WEST SIDE STORY reviews: opened Feb 20 2020- Page 8

[TheQuibbler]

Posted: 2/25/20 at 9:41pm

The full cast was in tonight.

[suicidalmickeymouse]

Posted: 2/25/20 at 9:57pm

Thank you for the update. I am going tomorrow and will also update!

[suicidalmickeymouse]

Posted: 2/26/20 at 11:48pm

Saw tonight with full cast, it appears from Isaac’s insta he was at a doctor’s appointment for his knee. Was glad to see him tonight! :)

[Rose2]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 12:20am

I was at the matinee today and Isaac & the full cast performed!!

[suicidalmickeymouse]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 3:15am

That’s great to hear he did both shows today!

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 3:19am

Rose2 said: "I was at the matinee today and Isaac & the full cast performed!!"

I was at the matinee and Isaac did NOT perform. In fact, we had five understudies. Tony, Riff and a few others. For whatever reason the insert in the Playbill included the full cast but the understudy board was updated.

[suicidalmickeymouse]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 3:29am

Funny, we did not get an insert at all in the evening. How was Jordan?

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 3:41am

According to Instagram, we also had Rocky Ubeda as Bernardo. I honestly had no idea what Amar looked like, so this I didn’t notice.

Jordan was very good! He actually has an Instagram post up about performing this afternoon, so y’all don’t think I’m insane lol

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 3:45am

As for the insert... it was very strange. I’m not sure how they were doing understudies in the Playbill (slips or an insert) but it literally just had the entire original cast printed on it, as if they forgot to edit it and put the understudies on. It was very odd.

[FranklinDickson2018]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 9:21am

n2nbaby said: "Rose2 said: "I was at the matinee today and Isaac & the full cast performed!!"

I was at the matinee and Isaac did NOT perform. In fact, we had five understudies. Tony, Riff and a few others. For whatever reason the insert in the Playbill included the full cast but the understudy board was updated."

Five understudies one day, and a few days ago 3 understudies.  And the show is not even open a week.  And the odd thing is that people seem to not be fully aware of who is actually performing. Is this the new normal? Are other shows like this?   Is the lack of an insert deliberate on an oversight by the adm team.  Perhaps as it has been written it is all about the show and not who is singing in it.  So maybe the producers don't really care. If people aren't buying tickets just to see a particular actor then they wouldn't care either.   And perhaps the very young cast is not yet up to the rigors of performing day after day. I am sure that the original WSS did not have this problem. And yet if you don't perform you don't get paid.  That still holds true does it not? 

[AlanB3]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 9:26am

The show has only been open a week, but it had a much, much longer preview period than almost every other recent musical. So it's not as if the cast has not been hard at work up until this point.

Concerns about work ethic, et al, here may very well pan out to be spot on, but seems like it might be worth holding off on final judgment until we have a few more data points as to how much of a pattern this may really be.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 1:21pm

FranklinDickson2018 said: "n2nbaby said: "Rose2 said: "I was at the matinee today and Isaac & the full cast performed!!"

I was at the matinee and Isaac did NOT perform. In fact, we had five understudies. Tony, Riff and a few others. For whatever reason the insert in the Playbill included the full cast but the understudy board was updated."

Five understudies one day, and a few days ago 3 understudies. And the show is not even open a week. And the odd thing is that people seem to not be fullyaware of who is actually performing. Is this the new normal? Are other shows like this? Is the lack of an insertdeliberate on an oversight by the adm team.Perhaps as it has been written it is all about the show and not who is singing in it. So maybe the producers don't really care. If people aren't buying tickets just to see a particular actor then they wouldn't care either.And perhaps the very young cast is not yet up to the rigors of performing day after day. I am sure that the original WSS did not have this problem. And yet if you don't perform you don't get paid. That still holds true does it not?"

Given that the cast members are all making their Broadway debut, is it possible that the average theatre goer will have minimal reaction to it...while some of the performers may be giving outstanding performances, the audience had probably not read the reviews closely enough to care beyond a slight 'oh, gee'.  

