Historia del Lado Oeste

[Spoilers ahead]

I am a big fan of Broadway and film musicals, so it should not surprise anyone that I recently (finally) saw Steven Spielberg’s re-imagining of West Side Story. On the whole, I think it works and I enjoyed it…but I do have a few quibbles.

I appreciate his and screenwriter Tony Kushner’s reasons for putting greater emphasis on the social background of the story, with more details about the lives of the characters, especially the Hispanic ones—but I think they may have overdone it. By spending so much screen time on those elements of the tale, they were forced to make what, to me, has always been the driving force of the story—the whirlwind romance of Tony and Maria—seem like a subplot. It’s as if you turned Romeo and Juliet into a political tale of rivalry in Verona, instead of a tragic romance.

Additionally, I’m not sure that giving Tony a “reason” to have turned away from the Jets—his year in prison and regret over nearly killing a member of a rival gang—strengthens his character; in fact, it may weaken it. In the original script, Tony leaves the gang because he has outgrown it. Unlike Riff, he has matured into a young adult—a person who has come to accept the responsibility of taking his place in a larger society than a group of guys just fighting to hold onto “turf.” He seems to be the only member of the Jets who actually has a job, no longer relying on his family to support him. In that, especially in this new vision of the story, Tony is more like Bernardo and Chino, who support their families, rather than simply hanging at Doc’s and playing at being tough guys.

On another level, while I like the idea of putting some of the dialogue in Spanish, I have to wonder why they didn’t do the same with any of the lyrics to the songs. Imagine if at least one verse of “I Feel Pretty” had been sung by Maria in Spanish…or, better yet, if part of Maria’s and Anita’s musical argument “A Boy Like That” was in Spanish. Isn’t it likely that, at such an emotional moment, they would have naturally fallen into their native tongue?

I also question giving “Cool” to Tony. Yes, they use it instead of his argument (in the original) to make the rumble into a “fair fight,” but It feels out of character to me.

On the other hand, the singing and dancing (especially the dancing) is stirring. The female leads, Rachel Zegler and Ariana DeBose are magnificent (and how fitting to have Valentina (Rita Moreno) sing “Somewhere” as a reflection on her own cross-cultural relationship as well as that of the two young lovers).

PS: An interesting note--when I went to Google Translate to put "West Side Story" into Spanish, it originally only gave me back the English. To get the title of this post, I had to input "story of the west side" instead.

Singers I Love

Prompted by a piece in today's paper--on a totally unrelated subject--I started thinking about the female singers I enjoy, the ones I wish could sing every song I've ever loved.

Top of the list is Karen Carpenter, who I consider the best female pop singer of the past 50 years. I think there is probably no song she couldn't sing and make it better. She turned a silly ditty from Sesame Street, "Sing," into a Top 40 hit and the Beatles' "Ticket to Ride" into a minor-key lament. Listen to her version of "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina," and you'll wish she had dubbed Madonna in the movie. I think it's a tragedy she died before she could record an album of American standards and Broadway classics.

Second is probably Gloria Estefan. Her vocal range is much the same as Karen's, but she brings a Latin flair to everything she does...and does numbers Karen probably wouldn't have attempted, such "Conga" or "Go Away". But on a ballad, she's on a par with the best--if you can sing along with "The Words Get in the Way" without a catch in your throat, you're not human.

Third is a bit more obscure--Marilyn McCoo, once one of the leads in the Fifth Dimension. Another alto, she puts soul into the ballad mix, as well as a little jazz, with numbers like "Wedding Bell Blues" and "One Less Bell to Answer".

One more who died too young: Laurie Beechman. I first saw and heard this remarkable performer as the narrator in the original cast of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. After appearing in lead roles in other shows, notably Les Miserables and Cats, and recording some solo albums, she died of cancer at age 44.


You'll note an absence of sopranos. IMO, too many of them let their ability to sing above the melody obscure that melody in vocal tricks. Whitney Houston would have been a much better performer, again IMO, if she stopped trying to show off.

Any thoughts?