Thursday, 6/5/97 Revival of ‘West Side Story’ preserves charm of
original Classic tale of star-crossed lovers comes back in
international tour
By Cheryl Klein Daily Bruin Senior Staff There’s nothing new
about the latest national tour of "West Side Story." The sets,
costumes, choreography and even the most minute blocking are the
same as they were 40 years ago. But, really, who would want it any
other way? "They pretty much wanted to give the audience an idea of
what it would be like to see it in 1957," says Jeremy Koch, who
plays Tony in the classic American musical, opening June 10 at the
Pantages Theatre. Based on "Romeo and Juliet," "West Side Story"
brings the tale of star-crossed lovers to the 1950s, where rival
gangs battle it out on the streets of New York City. Trouble
escalates when Tony, a member of the Jets, falls for Maria, whose
brother Bernardo leads the Sharks. Touching on themes of prejudice,
violence and love, the original creation of Jerome Robbins, Arthur
Laurents, Leonard Bernstein and Steven Sondheim probably doesn’t
need to be updated to get its message across. "It’s an issue of
trying to fit into a society which has a lot of variety, but not a
lot of tolerance for people who are different," Koch says. "That’s
definitely something people can relate to no matter who they are.
Everyone has experienced some kind of discrimination." Vouching for
the musical’s relevance are several groups of at-risk adolescents
who have seen the show as part of local intervention programs.
Their first impression is often of how times have changed, but it
is something they quickly get past. "They kind of laugh about using
knives instead of guns and the way that they talk (in the show) and
stuff like that," says Sharen Camille, who plays Maria. "They kind
of go with it, suspend the disbelief – dancing gang members and all
that. But I think overall, young people get into the show." Though
most gang members aren’t likely to waltz around the room singing,
"I feel pretty," "West Side Story’s" underlying themes hit home.
Koch describes the similarities between the stage world and real
life on the streets. "It’s the only real family that they have.
(The characters) joke about ‘My mom’s a drunk and my dad’s a
junkie,’" Koch says. "It seems silly in the ‘Officer Krupke’ song,
but when you stop to think about it, it’s pretty close to the
truth." On the other end of the audience spectrum are the people
who saw the original Broadway production or the 1961 movie. As
"West Side Story" plays for a second and even third generation of
theatergoers, many older people want to share what has become a
piece of Americana with their children and grandchildren. "We met
some people whose first date was seeing ‘West Side Story,’" Camille
calls. The show’s likeness to the original owes much to
director/choreographer Alan Johnson, who has been involved with
various productions of "West Side Story" for 30 years and is a
close friend of Jerome Robbins. "He just knows the show so well and
has lived with it in his heart for so long," Camille says. "It’s
funny sometimes watching him in rehearsals. He’ll do one of the
moves and it’s just amazing to see this man who is still just this
beautiful beautiful dancer." Dance is crucial to "West Side Story,"
from the falling-in-love ballet scene between Tony and Maria to the
artfully choreographed fight scenes. It is no wonder that the show
has given both Koch and Camille, neither of whom consider
themselves dancers first, a chance to brush up on their skills in
this area. "You have to be a dancer who acts," Camille explains.
"You can’t just do the steps because everything is so infused with
the story. Each character might dance those steps a slightly
different way because they’re doing it as their character." Koch,
however, adds, "For me, it’s much more of an acting and singing
type journey. I communicate a lot of what I’m thinking through song
or dialogue." The songs in "West Side Story" have made it famous
and inspired many well-known recording artists to enter the world
of the Jets and the Sharks over the years. Placido Domingo, Marvin
Gaye and Johnny Mathis are just a few of the singers to be smitten
in "Maria," while Barbra Streisand, The Temptations and even the
Mormon Tabernacle Choir have contributed renditions of the hopeful
"Somewhere." Yet, it seems to be the tragic storyline which has
attracted audiences not just for 40 years, but for 400. "It just
goes to show that Shakespeare and his themes and ideas work in any
setting," Koch says. "A lot of the cast saw the new ‘Romeo and
Juliet’ (movie) when it came out … Some people were a little put
off by the language, but I just watched it and thought, ‘This is
how these people speak.’ And if you think about it, the way people
speak today, there’s a lot of slang and there’s a lot of new types
of phrases." Regional overtones play a part in audience reactions,
as Koch and Camille have discovered during their nationwide tour.
"Some jokes go over bigger in some places than in others," Camille
says. She explains that in one song, she imitates the stiff-handed
wave that is a trademark of beauty pageants. "Down south, everybody
got it and laughed really hard." Los Angeles is the last stop on
the itinerary, rounding out two years of hard but rewarding work.
Though cast members are unpacking their suitcases and getting ready
to audition for new projects, they have no doubt that they’ve left
their mark on what is already a household name in American culture.
Says Koch, "It’s kind of like being a part of history." THEATER:
"West Side Story" runs from June 10-22 at the Pantages Theatre.
Ticket range from $22 to $48. For more information, call (213)
365-3500.