I have been a fairly rabid theatre goer for too many decades, and have to admit to being mystified when some of the subjects start lengthy interactions after someone suggests how great person X would be in the lead of role Y, to have 17 there names be proposed, very few of whom I have ever heard of.  My point is that there are staggering degrees of performer recognition between people who I assume have active careers in and around Broadway, audience members who have been attending frequently for a long time, casual theatergoers, and really new theatrgoers (which many WSS attendees appear to be, based on some of the other threads.

 

[trpguyy]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 5:15pm

AlanB3 said: "The show has only been open a week, but it had a much, much longer preview period than almost every other recent musical. So it's not as if the cast has not been hard at work up until this point.

Concerns about work ethic, et al, here may very well pan out to be spot on, but seems like it might be worth holding off on final judgment until we have a few more data points as to how much of a pattern this may really be."

They went through the most grueling tech process since Spiderman. I'm surprised there aren't more absences now. It's also worth noting that there are nine swings. You don't cast that many unless you expect to use them.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 6:35pm

“Perhaps as it has been written it is all about the show and not who is singing in it. So maybe the producers don't really care. If people aren't buying tickets just to see a particular actor then they wouldn't care either.“

Isaac is getting a lot of press in many arenas about his star turn as Tony. TV profiles, magazine spreads and high profile fashion and lifestyle brands. People do want to see him and the WSS social media is scrubbing complaints about attendance and the perp stuff.

I hope the he heals fully and the attendance evens off. Producers could create an alternate schedule which would actually quell frustration.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 2/27/20 at 11:27pm

Bettyboy72 said: "“Perhaps as it has been written it is all about the show and not who is singing in it. So maybe the producers don't really care. If people aren't buying tickets just to see a particular actor then they wouldn't care either.“

Isaac is getting a lot of press in many arenas about his star turn as Tony. TV profiles, magazine spreads and high profile fashion and lifestyle brands. People do want to see him and the WSS social media is scrubbing complaints about attendance and the perp stuff.

I hope the he heals fully and the attendance evens off. Producers could create an alternate schedule which would actually quell frustration. "

Oh Puh-Leez << insert huge eye roll >>

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 10:05am

Another article about West Side Story in The Atlantic:

https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2020/03/ivo-van-hoves-west-side-story-steeped-stereotypes/607210/

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 12:24pm

poisonivy2 said: "Another article about West Side Story in The Atlantic:

https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2020/03/ivo-van-hoves-west-side-story-steeped-stereotypes/607210/"

This is really interesting!  I thought it was interesting that the production didn't let their Anita be interviewed for the piece.  Is that something that normally happens with productions?

Also, I was wondering - how does this iteration of the show deal with the character of Anybodys?

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 12:40pm

I'd be interested to hear that too, considering there are a lot of butch-looking women onstage in either gang in production photographs, which seems to defeat the point of Anybodys sticking out.

[FranklinDickson2018]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 11:43pm

Any word from this weekend's performance as to who was on/off for the 3 shows?

Is there another access point for this information?  Is there another social media area that would discuss this?  I am interested in this and hoping that the routine of the 8 shows a week will settle in to allow the actors to do as many shows as they wish to do.

Thanks for any updates. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 3/2/20 at 12:01am

"hoping that the routine of the 8 shows a week will settle in to allow the actors to do as many shows as they wish to do."

theatrical anarchy?

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/4/20 at 5:28pm

I finally saw this today. Isaac was out as expected, but Dobson did an admirable job. The best thing on that stage was Shereen Pimentel. She has a stunning voice and a great stage presence, and it’s too bad Maria loses some of her time to shine in this production.
 

Yesenia Ayala can’t hold a candle to what Karen Olivo did in the last revival. She was just ok. Dharon Jones did a nice job as riff. Much of the ensemble acting could be seen on any high school or community theater stage across the country. The majority of the choreography didn’t bother me too much and some of it was quite inventive. But nothing will match Robbins’ iconic work. The screens were somewhat distracting and nauseating, and when you did want to see a moment on the screen, of course it wasn’t there.
 

