"West Side Story. West Side Story Bernstein West Side Story contents

Feature film (Oscar and Golden Globe awards).

Other name: " West Side Story"(variant spelling of the translation of the name).

Duration 153 minutes.

Directed by Robert Wise, Jerome Robbins (Oscar Award and Golden Globe nomination).

Composers Leonard Bernstein, Irwin Costal (uncredited); Oscar Award for Best Music and Grammy Award for Best Album to Saul Chaplin, Johnny Green, Sid Ramin, Irwin Costal.

Cinematographer Daniel L. Fapp (Oscar Award).

Also receiving Oscars were: Boris Levin, Victor E. Gangelin (production design), Irene Sharaff (costume designer), Fred Hines (Todd-AO SSD) and Gordon Sawyer (Samuel Goldwyn SSD) for best sound.

Genre: crime film, drama, musical, melodrama, thriller

Summary
West Side, Manhattan, New York. Summer of 1957. Riff (Russ Tamblyn), leader of the Rocket gang ( Jets), tired of constant clashes with the “Shark” gang ( Sharks), consisting of Puerto Rican immigrants, led by Bernardo (George Chakiris, Oscar and Golden Globe awards; Golden Globe nomination for Most Promising Newcomer). In the evening, at a disco, it was decided to agree with the worst enemies on the place and time of the decisive fight. Riff persuades Tony (Richard Beymer, Golden Globe nominated, also nominated in the Most Promising Newcomer category) to come with them, who was once at the origins of the gang, but has recently been trying to live an ordinary life, working in Doc's store (Ned Glass). Also going to the dance is Maria (Natalie Wood), Bernardo's sister, who recently arrived in the United States. A guy and a girl fall in love with each other at first sight...

Also starring: Rita Moreno (Anita, Oscar and Golden Globe Awards), Simon Oakland (Schrank), William Bramley (Krupke), Tucker Smith (Ice), Tony Mordente (Action), David Winter (A-Slave) ), Eliot Feld (Baby John), Bert Michaels (Snowboy), David Bean (Tiger), Robert Banas (Joyboy), Gus Trikonis (Indio), Nick Navarro (Toro, credited as Nick Covacevich).

Review

Summary of an open lesson on the topic :

"Musical. Love is an eternal theme in art. L. Bernstein "West Side Story".

Prepared and conducted in the 8th grade by a teacher from the MBOU secondary school in the village of Berezovka

Pugacheva Lyudmila Valentinovna.

Lesson type : combined.

The purpose of the lesson:

form the concept of “musical”;
determine the genre categories of the musical;
trace connections with literary genres.

Tasks:

Educational:

promote active and conscious assimilation of new material;

Educational:

contribute to the development in students of a sense of taste, the ability to identify music of light and serious content;

Developmental:

contribute to teaching schoolchildren the ability to:

Express your own opinion on the topic;

Compare and summarize the issues being studied.

Equipment:

multimedia tools;
piano
CD player
CDs
Notebooks
Presentation on the topic of the lesson.

Lesson plan:

Organizationalmoment, introductory speech.

II. Checking what you have learned previously.

Oral frontal survey on the topic of the last lesson.
Singing, performing Yu. Antonov’s song “Under the roof of your house.”

III.Knowledge updating:

1Conversation about love as a wonderful feeling.

IV. Studying a new lesson topic.

1.Introduction to the musical genre. Independent work of students.

2.Acquaintance with the musical “West Side Story” by Bernstein.

V. Generalization of knowledge. Lesson summary.

VI. Homework.

During the classes:

Hello guys! Today we have an unusual lesson. We have a lot of guests. But our lesson is also unusual because today we will talk about the most beautiful feeling on earth - about love.

To prepare to study a new topic, we must refresh our memory.

Slide No. 1

Opera is...

Russian composer, pioneer in the opera genre:

His operas:

Operetta is...

Composer…

The difference between opera and operetta:

Well done, well done!

The teacher plays the melody of Yu. Antonov’s song “Under the roof of your house”

Guys, what song did I play? Right. Let's sing and remember this beautiful song.

Preparation for singing:

Breathing exercises:

Inhale and exhale slowly (3-4 times)

Chanting:

Do, do, do, do-do-do, do D (by semitones)

Pa-pa-pa (smoothly and stocatto)

We sing, we sing well.

