Let's nominate another:
And it's West Side Story - I know someone who will approve of that particular suggestion.
West Side Story took about 10 years to develop. Originally to be called East Side Story and to be a story about Catholic and Jewish families struggling against each other in New York's East side, this idea - a modern-times adaptation of Romeo and Juliet - eventually came to fruition as the ultimate combination of staging, choreography, music and lyrics - conceived together to tell the story as a coherent piece. This was groundbreaking in a musical theatre world largely comprising "Gags and gals".
I was listening to the radio recently and someone commented that Leonard Bernstein's score seems to youthen. There's no doubt that this show feels more modern than a number of show which followed it. As much as I love Lerner and Loewe, they have a feeling of times gone by, where the music of West Side Story still feels hot.
As I believe I've mentioned on this site before, one of my best moments watching a musical was in the second row of Durham Gala Theatre as the overture of this show started and I was hit with a feeling of "my goodness - they're really doing it". I felt similarly when I first saw Les Mis, which hass engineered as a show to have magnitude... but West Side Story just has impact, effortlessly, it needs no engineering.
Sondheim's lyrics to West Side Story are characteristically well crafted and make use of his relentless word power.
At some point I'll post the blooper from the film sound track.
I wish I could do West Side Story, but I'm too old and not limber enough. Shame.
I'm currently listening to Marni Nixon as Maria singing a duet with Anita, played by Marni Nixon - one of the bizarre side-effects of using one dubbing singer to cover two non-singing actresses in the same movie. Bless Ms Nixon, she almost ruined the movie of My Fair Lady with her inappropriate tone and accent, but she did a reasonable job on West Side Story - again, with a flaky accent, but with, at least, the range to sing two different registers and make it sound like two different voices.
And it's West Side Story - I know someone who will approve of that particular suggestion.
West Side Story took about 10 years to develop. Originally to be called East Side Story and to be a story about Catholic and Jewish families struggling against each other in New York's East side, this idea - a modern-times adaptation of Romeo and Juliet - eventually came to fruition as the ultimate combination of staging, choreography, music and lyrics - conceived together to tell the story as a coherent piece. This was groundbreaking in a musical theatre world largely comprising "Gags and gals".
I was listening to the radio recently and someone commented that Leonard Bernstein's score seems to youthen. There's no doubt that this show feels more modern than a number of show which followed it. As much as I love Lerner and Loewe, they have a feeling of times gone by, where the music of West Side Story still feels hot.
As I believe I've mentioned on this site before, one of my best moments watching a musical was in the second row of Durham Gala Theatre as the overture of this show started and I was hit with a feeling of "my goodness - they're really doing it". I felt similarly when I first saw Les Mis, which hass engineered as a show to have magnitude... but West Side Story just has impact, effortlessly, it needs no engineering.
Sondheim's lyrics to West Side Story are characteristically well crafted and make use of his relentless word power.
At some point I'll post the blooper from the film sound track.
I wish I could do West Side Story, but I'm too old and not limber enough. Shame.
I'm currently listening to Marni Nixon as Maria singing a duet with Anita, played by Marni Nixon - one of the bizarre side-effects of using one dubbing singer to cover two non-singing actresses in the same movie. Bless Ms Nixon, she almost ruined the movie of My Fair Lady with her inappropriate tone and accent, but she did a reasonable job on West Side Story - again, with a flaky accent, but with, at least, the range to sing two different registers and make it sound like two different voices.
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