. “And that was the last thing he wanted.”
But a recent Broadway revival of “West Side Story” gave Laurents, at age 90, a second chance. And not just because the musical was turning 50. “Arthur didn’t want to do it just for that,” said Saint. “He wanted a real reason to revive it. Something that gave it a fresh look.”
That reason came when Laurents’ lifetime partner, Tom Hatcher, saw an all-Spanish production of “West Side” in Bogotá, Colombia. Hatcher was shocked, Saint said, to see that the Puerto Rican Sharks came out more like heroes than the all-American Jets.
Spanish and English run as parallel in New York City as the Hudson and East rivers, so, Hatcher suggested to Laurents, why not have the Sharks, whenever appropriate, speak and sing in their native Spanish?
Sondheim, who doesn’t speak Spanish, teamed with Lin-Manuel Miranda (“In the Heights”) to weave Spanish lyrics into the English libretto, a complicated endeavor because that would involve matching meter and rhyme.
“I got my dream job, working alongside my hero,” Miranda said of Sondheim. “And I had a blast doing it.” But audiences, he said, “freaked out.” Those were the pre-Broadway audiences in Washington, D.C.
“When a show is as beloved as ‘West Side Story,’ and tourist audiences hear ‘A Boy Like That’ in Spanish, they just went, ‘What the (bleep) is this?’ ” Miranda said. “The creative team was getting complaints, so the decision was made to switch some of those moments back to English.” Saint says about 10 percent of the script remains in Spanish, “and no one is going to miss any plot points.
“When it comes down to it, people who come to see ‘West Side Story’ on Broadway don’t want to see it messed with. People just weren’t ready for that, and that’s a drag, but I still had an awesome experience.”
Still, there is no denying that “West Side Story” changed both the look and language of musical theater in 1957. A Web resource lists hundreds of pop-culture references to the musical over the past 54 years, from “The Jack Benny Program” to a recent five-episode arc on “Glee.”
When Republicans successfully split the Congress in the 2010 elections, CNN’s Anderson Cooper predicted governance would become like the Jets and Sharks dancing together at the school gym.
” ‘West Side Story’ is no longer just a pop-culture reference,” Saint said. “It’s a social mile-marker.”
The score has been adapted by everyone from Tom Waits to Devo to Pet Shop Boys to Ponch (of “CHiPs”). Charo sang “America” with the Brady Bunch. Michael Jackson was said to have watched the film once a week.
The story, of course, is based on Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” which was based on a poem now 450 years old, and has been made into at least 40 films.
“This story of love trying to exist in a world of bigotry and violence is unfortunately one that has been with us for hundreds of years,” Saint said. “It’s one that has huge social ramifications, but it’s also one that we live by, deep down, because of the hope it offers. Hope that, in our world, two individuals can actually fall in love and pursue that love, in spite of the fact that they are from warring communities.”
Sondheim attributed the original Broadway production’s success to choreographer Robbins’ “artistic ruthlessness, combined with real sadism.” It is regarded as such a masterpiece that many are surprised to learn it lost out for the 1957 best-musical Tony Award to “The Music Man.”
Despite his advanced age, Laurents directed the heralded 2009 Broadway revival, but when it was time for the inevitable national touring production that is now coming Denver’s way, he turned it over to Saint, along with his permission to further experiment. “He told me, ‘I would love to see what you would do with it,’ ” Saint said. And he did, before Laurents’ death in May at age 93.
The most noticeable change Saint implemented is in the song “Gee, Officer Krupke.” “Arthur’s intent was to find a way for the characters to vent their terror at was happening to them after the deadly rumble, and for them somehow to channel all their rage into the black humor of vaudeville or burlesque,” he said.
It was a song that, Saint added, Laurents agreed never really worked in the revival. “When you talk to actors in their early 20s about vaudeville and burlesque,” he said, “they have no idea what you are talking about. I got blank stares.
“So I thought, what contemporary idiom do we use to express political, social, religious and sexual issues and outrage in a burlesque way … and it suddenly hit me. I said to them, ‘OK, what if we think of this as “South Park,” ‘ and all of their eyes lit up. They just got it.”
