West Side Story, Goteborg Opera, Sweden

[PalJoey]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 9:52am

Interesting revisionist West Side. This is from their website. There's a video preview at the link at the bottom:

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In The Göteborg Opera’s new production, [director] Stina Ancker, [musical director] Nick Davies and [choreographer] Peter Svenzon have carefully selected the 39 artists who will be embodying their particular vision.

Stina Ancker has previously directed Mary Poppins (2008 ) at The Göteborg Opera, Nick Davies conducted Guys and Dolls (2009) and Peter Svenzon, head of the dance company Art of Spectra, choreographed Prolog (2009). Irena Kraus is responsible for the new translation into Swedish. In season 2010/2011 she wrote the libretto to Min mamma är en drake (My Mum is a Dragon).

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Watch a video preview here for the Goteborg Opera West Side Story

Updated On: 9/17/12 at 09:52 AM

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 10:36am

It looks and sounds like they left the nightmare in the "Somewhere" ballet.

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

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:20am

It looks better than the revival for sure.

[darquegk]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 2:20pm

This looks thrilling. It's the "West Side" that non-purists have clamored for for ages- new choreography and staging, losing the explicitly Fifties, almost toothless interpretations of the gang. I suppose one could question whether the show is STILL "West Side Story," but that's kind of the point of the "pa Svenska" revisionist takes on musicals lately. They've done two alternate versions of Chess now, and this West Side looks equally thrilling.

I can tell it's set in the present day, but is it even still in America? The look is decidedly European organized crime. No one on the Sharks side seemed explicitly styled to be at all Puerto Rican, or even Latin, so I wonder if that's been rewritten as well to something either more localized or more "generic."

[PalJoey]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 2:55pm

There are some liner notes that discuss the setting and time period at the bottom of this link with rehearsal footage.
The Göteborg Opera’s new production

[PalJoey]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 2:59pm

Here's some rehearsal footage of the Dance at the Gym.

https://vimeo.com/27051464

It totally lacks the drive and virtuosity of the Peter Gennaro/Jerome Robbins choreography, but it's raw and sexy.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 3:44pm

So nce with each other at the Dance at the Gym?

Anyway, I have to admit I like the looks of this way more than I ever expected to. Nothing can replace the original for me, and I'm glad I got to see the London production ten years back or so that recreated the original production, but this looks more interesting than a lot of the standard, watered down versions we do see.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 9:43pm

Even if I ended up disliking it, I would much rather see a new approach to the show than a watered down copy of the original. I really wish I could see this.

[My Oh My]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:04pm

It looks and sounds nifty. I dig Anita.

The choreography gels. So does the very tastefully done designs. I thought at first they were boringly naturalistic but watching the vid reveals they create a space that is surreal in its suggestive realism. The lighting appeared to be distressingly monotonous in the photos but it's lack of variety and gloominess make the colors pop, when they appear. It's similar to the effect the washed-out, purely gray Les Mis set achieves when David Hersey's 'paint by light' illuminates the earthy browns and industrial blues of Neofitou's costumes against that colorless canvas of Napier's.

I'd be surprised if the designs of this WSS weren't at least slightly inspired by the original Les Mis designs. The scene in the video @ 02:20 is so incredibly similar to the sewer scene in Les Mis, I did a triple take and thought for a split second that they had switched to scenes from some Swedish version of Les Mis! The way that lighted grid moves down and in the background that smoke oozing out of what appears to be a tunnel, or something. Ha!

That production looks very promising (and no, not just because it reminds me of my beloved Mis! lol).

[darquegk]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:12pm

It seemed to me that the descending light grid is a visual reference to the single iconic image from the West Side revival- the bridge flying in overhead before the rumble.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:20pm

It could be, though based on where it is in the video I got the feeling that it is the beginning of the nightmare sequence in the "Somewhere" ballet (which was unforgivably cut from that revival).

[My Oh My]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:33pm

By the way, forgot to mention that even though I thought it reminiscent to the sewer scene in Les Mis, I knew that they weren't literally attempting to stage a sewer in this WSS since there's no such scene in WSS anyway. Just thought I'd clarify. Wouldn't want to come off as if I thought they carbon copied a Les Mis scene in WSS, just because, lol.

