WSS CD- Page 3
WSS CD
TalkinLoud
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/3/09
RippedMan
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/14/05
#55re: WSS CD
Posted: 5/31/09 at 12:02pmI see why people hate this revival, but I love it because it is the first time I have ever seen WSS live. It's my favorite musical and I think it honestly is the best musical ever written, even better than Gypsy. I saw the flaws, and thought the production was okay, but I will go back again just to hear the score live and see the choreography live.
RippedMan
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/14/05
#56re: WSS CD
Posted: 5/31/09 at 12:09pmWhat flaws? The fact that the characters are so wooden and boring? That there really isn't much drama?
#57re: WSS CD
Posted: 5/31/09 at 12:12pmThe directional flaws.
Mattbrain
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/23/05
#58re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 8:31amI still wanna get this CD.
philcrosby
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/17/04
#59re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 9:29am
It's always a pleasure to hear a great score again, but this recording is just not very interesting, IMHO. I saw the revival early on and didn't much care for Laurents' "revisions." Sadly, the slow tempos are preserved on the CD. But even worse is how bad both the Tony and Maria sound here ... instead of sounding stronger than on stage, both sound far weaker, particularly Josefina.
Oh well, it's still West Side Story ... and the material itself is still better than anything up for "Best Musical" this year.
Dollypop
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#60re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 12:05pmDon't criticize this version of WSS unless you've heard the Jose Carreras/Kiri Te Kanawa version that Bernstein himself conducted. Bleah!
#62re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 12:44pmI liked the clips of the Quintet and I Feel Pretty. Those were the two numbers I enjoyed when I saw the show.
#63re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 1:34pmI haven't seen the show, but listened to the CD this weekend. I was ready to be disappointed (as I was with the HORRIBLE Hair NBC - talk about no energy!) but actually found I enjoyed the cast album. The orchestrations, though a bit slow at times, were very strong. The performances all worked for me - I mean, there were bits here and there where I didn't like choices made, but on the whole I thought it was a well done album. It's certainly better than that HORRIBLE Jose Careras one!
#64re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 2:08pm
They use the original orchestrations. Do you mean the way the orchestra performed on the CD, jasonf?
~Steven
#65re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 2:19pmI just think this recording falls flat. And I hate the tempo of "A Boy Like That" in this revival. It frustrates me to no end. And I'm really confused...to those of you who think the HAIR NBCR has no energy...are we listening to the same recording? I think the HAIR recording is fantastic!
#66re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 2:20pmBoth recordings lack energy. Coming from someone who enjoyed both shows.
The choice may have been mistaken, The choosing was not... "Every day has the potential to be the greatest day of your life." - Lin-Manuel Miranda
#67re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 2:32pmYeah - I meant "orchestra" -- though I guess it is the orchestrations that would make it sound slower than usual in parts...
ulkis
Chorus Member Joined: 6/5/06
#68re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 2:56pm
I have no idea what you're talking about. Karen's version is NOT angry. That has been made very clear. Her interpretation is a plead of desperation.
I agree. I was listening to it and missing the sarcasm. And by that, I mean I was thinking, "I like this, but I want to hear Karen Olivo sing the English version so I could hear her be sarcastic too."
I don't think the Quintent works in Spanish either, but I think the Sharks sound really good too. So I'm torn. They should probably change it on the stage, but I do enjoy it a lot on the recording.
My favorite Tony by far is the recording with Kenneth Schermerhorn with Marianne Cooke and Nashville Symphony Orchestra. What a gorgeous voice without sounding too old, boyish without sounding too silly. But for some reason when you click on the i-tunes album that's not the right one, so don't go there if you want to listen to a sample. Go here: http://www.amazon.com/West-Side-Story-Original-Score/dp/B00006LI1Z/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1243882646&sr=1-2
sarahsmile
Swing Joined: 2/4/09
#69re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 2:59pm
if you have the CD kindly share it with me! would love to have it..., i have heard some samples, but the song wasnt that bad!
Ed
http://www.smartlyrics.com
CurtainPullDowner
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/4/04
#70re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 3:17pm
The Anita/Maria duet doesn't work for me unless Anita is really Mad.
She just walked in on her dead boyfriend's sister having just slept with his killer.
It's Maria who is desperate for Anita to understand her love for Tony, know matter what he has done.
If they are both desperate, it makes no sense.
I always felt that Anita's anger starts to melt when Maria says:
"You were in love, or so you say"
That's the whole turning point of the scene.
Dollypop
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#71re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 3:30pm
The Anita/Maria duet only works when Patti LuPone is playing both roles, as she does in "Shoulda, woulda, Coulda".
Thank you very much.
#72re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 4:41pm
Jasonf, that would probably lie more in the musical direction, not orchestrations. The orchestrations haven't changed since it opened 50+ years ago, although they did alter some musical passages and played with the tempos in this production. That's probably the decision of the musical director, arranger, and director. But I understand what you're trying to say. :)
And I agree with you, Curtain. Anita's initial reaction probably would be an angry one, a reaction that she doesn't fully comprehend yet but lashes out full force like a jerk reaction. And listen to the song's intro. It's definitely angry. It doesn't become desperate until the "A boy who kills cannot love" section, but then returns to being angry until Maria enters. Sure, it can be justified the other way, but it's definitely not the strongest acting/directorial choice, and it certainly wasn't the original intention of the scene. Arthur, there was no need to mess with what you, Lenny, Steve, and Jerry already made brilliant.
~Steven
#73re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 5:05pm
Arthur, there was no need to mess with what you, Lenny, Steve, and Jerry already made brilliant.
Arthur didn't mess with what he himself had made brilliant--and he didn't address the two things he had made lousy: the Jet dialogue and the Krupke/Cool structure.
His idea from the very beginning was to "fix" the show by tampering with what his collaborators had made brilliant--and to make them less brilliant so that his contribution could shine brighter.
#74re: WSS CD
Posted: 6/1/09 at 5:15pm
Well, the winners of the night were still Jerome Robbins and Leonard Bernstein. Poor Stephen Sondheim was compromised and Arthur made himself look like more of a louse. My little brother saw the show with me and had never seen the movie before and he didn't know much of the plot. After he viewed the movie the next day, he commented that the current Broadway production was as if it were a high school production (as in, he thought it was amateurish in comparison). And this is coming from an eleven-year-old.
~Steven
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