The real star of the production is the stunning score. Thank you Alexander Gemignani and Johnathan Tunick for nurturing it, respecting it, and letting it shine. Most of the tempos are faster than normal, but this makes sense being that Van Hove is portraying a sense of urgency and a ticking clock. The score actually sounds quite lovely in these tempos. The one thing you can’t mess up is this beautiful score and orchestrations. The brisk pacing of the book scenes helps mask some of Laurent’s weaker moments.

Overall, this production wasn’t really for me, but I started enjoying it more in the second half of the show. The screens are distracting and overdone, and take away from the actors on the stage. I don’t think I will need to see this revival again.

Updated On: 3/4/20 at 05:28 PM

[FatedDarling]

Posted: 3/4/20 at 6:27pm

I’m glad to see someone else enjoys the faster tempos as well! I’ve seen it twice and the first time I thought that perhaps I was misremembering the original tempos. But they definitely serve to drive things along. I think that’s a highlight of this production that is easily overlooked.

Agree about Yessenia as Anita. My biggest issue was “A Boy Like That/I Have a Love.” Shereen’s voice is sublime, including in that number, but there is no way to blend it with Yessenia’s very, VERY different style. It was jarring, and not really in a good way.

[Trish2]

Posted: 3/4/20 at 9:21pm

ljay889 said: "I finally saw this today. Isaac was out as expected, but Dobson did an admirable job. Thebest thing on that stage was Shereen Pimentel. She hasa stunning voice and a great stage presence, and it’s too bad Maria loses some of her time to shine in this production.


Yesenia Ayala can’t hold a candle to what Karen Olivo did in the last revival. She was just ok. Dharon Jones did a nice job as riff. Much of the ensemble acting could be seen on any high school or community theater stage across the country. The majority of the choreography didn’t bother me too much and some of it was quite inventive. But nothing will match Robbins’ iconic work. The screens were somewhat distracting and nauseating, and when you did want to see a moment on the screen, of course it wasn’t there.


The real star of the production is the stunning score. Thank you Alexander Gemignani and Johnathan Tunick for nurturing it, respecting it, and letting it shine. Most of the tempos are faster than normal, but this makes sense being that Van Hove is portraying a sense of urgency and a ticking clock. The score actually sounds quite lovely in these tempos. The one thing you can’t mess up is this beautiful score and orchestrations. The brisk pacing of the book scenes helps mask some of Laurent’s weaker moments.

Overall, this production wasn’t really for me, but I started enjoying it more in the second half of the show. The screens are distracting and overdone, and take away from the actors on the stage. I don’t think I will need to see this revival again."

I'm with you on many of those points, ljay889!

I wasn't a big fan of this revisal --but it was wonderful to just revisit that gorgeous Bernstein score. I saw the show last night without Powell, and give kudos to Shereen Pimental for being the sole performer to deliver a substantial vocal performance.

There was such a sense of community theatre to it all--the many Broadway debuts are certainly on display. Director Van Hove gives us more of an "ensemble experience," with himself taking the star slot. That, and De Keersmaeker's inarticulate and unmelodious flip, flop and roll movement.

The video surprisingly didn't bother me, but the lack of cohesive direction (both on stage and film) was glaringly deficient. The smartest thing Van Hove did was make this move fast and make it intermission-less.



 

Updated On: 3/4/20 at 09:21 PM

[imeldasturn]

Posted: 3/7/20 at 5:27am

Are people still protesting? I feel like this hasn't been brought up anymore ever since opening night

[gibsons2]

Posted: 3/7/20 at 8:03am

imeldasturn said: "Are people still protesting? I feel like this hasn't been brought up anymore ever since opening night"

I believe they still hold the protests. CNN has a new article about it today, but thankfully, much more factually accurate than the past publications.