West Side Story 12/27/08 Review

[rjjn]

Posted: 12/28/08 at 2:16am

There were definitely some things to work out, but overall I don't seem to have as bad of an impression as others seem to on the boards.

Matthew Hydzik as Tony (standby for injured Matt Cavenaugh) was noticeably weaker than the other leads. Though I commend him for doing as well as he did in his first full performance of it, there were issues. He was out of tune for a lot of exposed entrances, and his acting was obviously not perfected. Impressive for a standby, though.

Josefina Scaglione as Maria was amazing! I thought she had a good range to her acting and singing (emotionally and physically on the singing). My one criticism of her is that, out of all those who spoke Spanish in the production, she was the hardest to understand based on body language. Those who aren't familiar with the show might have a hard time following what is going on when she's on stage. Other than that, phenomenal performance on her part.

Karen Olivo as Anita truly stole the show for me. Though others have said on the board that her dancing isn't up to par, that didn't come across for me. Maybe I'm just not familiar enough with the original material, but she seemed impressive dancing-wise, and the audience seemed to agree with me. She got the loudest cheer at the curtain call, louder than even the combined Tony and Maria entrance. Though she didn't belt the way Maria did, her role doesn't really need that.

Cody Green as Riff was forgettable. He didn't have any truly noticeable flaws in my opinion, but nothing to allow him to stand out from the rest of the Jets. On that note, the Jets as a whole were okay, though obviously not tough enough for gangsters (but what can you expect from ballet dancers).

The Spanish was interesting, and I definitely think it's a cool concept. However, there were times, especially in Act 2, when it took away from the momentum of the show. Those who don't know Spanish sort of have to wait until the Spanish stops and rejoin the emotion of the show. Though I know small bits of Spanish, I still felt as if a Spanglish mix would have been more effective.

And this might be a small quibble, but I thought that the ledge Maria stands on looks like a ship rolling in during set changes, and is too big. Something like the In the Heights set might work better.

Oh, and on a side note, I overheard Karen Olivo say that Matt Cavenaugh might be back tomorrow, though it was yet to be determined.

Updated On: 12/28/08 at 02:16 AM

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 12/28/08 at 7:15am

Thanks for the good review. Spanglish is probably what should have been used. Are they definitely doing away with the translation boards or are they considering having subtitles across the proscenium at the Palace?

Having seen the original production in 1958, I am looking forward to the revival.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 12/28/08 at 8:44am

I think "Spanglish" is exactly what they want to avoid.
And yes, Maria's fire escape/balcony is large enough to house 20 PRs. When it came rolling out it completely ruined Tony's final notes of MARIA.

[rjjn]

Posted: 12/28/08 at 3:28pm

What I was getting at with the Spanglish was maybe switching a few neccesary lines to improve audience understanding. I agree that too much Spanglish would be cheesy and unrealistic.

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 12/29/08 at 6:03am

Why would you say that too much Spanglish would be cheesy and unrealistic? My son is Hispanic and sometimes speaks in Spanglish, as do some of his friends. The Sharks, living in Hell's Kitchen, might well be combining their "native" language with the language of their non-Hispanic neighbors, even though they are feuding with them. Spanglish in WSS might make it easier for the audience to understand the dialogue.