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West Side Story, My Fair Lady and Chicago Films Play the Ziegfeld Theatre, Feb. 10-16
By: BWW News Desk Jan. 30, 2006
The winner of ten Academy Awards (including Best Picture, Best Director for Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Rita Moreno), the 1961 film version of West Side Story was based on the 1957 musical with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by Arthur Laurents, who adapted the musical as a modern, urban version of Romeo and Juliet. The film starred Natalie Wood (who was dubbed by Marni Nixon) as Maria, Richard Beymer (dubbed by Jim Bryant) as Tony, Moreno (partially dubbed by Betty Wand) as Anita and George Chakiris as Bernardo. The film featured choreography by Robbins as well as the uncredited Peter Gennaro.
The 1964 film adaptation of My Fair Lady, the Frederick Loewe-Alan Jay Lerner musical based on George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, featured Rex Harrison recreating his role as Professor Henry Higgins, who turns Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle into a lady in order to win a bet. Audrey Hepburn (who was partially dubbed by Marni Nixon) replaced Julie Andrews in the latter role for the film, which won eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role (Harrison) and Best Director for George Cukor. My Fair Lady opened on Broadway in 1956.
Chicago, starring Renee Zellweger as Roxie, Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma, Richard Gere as Billy Flynn, Queen Latifah as Mama Morton and John C. Reilly as Amos, won six Oscars--including Best Picture and Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Zeta-Jones). Directed and choreographed by Rob Marshall, the film version of Chicago features a score by John Kander and Fred Ebb and a screenplay by Bill Condon (who adapted it from the book by Ebb and Bob Fosse). Fosse directed and choreographed the original 1975 musical starring Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera (who has a cameo in the film). The current smash revival of Chicago, which opened in 1996 with direction by Walter Bobbie and choreography by Anne Reinking (based on that of Fosse), inspired producers to make the movie musical.
For more information on the Hollywood Classics series and to view showtimes, visit www.ClearviewCinemas.com.
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