FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT WEST SIDE STORY

BWW Reviews: McGill's WEST SIDE STORY is Definitely 'Cool'

When West Side Story opened in 1957 it was nothing the world had ever seen before. This was partly because of the heavy themes it deals with, namely racial prejudice and gang violence, but mainly because it gracefully blends dance into the telling of the story. (more...)

WEST SIDE STORY Comes to Fort Worth's Bass Hall, 1/15-20

Presented by Performing Arts Fort Worth, the tour of the smash hit Broadway revival of WEST SIDE STORY is coming to Fort Worth. WEST SIDE STORY will open at Bass Performance Hall on January 15 and run through January 20. Tony Award-winning librettist Arthur Laurents' Broadway direction is recreated for the tour by David Saint, the Associate Director on Broadway. The original Jerome Robbins choreography is reproduced by Tony Award-nominee Joey McKneely (The Boy from Oz, The Life). (more...)

Troika Entertainment Launches National Tour of WEST SIDE STORY at Paramount Arts Center

More than 50 years since the musical, West Side Story first appeared, it has been revived countless times and become a fundamental of musical theater companies of both professional and amateur standing. Although many productions are "attempted", it's very seldom that one is lucky enough to see a production that succeeds in the standards set forth by the original adaptation. Elements frequently missing are age-appropriate casting and the force to make the audience feel the danger within the plot. (more...)

BWW Reviews: PRiMA's MUSIC OF WEST SIDE STORY Sizzles with Josefina Scaglione

Lancaster's PRiMA Theatre presents an electrifying staged jazz theatrical concert of Leonard Bernstein's WEST SIDE STORY with Broadway's Maria, Josefina Scaglione. (more...)

STAGE TUBE: Sierra Boggess and Julian Ovenden Perform WEST SIDE STORY's Balcony Scene on BBC Proms 2012!

In the video below, Sierra Boggess and Julian Ovenden perform the balcony scene from Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story as part of BBC Proms 2012 from the Royal Albert Hall, London. Watch below! (more...)

BWW Interviews: Josefina Scaglione on the Music of WEST SIDE STORY and More

Tony nominee Josefina Scaglione comes to Lancaster, PA to sing THE MUSIC OF WEST SIDE STORY on September 9 and 16, 2012. She pauses during rehearsals to talk about her career, her ambitions, and Lancaster County. (more...)

WEST SIDE STORY at Contra Costa Civic Theatre Opens Tonight, 7/13

Contra Costa Civic Theatre's West Side Story, opening tonight, July 13, boasts the largest orchestra in the company's 52-year history, 26 actors making their CCCT debut, and the first collaboration of Artistic Director Derrick J. Silva (Choreographer), and Managing Director Daren A.C. Carollo (Director). (more...)

STAGE TUBE: WEST SIDE STORY National Tour Lip-Syncs 'Call Me Maybe'

The cast of the Broadway First National Tour of West Side Story put together a fun lip-sync video of the pop hit 'Call Me Maybe' by Carly Rae Jepsen. BroadwayWorld brings you the spoof below, featuring the cast backstage and more! (more...)

BWW Reviews: WEST SIDE STORY Heats Up Durham

Everybody knows West Side Story. Even if you have never seen the show before, even if you haven't seen the movie, you know West Side Story. The iconic show is so enmeshed in American culture that it is inescapable. For good reason, I might add. West Side Story is landmark theater, marking the genesis of the modern musical. And it's at the Durham Performing Arts Center now. (more...)

WEST SIDE STORY Cast Hosts Master Class with Etobicoke School for the Arts Today, 5/24

Dancap Productions and Etobicoke School for the Arts continue their WEST SIDE STORY collaboration with a master dance class taught by cast members today, May 24 @ 12:45pm. (more...)

BWW Interviews: WEST SIDE STORY Comes to DPAC in June - The Creative Process with Joey McKneely

One of the most well-known shows of all time, West Side Story, is coming to the Durham Performing Arts Center this June. In anticipation of its arrival, I spoke with Joey McKneely, the show's choreographer, to gain insight into the unique elements of this production. He offered a glimpse into the creative minds of the late Jerome Robbins and Arthur Laurents. He explains why every generation needs to experience the power of West Side Story, and why this imagining of the production brings to light the relevance of the themes. (more...)

'The Showtune Mosh Pit' for January 4th, 2012

The latest in unauthorized gossip and buzz from the heart of Chicago's showtune video bars, and musical theater news from Chicago to New York. Check out the Mosh Pit 'Top Ten Hot Topics' for the last half of 2011! (more...)

STAGE TUBE: WEST SIDE STORY Flash Mob Hits NYC!

Today, the YouTube partnership network DanceOn produced a flash mob featuring 50 New York City dancers to honor the 50th Anniversary of the Academy Award winning film, West Side Story. (more...)

FLASH FRIDAY: WEST SIDE STORY - All The Way

Has Broadway ever had the pleasure to hear a better score than that of WEST SIDE STORY? Furthermore, has a better movie musical ever been made of a Broadway show? Honestly, does musical theatre get any more breathlessly exhilarating and passionately evocative as WEST SIDE STORY unquestionably is? Did Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins somehow actually improve on perfection in the original production of the show with their 1960 film version of the Shakespeare-based, modern Manhattan-set property? Well, I suppose it all depends on your point of view, but for many Broadway babies WEST SIDE STORY is simply as good as it gets as far as musical tragedy or musical comedy is concerned, and, for many film buffs, there are few movie musicals as potent, powerful and prescient as WEST SIDE STORY undoubtedly is in its multi-Oscar-winning film iteration. It is truly the best of both worlds for the duration of its running time, somehow managing to put across the highly theatrical storytelling techniques employed by master-directors Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, and, also, present the realistic, rough and tumble life of Tony and Maria - the doomed lovers at the core of the story. More than anything else, though, it is the impossible-to-beat score for WEST SIDE STORY by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim - along with Arthur Laurents tight and terse book (enhanced for the film by Ernest Lehmann) - that makes it the timeless classic for the ages that it is. Name one other score that boasts as many songs etched into the very culture of America itself as this one - "Tonight", "Maria", "Cool", "A Boy Like That", "I Feel Pretty", "America", "Somewhere"; and, the list goes on. (more...)

WEST SIDE STORY to Be Featured in Movie Theatres Nationwide, 11/9

Bringing one of the most acclaimed works of musical drama ever captured back to movie theaters nationwide this fall, NCM Fathom and Turner Classic Movies (TCM) are presenting The West Side Story 50th Anniversary Event on Wednesday, November 9th at 7:00 pm local time. This unprecedented opportunity allows audiences to enjoy every sensational song and dazzling dance number in this cinematic masterpiece, which originally won a stunning 10 Academy Awards®, including Best Picture, in 1961. The West Side Story 50th Anniversary Event will open with an exciting new TCM original production featuring a discussion with Walter Mirisch of The Mirisch Company, which produced the classic; Oscar®-winning actor George Chakiris; and vocalist Marni Nixon, who served as Natalie Woods' voice double. TCM Host Robert Osborne moderates the discussion, which was taped at the 2011 TCM Classic Film Festival in historic Hollywood. (more...)