West Side Story is a timeless classic, but despite six decades of history, you've never seen a production like this one. Under the direction of the innovative Ivo van Hove, the beloved story of star-crossed lovers and rival gangs takes on a more urgent and modern context. Featuring original choreography by Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker and a stage and video design by Jan Versweyveld, this West Side Story offers a radical, thrilling new interpretation of this iconic work, featuring 33 young performers making their Broadway debuts. Don't miss this opportunity to see a landmark in musical theater history as if for the very first time.
To put all that together, Van Hove has deconstructed the usual pieces of 'West Side Story' in service of better targeting the show's gooey, throbbing, omnisexual center: the truth that love is not only the fiercest human weapon against sectarian violence but the only real reason to live. No moment exemplifies that intent than a stunner of a sequence following 'The Dance at the Gym,' wherein a sensually smitten Tony (Isaac Powell) and Maria (Shereen Pimentel) strain to reach each other as they are held back by what looks and feels like two teams in a human tug of war. Anyone who has seen many a 'West Side' has experienced leads with no particular connection: In this production, their need for each other is so visceral as to overwhelm everything and everyone around them. In this production's take on 'Somewhere,' their feeling metastasizes with such force that everyone writhes around on the stage floor with a lover of their own choosing. Add in Van Hove's macabre talent for articulating pending tragic disaster (as seen so vividly in his 'A View From the Bridge') and the result is a gripping 'West Side' that you watch with both an appreciation for the power of the young and in love, and a profound sense of all-American doom.
This is the first US production not to use Jerome Robbins' iconic choreography. In its place choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker creates frenetic energy using gymnastic flips and hints of breakdancing. Even though some of the elements feel strained, Van Hove's production successfully refreshes this classic by treating it as something both monumental and mortal.
1957 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
1958 | West End |
London Production West End |
1959 | US Tour |
National Tour US Tour |
1960 | Broadway |
Return Engagement [Broadway] Broadway |
1964 | Broadway |
City Center Revival Broadway |
1968 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
1980 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
1991 | Milburn, NJ (Regional) |
Paper Mill Production Milburn, NJ (Regional) |
1992 | Regional (UK) |
Regional Revival Regional (UK) |
1998 | West End |
London Revival West End |
2006 | Houston, TX (Regional) |
Theatre Under the Stars Production Houston, TX (Regional) |
2009 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
2010 | US Tour |
National Tour US Tour |
2015 | Washington, DC (Regional) |
Signature Theatre Production Washington, DC (Regional) |
2018 | Washington, DC (Regional) |
National Symphony Orchestra Concert Revival Washington, DC (Regional) |
2018 | Regional (US) |
100th Birthday Celebration Revival Production Regional (US) |
2020 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Yesenia Ayala |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Orchestrations | Jonathan Tunick |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Projection Design | Luke Halls |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | West Side Story |
2020 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design for a Musical | Tom Gibbons |
2020 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Isaac Powell |
2020 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | West Side Story |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Isaac Powell |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Shereen Pimentel |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Ivo van Hove |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Projection Design | Luke Halls |
2020 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | West Side Story |
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