VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY
VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY
VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#1
Posted: 3/6/09 at 10:46pm
Look what made it onto the obituary page, right next to the notice for Sidney Chaplin.
It's official: West Side Story is dead on arrival!
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#2
Posted: 3/6/09 at 10:50pmOh god.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#2
Posted: 3/6/09 at 11:01pmI nearly peed my pants laughing. What a colossal blunder.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#3
Posted: 3/6/09 at 11:03pmWas it some sort of subliminal message?
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/4/04
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#4
Posted: 3/6/09 at 11:28pmI guess they saw the revival and are just printing the news.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#5
Posted: 3/6/09 at 11:39pm
I was thinking that, too CPD, but it's an old article.
It could be the act of a higher authority.
Sime is watching, he sees and knows all....
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/23/05
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#6
Posted: 3/6/09 at 11:39pm
Sincerest condolences.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#7
Posted: 3/7/09 at 3:46amI guess it went Plattline
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#8
Posted: 3/7/09 at 5:24am
Plattline!!! Bwahahahaha.
What an amazing faux pas! Is it a sign of reviews to come?
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#9
Posted: 3/7/09 at 8:17am
With a $13 million advance, it's anything but DOA.
I tells ya: It's going to be a hit, despite what any of us might say about its flaws.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#10
Posted: 3/7/09 at 9:13amI agree with PJ, but this really made me laugh. (And... 'Plattline' is pretty brilliant.)
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#11
Posted: 3/7/09 at 9:31am
Well I haven't seen it yet, so I offer no opinion and I still have high hopes personally for it. (seeing it in two weeks)
I also didn't mean to imply it SHOULD get bad reviews...just using the info as a springboard.
If the reviews are lukewarm, however, I wonder how tickets will CONTINUE to sell.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#12
Posted: 3/7/09 at 9:34amI think people should wait until the actual opening to decide if they like it. It's still previews...the actors are still getting into their roles, and they might change some things that some people here didn't like.
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#13
Posted: 3/7/09 at 9:39am
Arthur won't change the things I don't like.
He was waiting for years for Jerry Robbins and his lawyer, Floria Lasky, to die, so that Arthur he could dismantle the dream ballet.
Arthur's not going to put back in the Jerome Robbins staging he took out.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#14
Posted: 3/7/09 at 9:39am
Since not too much seems to have changed since its DC run (from the reviews here) I can't imagine they are looking to make too many changes.
But just getting into their roles? In ran in DC for what: a month? six weeks? PLUS rehearsal? At this point, that's a terrible excuse!
re: VARIETY mourns the passing of WEST SIDE STORY#15
Posted: 3/7/09 at 10:25am
Bad year for revivals. Maybe it's the revival that is DOA. AT any rate, this show will soon join a long line of "re-envisionings" that are, frankly, gastric reflux.
And thanks for the compliments about "Plattline." I went through several drafts to get that one just right.
From the Orchestra During Previews#16
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:15am
I really wanted to like this show and arrived at the Palace last night with great anticipation in seeing a full scale revival of an American Classic. Perhaps, it is a case of you just can't go there again. Or maybe the show for all of its past glory just does not withstand the test of time. However, the show's story line of racial tension remains relevant and despite the dated slang should have been presented with the reverance that this turning point in American Theater deserved.
Frankly, I have no idea what the producers were thinking of when they put together this ill conceived, run of the mill production; one whose cast is weak, sound is poor (or was it the lack of enunciation and emotion in delivering the dialog and lyrics), staging pedestrian. . . Well you're getting the idea. The show never builds any momentum. There is not a single show stopping moment. The is no tension between the Jets and the Sharks,I dare say in a show in which the star is machismo, there was just no testosterone! The addition of Spanish to the dialog and lyrics while well intentioned misses the mark. Perhaps the same end could have been reached by putting actors in place that were capable of projecting a Latin air.
It's not that the performers were not trying! And I applaud then and every other actor that takes the stage and puts themselves out there for critical review. However, much of the cast is miscast. While everyone needs to start somewhere, there was not a single member of the cast that had any real Broadway experience and it showed.
When Robbins originally choreographed this show it was with a maddening devotion to precision, however, this group could not even coordinate their finger snapping highlight. There was just no punctuation or emotion in the delivery of dialog, orchestration, song or dance. In a word, this show is lazy. But then again it was a preview and perhaps the best is held back until the show's doors officially open!
There were some moments. . . though they were few and far between. The dancing had a few intermittent performances that separated this production from being characterized as a great high school rendition.
I will say in this day and age where money is dear that spending the face value for a ticket is a pure waste of your cultural budget and the producer's bankbook. In fact, I might say that if this was an angel's way of showcasing a favored performer than it missed its mark as there is not a single performance worthy of such an investment.
I trust that this production did not live up to its responsibility to future generations as this will likely close quickly, and deprive a whole new generation of the magic of this masterpiece, relegating it to mothballs on account of what will likely be a pitiful box office that will be attributed to the times or the integrity of the book and lyrics.
Refunds are due to the audience and apologies to Messrs. Bernstein, Sondheim and Robbins.
From the Orchestra During Previews#17
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:19am
PalJoey, you're making it sound like this revival is Arthur Laurents' final revenge.
I still have hope that I'll have a good experience tonight (tonight, tonight). WSS is one of my favorite musicals of all time and to see it desecrated because the crusty bookwriter decided to piss on his old rival's grave would be saddening to say the least. I'm going in with an open mind. Since I'm not as jaded as some people here, maybe I'll have a different outlook.
From the Orchestra During Previews#18
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:36am
there was not a single member of the cast that had any real Broadway experience
I suppose Curtis Holbrook's 6 Broadway credits are fake.
Broadway Star Joined: 2/27/06
From the Orchestra During Previews#19
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:40am
Not to mention Matt Cavenaugh's roles in "Grey Gardens" and "Catered Affair," or Karen Olivo's in "Brooklyn," or "In the Heights," or Cody Green's in "Movin' Out" or "Grease"?
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/17/03
From the Orchestra During Previews#20
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:43amIf they can destroy Guys & Dolls, why not WSS?
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/18/08
From the Orchestra During Previews#21
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:45am
"Since I'm not as jaded as some people here"
Says the one who has snarky, b*tchy remarks for every single thread..
From the Orchestra During Previews#22
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:50am
Dear. That's like the pot calling the fire truck black.
As I stated in the other thread, I most of the time contribute positively to discussions. You, on the other hand, only stray from obnoxiousness to prove someone wrong or rabidly, creepily defend a performer.
From the Orchestra During Previews#23
Posted: 3/7/09 at 11:51am
The box office so far is far from pitiful.
Piragua--go and love it. It deserves to be loved.
From the Orchestra During Previews#24
Posted: 3/7/09 at 1:22pmBy no means! No offense intended, truly. Sometimes in generalization there's may be an inadvertant overreach! Sorry!
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