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Friday, February 14, 2020
With video cameras and new dances and faces, Ivo van Hove tries to put his stamp on America's beloved 'West Side Story'
The Washington Post: He didn't think the show had a role for him. She didn't even have her Juilliard diploma. And yet, the budding careers of Isaac Powell and Shereen Pimentel converged when they were cast as benighted lovers in the latest Broadway revival of a seminal American musical — in a production by a Belgian auteur who has divided audiences for years.
4 comments:
Elena Keogh
said...
When putting up a show that is so iconic and well known as West Side Story, a huge risk is taken when moments that audience members expect to happen, don't. I have heard some very mixed reviews about this show, especially surrounding the various controversies regarding casting. However, I will say, I commend van Hove for taking a huge risk and pushing a classic show so far out of our comfort zone, especially through the use of media and cameras on stage. He discusses making this show relevant for the 21 century, taking into account the new ethnic makeup of the city, and the ways in which we communicate through technology in this very modern world. Van Howe places on the audience as both a viewer and a spectator is also very interesting. Regardless of the controversy surrounding this show, I am very interested in the new outlook on this show and really want to see it for myself!
It is always a risk to alter a beloved musical that everyone loves, such as West Side Story. However, sometimes the risk pays off and is a huge success. It seems, at least according to this article, that the new West Side Story on Broadway is becoming a huge success. They updated Maria's character to give her more strength and tenacity that a women in 2020 would have in New York. I have always been bothered by Maria's character whenever I see West Side Story. She almost seems to innocent, too pure for a real person, especially in today's world. It seems that I am not the only one. I also think it is interesting to have the two opposing gangs be those of color. Now, the turf war isn't over race, but over something more complex. I really feel like these additions add to the story and the complexity of the characters. However, I am a little concerned that the almost 3 hr show has been trimmed to 1 hr and 45 mins, almost half of what it was. According to the article, they got rid of the song "I Feel Pretty", which with the changes to Maria's character, was probably wise. It will be interesting to see if the new choreography and the addition of the camera helps or hinders this new rendition of West Side Story on Broadway.
There have been mixed signals from this production from the very beginning, most recently exacerbated by the show’s defense of accused sex offender Amar Ramasar. If anything, the publicity the show has been getting- good or bad (isn’t the saying that bad news is better than no news?)- has only drummed up anticipation for the show’s (delayed) official opening. This article seems to be a well rounded look at the production and its background, as well as highlighting (as every article of this sort does) just how many changes Ivo van Hove has made compared to the original production. The look of Van Hove’s work has always fascinated me, but pro-shot pictures can only tell so much of the story. I have always been curious, so much of the conflict in the original West Side Story comes from the inherent rift between the ethnic groups of the Sharks and the Jets- is there a replacement of sorts for that conflict in this production?
There's something to be said about taking risks in theatre, but there have been a lot of red flags surrounding this production of West Side Story. First of all, Amar Ramasar. The show released a statement a few days ago saying they refuse to fire sex offender Amar Ramasar from the production, an issue that has had protestors outside the theatre for weeks now. I don't think there's an excuse for anyone in this production to be ok with this. Van Hove refused to create a safe work environment for his female cast members. The show also delayed its opening, which is undoubtedly a bad sign, but is understandable. It is better to push opening than to ask people to pay for a subpar show. I'm going to New York in March and even if there were no sex offender and they hadn't pushed opening, I wouldn't be attending this production because it just feels like they're hiding something. There's no production photos at all. The staged photo shoots really tell me nothing at all, so I'm just unwilling to spend my money on something I don't know anything about.
4 comments:
When putting up a show that is so iconic and well known as West Side Story, a huge risk is taken when moments that audience members expect to happen, don't. I have heard some very mixed reviews about this show, especially surrounding the various controversies regarding casting. However, I will say, I commend van Hove for taking a huge risk and pushing a classic show so far out of our comfort zone, especially through the use of media and cameras on stage. He discusses making this show relevant for the 21 century, taking into account the new ethnic makeup of the city, and the ways in which we communicate through technology in this very modern world. Van Howe places on the audience as both a viewer and a spectator is also very interesting. Regardless of the controversy surrounding this show, I am very interested in the new outlook on this show and really want to see it for myself!
It is always a risk to alter a beloved musical that everyone loves, such as West Side Story. However, sometimes the risk pays off and is a huge success. It seems, at least according to this article, that the new West Side Story on Broadway is becoming a huge success. They updated Maria's character to give her more strength and tenacity that a women in 2020 would have in New York. I have always been bothered by Maria's character whenever I see West Side Story. She almost seems to innocent, too pure for a real person, especially in today's world. It seems that I am not the only one. I also think it is interesting to have the two opposing gangs be those of color. Now, the turf war isn't over race, but over something more complex. I really feel like these additions add to the story and the complexity of the characters. However, I am a little concerned that the almost 3 hr show has been trimmed to 1 hr and 45 mins, almost half of what it was. According to the article, they got rid of the song "I Feel Pretty", which with the changes to Maria's character, was probably wise. It will be interesting to see if the new choreography and the addition of the camera helps or hinders this new rendition of West Side Story on Broadway.
There have been mixed signals from this production from the very beginning, most recently exacerbated by the show’s defense of accused sex offender Amar Ramasar. If anything, the publicity the show has been getting- good or bad (isn’t the saying that bad news is better than no news?)- has only drummed up anticipation for the show’s (delayed) official opening. This article seems to be a well rounded look at the production and its background, as well as highlighting (as every article of this sort does) just how many changes Ivo van Hove has made compared to the original production. The look of Van Hove’s work has always fascinated me, but pro-shot pictures can only tell so much of the story. I have always been curious, so much of the conflict in the original West Side Story comes from the inherent rift between the ethnic groups of the Sharks and the Jets- is there a replacement of sorts for that conflict in this production?
There's something to be said about taking risks in theatre, but there have been a lot of red flags surrounding this production of West Side Story. First of all, Amar Ramasar. The show released a statement a few days ago saying they refuse to fire sex offender Amar Ramasar from the production, an issue that has had protestors outside the theatre for weeks now. I don't think there's an excuse for anyone in this production to be ok with this. Van Hove refused to create a safe work environment for his female cast members. The show also delayed its opening, which is undoubtedly a bad sign, but is understandable. It is better to push opening than to ask people to pay for a subpar show. I'm going to New York in March and even if there were no sex offender and they hadn't pushed opening, I wouldn't be attending this production because it just feels like they're hiding something. There's no production photos at all. The staged photo shoots really tell me nothing at all, so I'm just unwilling to spend my money on something I don't know anything about.
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