OFC Creations’ new production of “West Side Story,” which opened last night and runs until Oct. 27, not only brings Broadway to Brighton but also takes a fresh approach to a familiar musical.
Many Broadway musicals deserve to be called classics, but after more than half a century, “West Side Story” is still something special. It was produced in 1957, during a theatrical golden age including such popular musicals as “My Fair Lady,” “Damn Yankees,” and “The Music Man,” but its seriousness and artistic ambition set it apart.
Arthur Laurents’ libretto vividly resets Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”in the 1950s and amid New York City gang warfare: instead of Montagues and Capulets, there are the American Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks. Romeo and Juliet are the tragic lovers Tony and Maria. It’s remarkable songs by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim include favorites like “Something’s Coming,” “Tonight,” and “Maria.” The choreographer Jerome Robbins devised poetic movements for everything from mambos to gang fights (reproduced in the 1961 movie version).
“West Side Story” hasn’t been presented in Rochester since 2014. Eric Vaughn Johnson, creative director of OFC, directed it then, too, for a large-scale presentation at the Kodak Theater on West Ridge Road.
“That theater has 2,000 seats, our theater has 260,” he says. “So, this is not as big a production, but it will have the advantage of intimacy. The audience can see every reaction on stage and feel connected to the story.”
Johnson’s approach to this classic show has evolved in the past decade. “The script hasn’t changed, but times have changed,” he says, “and I see some aspects of the show through a different lens. We have to be accurate in casting the show, particularly the Latino gang members and their girlfriends. That’s a big reason why West Side Story is not done that often anymore.”
Johnson says that “West Side Story” boasts OFC’s largest cast and most ambitious production yet. “It’s a beast of a show to put on, and we couldn’t do it without strong talent giving a hundred percent,” he says. With 25 performers who can act, sing, and dance skillfully, “I have the right cast at the right time for this show.”
Many of the cast members (about half from Rochester, half from elsewhere in New York State) have a history with “West Side Story.” Joy Del Valle, who plays Maria, was an alternate for the role on a recent international tour of the show. (Maria’s lover Tony, who tragically crosses the racial line, is played by Max Ruscio, a last-minute cast replacement — a recent college graduate new to local theater whom Johnson calls “a budding star.”)
This is Courtney Arango’s fourth time playing Anita, the character who performs “America.” This role, originated on Broadway by Chita Rivera and played in the movies by Rita Moreno and Ariana DeBose (who each won Oscars), “calls for a triple threat – dancing, singing, and acting,” says Johnson, who says Arango fills the bill: “You can’t take your eyes off her onstage.”
Choreographer Marisa Guzman has a “West Side Story” history of her own.
“I grew up on the movie and the record,” she recalls, and this is her third “West Side Story” choreography assignment.
A Syracuse resident, Guzman runs a dance studio with her father; she has also worked with the Syracuse Opera and with school musicals.
“Everybody in our family knew West Side Story, and I idolized Rita Moreno as Anita. My choreography for ‘America’ is a tribute to Rita.”
For this familiar number, Guzman adds new touches, such as shawls and fans, that draw on the flamenco dance heritage; she studied flamenco with her aunt and is an experienced flamenco dancer.
“With West Side Story, the audience has certain expectations,” she says, “but I want to find ways here and there to be creative and original. This adds to the artistry of the piece.”
This groundbreaking show is now 67 years old, and Johnson agrees that in addition to its compelling drama, “West Side Story” now has the additional appeal of nostalgia.
“This show has seen it all – Broadway, movies, recordings,” he says. “But its themes are absolutely relevant today: racism, gang violence, people who are stuck in poverty and desperate to escape. In our production, we try to suggest that even after a tragedy, the members of a community can come together.”
David Raymond is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. Submissions to the Letters page should be sent to [email protected].