I frankly didn't even try to figure out what that scene actually is (was too wooed by Miz nostalgia, LOL), and looking at it carefully now, I agree the rumble setting under the bridge--as someone stated--is likely it.

[darquegk]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:39pm

Even if it is the nightmare, I am fairly confident that it is a visual reference to the last Broadway revival, as every review I ever read of that production mentioned the ominous descent of the overpass. If I recall, even Sondheim may have mentioned it in "Finishing The Hat," though I don't have the book with me to check. Can anyone confirm/verify if he mentions this fact?

[americanboy99]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:46pm

Oh, my word. That was thrilling to watch. I'd kill to see that live (preferably in a language I could fully understand).

[ACL2006]

Posted: 9/17/12 at 11:56pm

that looks thrilling. would love to see the whole thing. it's about time someone decided to take a new approach on this classic.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 12:06am

The ghost of Arthur Laurents is shaking his fist at you right now, since he semed to think that was just what he did...

[My Oh My]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 12:16am

Are y'all that easily wooed by variety?

It looks nice and all but I would hardly call it a groundbreaking new approach. It follows the original in just about everything. Only the overall design style being more modern and the distinct character of the original choreography have had anything altered.

Conceptually it's the same thing. Even visually, it's a not too distant variation on the same settings and attire seen in the original.

It sounds as if they smartly kept the original orchs. Good. They better not touch 'em, or I'll slice off them hands!!!!

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 12:17am

Let's face it, even the moment that most people talked about (the underpass descending, which I've heard from many people was one of the best visuals in that production, not just on this thread) was hardly an original one. That was hardly the first time I've seen the underpass (or some piece representative of it) coming in at that moment in the show, Arthur just had the advantage of having the money and technology to make it huge. A big set piece coming in like that is almost always going to be an effective moment in the show. (Side note: I personally love seeing huge set pieces in motion, from that underpass in the revival, to the castle in Beauty and the Beast and that massive chandelier in the Vegas Phantom)

And re-watching the video I will amend my previous thoughts to say that I concur that what we see there is indeed the transition into the Rumble, as I noticed there were no females onstage for that moment in the clip.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 1:49am

My Oh My, not sure if you're addressing me, but I tend to hate variety, lol. I've gotten into some trouble on here for tending to think that the original production is more often than not the best, and that choreography in many instances should be considered as essential a piece of the text of a musical as the music, lyrics and book--maybe design as well.

So I guess I like that it's not all that different. But, as I said, partly due to the control of the Robbins estate, productions tend to use his choreography, and the design rarely is really substantially different from the original (though in both cases, things often seem to be handled poorly, or at least watered down). So, I guess I was just surprised that it does seem an effective production. Of course kinda setting it in the present (I assume from the pics) maybe works better in Swedish translation than it would in English, still using Laurents' fake slang, but, etc...

[My Oh My]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 9:13am

Yipes! Was not addressing your post, Eric. I've been well acquainted with your love for original productions of past eras for years and, to date, you're still the only one with whom I most consistently agree with on which productions/designs/orchs/elements carry that inherent *spark* that make them iconic enough to make it an honor to witness live. Sometimes you spook me with just how similar your thoughts on a given production element are to mine!

And I know you well enough to know you aren't so simplistic as to love or prefer something because it was what you were first exposed to. You and I are much more nit-picky than that.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 4:34pm

Ha, sorry I got a bit defensive. I know that we more often than not agree on these things (and I find your semi regulr posts going into *full* detail about what you like so much about original productions, one show in particularly :P , always fascinating to read).

[PalJoey]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 5:08pm

Yes, that is the music from the Nightmare at the end, but the video cuts away to the drugstore scene with Anita and Chino shooting Tony.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 9/18/12 at 5:08pm

Yes, that is the music from the Nightmare at the end, but the video cuts away to the drugstore scene with Anita and Chino shooting Tony.