West Side Story Revival will cut I Feel Pretty and Somewhere Ballet

[JBroadway]

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "JBroadway, in the article it states that he’s using the film version of America, so I’d bet good money that he’s more influenced by the film than the actual piece itself."

 

I don't consider that relevant to my point. The film is based on the stage musical. It's still material written originally for the stage. And the movie doesn't even deviate from the original all that much. 

 

[Kad]

The use of the film version of “America” kind of reinforces the idea that he’s more interested in the male angle of the story, to be honest.

[nasty_khakis]

Kad said: "The use of the film version of “America” kind of reinforces the idea that he’s more interested in the male angle of the story, to be honest."

I seem to remember an actor who played a Shark in the last revival telling me they actually rehearsed the movie version for a while and Arthur changed his mind. I could be mistaken though.

[treblemakerz]

As someone said earlier on this thread, I just don't know who he's trying to sell this show to anymore. All of the promotion and the general vibe seems to be attempting to entice a younger demographic, but most were driven away/put off with the controversy of Ramasar's casting (myself included). But cutting two iconic pieces of the original is not doing any favors with the older demographic who are fans of the original material (I have heard nothing but complaints from several "average theatergoer" friends since this article dropped today), either.

No one seems to be truly happy or excited for this piece.

[Whoopi Goldberg]

It is also 90 minutes no intermission

[JBroadway]

Whoopi Goldberg said: "It is also 90 minutes no intermission"

 

Who says it will only be 90 minutes? 

[Jordan Catalano]

They’re gonna have to cut a hell of a lot more than those two numbers to make it 90 minutes.

[WayTooBroadway]

If only the same hatred was thrown at one-note jukebox biomusicals. This is Broadway storytelling, not an athletic concert. :eyeroll:

I can’ wait to see this fresh take on WSS.

[ljay889]

The rumor has been for a while that most of the spoken dialogue will be cut. 90 minutes would make sense if that’s the case.

[JBroadway]

ljay889 said: "The rumor has been for a while that most of the spoken dialogue will be cut. 90 minutes would make sense if that’s the case."

 

But again: according to whom? The first time I heard this rumor was two weeks ago - from you, and you provided no source. Who did you hear that from? 

Or maybe the rumor has been floating around for longer than 2 weeks, and I've just missed it: but in that case, that's even more degrees of separation from a credible source. 

[Robbie2]

WayTooBroadway said: "If only the same hatred was thrown at one-note jukebox biomusicals. This is Broadway storytelling, not an athletic concert. :eyeroll:

I can’ wait to see this fresh take on WSS."

I agree...I don't get all the disdain for this production prior to opening

[bwaylyric]

Booo. I was actually forward to the Somewhere ballet with Tony and Maria wearing Dream Baby Dream tshirts and dragging their butts along the floor. 

[ModernMillie3]

"So the marketing is all men, all of the cut songs helped drive the female characters, and Amar Ramasar is still in the cast.

Wow. What a time to be a woman and a fan of Broadway."

Right? Only a man would disagree with that, since they do not understand. It's fine to cut those songs if it works in the show, but as GeorgeandDot has asked, who is this for? 

“When I listened to it again, when I read it again, I discovered this very brutal world, a divided world where people search for unity by exclusion of the other—the person who is not like you,” van Hove says. “It seemed as if it were written yesterday. So that’s our aspiration: to make a West Side Story for the 21st century.”

It will be trimmed with no intermission, but the whole 90 minutes thing is just a rumor at this point. I sincerely doubt he can make it that short. He is also rearranging songs. 

https://www.vogue.com/article/west-side-story-broadway-ivo-van-hove

[imissthemusic2]

https://twitter.com/nwalks/status/1193206272084107272

 

[LuPita2]

I LOVE HER SO MUCH. 

[keen on kean]

I really liked Van Hove's VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE and thought his CRUCIBLE was acceptable/interesting, but if he has a problem with a lot of WSS, maybe he should just do ROMEO and JULIET? At least in that, Juliet is the strongest character.

[trpguyy]

JBroadway said: "ljay889 said: "The rumor has been for a while that most of the spoken dialogue will be cut. 90 minutes would make sense if that’s the case."



But again: according to whom? The first time I heard this rumor was two weeks ago - from you, and you provided no source. Who did you hear that from?

Or maybe the rumor has been floating around for longer than 2 weeks, and I've just missed it: but in that case, that's even more degrees of separation from a credible source."

Rumors exist outside of the message board, and this particular rumor has been floating around for months.

 

[JBroadway]

trpguyy said: "JBroadway said: "ljay889 said: "The rumor has been for a while that most of the spoken dialogue will be cut. 90 minutes would make sense if that’s the case."



But again: according to whom? The first time I heard this rumor was two weeks ago - from you, and you provided no source. Who did you hear that from?

Or maybe the rumor has been floating around for longer than 2 weeks, and I've just missed it: but in that case, that's even more degrees of separation from a credible source."

Rumors exist outside of the message board, and this particular rumor has been floating around for months.

"

Sure, but care to take a stab at answering my question of where this rumor originated? To me it sounds like a game of telephone, where someone said that they are “making cuts to the book” which someone re-phrased as “cutting the book,” which someone misinterpreted as “cutting most/all of the dialogue.” 
 

And look, I’ll happily eat my words if I’m wrong. My point is that unless someone names a source, or even SUGGESTS that they have a credible source, we just don’t have any reason to believe this is actually the case. 

[SeanD2]

Who cares if he cuts stuff? It’s not like this will become the licensed version going forward. Let him play with it. Rent had a similarly revised production in London and it turned out bad so it’s never been seen again. No one bats an eye when productions of Hamlet cut whole scenes of the play to fit a director’s vision

[SweetLips22]

I wish I could personally cut all the parts that I found boring from a musical and there would DEFINITELY be no interval in any of them.

Just saw Come from Away and I would cut it all except for the bands onstage 'show-off' highlight at the end.

[HogansHero]

I am so looking forward to this. My only sadness is that so many here can't let go of the past.

[devonian.t]

But West Side Story is a known commodity.  If you say you are doing it, do it.

If you want to create a new different show, do so, and give it a new different name.

[Matt Rogers]

What the hell is this man’s issue with intermissions? He cut one of the intermissions to his 3 hour Crucible and both that and his intermission-less 2+ hour Network were insufferable.

[poisonivy2]

Damn. I had been scoping this out as a great momsical But I don't think my mom will like this.

[Highland Guy]

Without "Pretty" and "Somewhere Ballet," this isn't a production I care to see.  I will save my WSS money for a trip to Paris for the Opening Ceremony of the  2024 Olympic Games.  I do hope the Olympic organizers don't decide to cut the grand entrance of the athletes and the lighting of the Olympic Flame so that the event fits into a tidy 90-minute timeframe.  Just because you CAN make substantial changes doesn't mean you SHOULD.