“West Side Story”: Ticket information
National touring production at the Buell Theatre, Denver Performing Arts Complex. Directed by David Saint. Starring Ross Lekites and Evy Ortiz.Tuesday through Jan. 1. 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays; also 2 p.m Dec. 23. $20-$125. 303-893-4100 (800-641-1222 outside Denver) or
Most recent theater openings
Longmont Theatre Company’s “The Ride with Santa” Through Dec. 18: What happens when the kid who wins the “Ride with Santa on Christmas Eve Contest” is not the compassionate kind of kid Santa was hoping for? Santa has a tough road ahead, trying to nudge Eddy into sharing and giving, through their journey together as they fly around the world on Christmas Eve. Joining in are Mrs. Santa, the elves, reindeer and kangaroos, and a dancing clock who tries to slow down time. An original family musical by Debi Stevenson. Showtimes: 7 p.m. Dec. 8-10 and 16-17; 2 p.m. Dec. 11 and 18. 513 Main St., Longmont, 303-772-5200 or
Thunder River’s “Always…Patsy Cline”: Through Dec. 18: This intimate, ubiquitous musical chronicles the true story between Patsy Cline and a Houston housewife who befriends the star and corresponds with her until her untimely death. Songs include “I Fall to Pieces,” “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” “Walkin’ After Midnight” and “Crazy.” Showtimes: 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. 67 Promenade, Carbondale, 970-963-8200 or
Estes Park Repertoire Theatre Company’s “A Christmas Carol” Through Dec. 18: Charles Dickens’ classic tale of miser Scrooge’s spiritual redemption, adapted by Cora W. Greenwood. Performed in one act. Showtimes: 6 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays. At St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, 880 MacGregor Ave., 970-586-2127, or
Platte Valley Players’ “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play” Through Dec. 18: In a 1940s radio studio, five actors recreate Frank Capra’s classic film, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” as a live broadcast. It’s about an ordinary man named George Bailey, who is at the end of his rope one lonely Christmas Eve. Showtimes: 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Most shows at the Armory in the Brighton Cultural Center, 300 Strong St., Brighton, 303-481-8432 or
Front Range Theatre Company’s “The SantaLand Diaries” Through Dec. 13: David Sedaris’ comical real-life experiences are recounted working as an Elf in a Macy’s SantaLand display. For adults only. Showtimes: 6:30 Dec. 9-10 at the Cherokee Ranch and Castle; 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at Benders Tavern
Cherokee Ranch and Castle: 6113 N. Daniels Park Road, Sedalia; Bender’s Tavern, 314 E 13th Ave., Denver, 866-879-7373 or
Stories on Stage’s “Making Merry” Saturday and Sunday: This ongoing series features themed programs in which excerpts of short stories and essays are read. This time: “A Visit From Saint Nicholas (in the Ernest Hemingway Manner),” by James Thurber, read by Sam Gregory; “Auggie Wren’s Christmas Story, ” by Paul Auster, read by Aaron Serotsky; “Who Can Retell,” by Myra Goldberg, read by Jacqueline Antaramian; “The Boy Who Laughed At Santa Claus,” by Ogden Nash , read by Aaron Serotsky; “Christmas Eve at the Slash Y,” by Jack Schaefer, from his novel “Monte Walsh,” read by Sam Gregory. Showtimes: 2 p.m. Saturday; 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Saturday at the Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. Sunday, at the Seawell Ballroom, Denver Performing Arts Complex, 303-494-0523 or
“Cora Vette’s Hot Rods! The Boylesque Show” Opening Sunday: Burlesque has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity and with it, boylesque is starting to get national attention. This new weekly offering, hosted by Cora Vette, will feature male theatrical strip-tease, singing, dancing and comedy. Sunday is the opening party, and then the show will continue weekly every Sunday night. Showtime: 8 p.m. Sundays only. At The Compound,145 Broadway, 303-295-1883 or
Compiled by John Moore
Complete theater listings
Go to our complete list of in Colorado, including summaries, run dates, addresses, phones and links to every company’s home page. Or check out our listings or
The Running Lines blog
Catch up on all the latest theater news:
