West Side Story director Joshua Bergasse was interviewed by Robert McDowell of Classical Voice of North Carolina. Read below to see his take on the show!
1. When did you first see or read or hear about this show? Have you ever worked on a previous production of this show? If so, when and where?
The movie WEST SIDE STORY was one of my favorites growing up. My first experience with the stage version was performing in a community theatre production as a teenager. Since then I have worked on eight productions of WSS, either as actor, associate director/choreographer, or choreographer.
2. What do you like BEST about this show? What made you WANT to direct it?
I love the perfect marriage of the score, libretto and the choreography in WSS. These three mediums are interwoven masterfully throughout the show to tell the story.
3. Briefly summarize the PLOT of this show in your own words. Please explain the SITUATION at the start of the show and how the various CHARACTERS fit in. (In your summary, please indicate the ACTOR’S NAME in parentheses following the character’s name.)
It is Shakespeare’s ROMEO AND JULIET set in 1950‘s New York City. At the start of the show we see two street gangs fighting for “turf”; The ‘white’ Jets led by Riff (Leo Ash Evens), and the Puerto Rican Sharks led by Bernardo (Freddy Ramirez). Tony (Josh Young), one of the Jets, falls in love with Maria (Catherine Cheng Jones), Bernardo’s sister. Maria is able to conceal the affair for a short time with the help of Bernardo’s girl, Anita (Asmeret Ghebremicheal), but ultimately the gang rivalry sets a series of tragic events in motion.
4. What MAJOR CHALLENGES does staging this show present to you as a director -- and to your cast and creative team?
One of the main challenges of staging WSS is the size of some of the dance sequences such as the ‘Prologue,’ ‘The Dance at the Gym’ and the 2nd Act ‘Ballet.’ Another challenge for the cast is the extrememly small “book” of the piece. The cast must search within aspects of the piece other than the script to help develop their characters.
5. Please describe the SET:
The set is based on the original 1957 Tony award winning production designs by Oliver Smith. It is inspired by New York City architecture of the 1950’s and in some cases is used in an abstract way and in other cases quite literally.
6. Please describe the LIGHTING:
The lighting for WSS ranges from stark and moody with shadows and texture in the ‘Rumble’ - to bright, sunny and warm in the ‘Ballet.’ The dance sequences are saturated with color from angles other than the front.
7. Please describe the COSTUMES:
The costumes are based on the original 1957 Tony award nominated production designs by Irene Sharaff. The inspiration comes from the styles of the 1950’s lower class New York City streets and with a good amount of Latino influence for the Sharks. The costumes are also designed to help us differentiate the Jets who are in blues, yellow and oranges - from the Sharks who are in reds, lavenders and Black.
8. Is there ANYTHING ELSE about this show -- or your production -- that it is important for the audience to know ahead of time? If so, what?
I think the most important thing about WSS is that it is still relevant today, 52 yrs after it originally open on Broadway. We’re still dealing with teen violence, we’re still dealing with street gangs terrorizing not only our inner cities, but our suburbs as well, and we’re still dealing with racism and bigotry. It’s a story that still needs to be told with lessons that still need to be learned.
Thanks to our wonderful board member, Mimi Stapleton, we now have our Target Student Preview Night study guide in Spanish for West Side Story! We will distribute both the English and Spanish versions the night of the show, but if you would like to take a look before hand, see below...enjoy!
2009 Noche de avance para estudiantes presentado por Target
October 16, 2009
Sessión de preguntas con los actores después del ensayo.
Notado por los críticos de Nueva York y Londres como uno de los logros principales en la historia del teatro de la media centuria, West Side Story es una adaptación moderna de la obra Romeo Y Julieta de Shakespeare. El contexto de la historia es Manhattan, Tony Y María son Romeo y Julieta. Los novios luchan por estar juntos en medio de tensiones raciales y violencia.
Libro por Arthur Laurents
Música por Leonard Bernstein
Lírica por Stephen Sondheim
Musical basada en Romeo Y Julieta por William Shakespeare
Aviso sobre el contenido
Por favor fíjese que cierto tema no se conviene para algunas audiencias. La discreción parental se aconseja.
Datos Importantes
· West Side Story abrió en Broadway en 1957.
· En 1961 la película ganó diez premios de los Academy Awards, incluyendo mejor película.
· La revista Time encontró la danza y la guerra entre bandas más apasionante que la historia de amor
· West Side Story lanzó la carrera de Stephen Sondheim, quien se hizo uno de los artistas más notables del teatro musical en América.
Language Arts
1. West Side Story se basa en la obra de William Shakespeare, La Tragedia de Romeo Y Julieta. ¿Considera West Side Story como una tragedia? ¿Defina la palabra “tragedia” y discute por qué o por qué no sea tragedia.
2. El conflicto principal en West Side Story está entre el étnico y las diferencias culturales de la banda de puertorriqueños, los Sharks, y los caucásicos, los Jets. Las tensiones raciales eran extremas en los años 50 en América. ¿Cómo se compara al siglo XXI? ¿Cómo son las tensiones raciales evidentes en nuestra sociedad moderna?
3. Jerome Robbins adquirió los papeles de director y coreógrafo para la producción original de West Side Story; pocos han alcanzado una grandeza artística en estas dos posiciones. La coreografía de Robbins ayudó cambiar la cara del teatro musical por acentuar la danza para mover la acción del cuento. Da ejemplos de cómo los movimientos en los bailes ayuda narrar el cuento. ¿Qué diferente tipo de danza observa?
First, they learned a new dance routine taught by Tito Hernandez. Then, they were given group feedback and changed to prepare for their individual audition. They sang one song and performed one monologue for the panel and were then critiqued individually. All of the professors had great criticism and the students each went away knowing what they needed to work on. While the overall mood was anxious and nervous, they all received priceless advice that will help them when they start auditioning for colleges.
This was the second year that the NCT Conservatory has provided a BFA Showcase and all the parents, students, and professors had nothing but positive things to say about the program!
If you are interested in learning more about this program, please click here for more details or call NCTC program director, Heather Patterson King, at 919-855-0015.
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