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.
Rather, in Belgian director Ivo van Hove's finger-snapping-free staging, there's a gigantic movie wall behind a mainly spare stage, contemporary apparel and a ferocity not observed given that the musical's 1957 premiere, when The Post's Richard Watts Jr. called it the tale of 'the ugliness and horror of a war to the dying among the boys.' With that in thoughts, van Hove's visceral acquire is spot-on for 2020. As very long as kids are still getting born into a 'lousy' entire world, 'West Side Story' should not be a journey down memory lane - it must be uncooked and real.
I may spend the rest of my life trying to make sense of Ivo van Hove's reconcieved and avant-garde, rough and raw revival of 'West Side Story.' In spite of many interesting ideas, it is a muddled, self-conscious, pretentious, humorless, dizzying, bewildering mess, in which the show's memorable songs and youthful romance get lost in the midst of brutal violence and overwhelming video imagery.
| 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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