Performing a song with students.

Before performing, pay attention to the students’ pronunciation of sounds, breathing, and pronunciation of endings.

Thank you, sit down.

Guys, what feeling was talked about in the song?

Of course, about love for one’s home. Love is a multifaceted feeling. It arises both to the father’s land, and to the parents, and, of course, to the girl, the boy.

You were given the task: to find a definition of love, statements about love. What is this, love?

(statements are read out by students).

Why is the theme of love eternal? Generations change, but at all times, regardless of age and religion, everyone wants warmth and attention.

Love gave birth to many genres of art, including music. Today we will get acquainted with one of the musical genres where love runs like a red thread. This genre is musical.

So, write down the topic of the lesson: « Musical. Love is an eternal theme in art.

L. Bernstein "West Side Story". Slide No. 2

Based on the topic of the lesson, what new will we learn today, what piece of music will we get acquainted with? Slide No. 3

Musical – is a musical and stage genre that uses the means of musical, stage, choreographic, and operatic art.

Slide No. 4

Musical – abbreviated form of concepts musical comedy ( musical comedy).

There are pieces of paper on your tables with information about the musical. Your task is to get acquainted with it and enter the necessary material by filling out the cluster (independent work of students). Slide No. 5

Text:

Musical –

Musical – abbreviated form of concepts musical comedy ( musical comedy).

Variety of genres (comedy, drama, tragedy)

The leading role of pop music;

Types of musicals:

Cluster

Slide No. 6

A quick survey after the work has been done.

Well done. You found all the main points. But to better understand the musical genre, I suggest you turn to the work of the American composerLeonard Burnstead and his musical "West Side Story"

Slide No. 7

Leonardo Bernstein– conductor, composer, musical figure (portrait).

Guys, knowing the topic of the lesson, guess what the work is about?

Bernstein came up with the bold idea of taking Shakespeare’s tragedy “Romeo and Juliet” as a basis and transferring the action to a contemporary place and time: America, New York, its western outskirts (West Side), inhabited by the poor. There were two groups operating in the area: the “Rockets” - natives of New York, white, From lead No. 8

And the Sharks, who come from the Latin American country of Puerto Rico. Slide No. 9

Both in Shakespeare's drama, where Romeo and Juliet belong to two warring families, and in West Side Story, the lovers are associated with two rival groups, making their love doomed. The young man (Tony) was a member of the “Rockets” group, and his beloved girl Maria was a member of the “Sharks” group.

Slide No. 10

Listen to Tony's Aria.It will sound in English, but from the musical intonations, timbre and manner of performance we can easily guess what this aria is about. We listen and write down your “translation”, whoever thinks what Tony is singing about.

Listening to Tony's aria.

Slide No. 11

Listening to the duet of Maria and Tony.

Let's characterize their arias. Music paints us portraits of the main characters, their relationship to each other (listening to students' answers). And although we do not know English, the music allows us to understand what Tony and Maria are singing about.

But something terrible happens: Maria’s brother Bernardo dies in a fight. Tony killed him, albeit by accident. We listen to a fight scene.

Slide number 12

Listening to a fight scene.

These are convulsive movements, the music is ragged, uneven, harsh, showing the whole essence of the enmity of the two factions.

Guys, how do you think the musical will end? (Students' answers).

Bernstein left Maria alive, and Tony dies at the hands of Maria's fiancé from the Sharks group. What do you think is different from Shakespeare's tragedy? (students' answers).

Today you were introduced to the musical genre for the first time.

The world of music is so multifaceted.

The age of opera gave way to operetta,

And the musical burst into flames

And the silver coin shone.

I would like to know your opinion about this genre: Slide number 13

- Is this a light or serious genre?

What audience is it aimed at?

Is his appearance in music justified?

What is the main idea of this work?

What did Bernstein change about the plot?

(students' answers).

So, our lesson is over, I liked how we worked in the lesson today…..Grades for the lesson:….

There are questions on your sheets. Answer them please.

I learned a lot of new things
It was interesting to me
I was bored
It was easy for me
It was difficult for me

Homework:

I suggest you think about the plot for the musical

Musical – This is a musical and stage genre that uses the means of musical, stage, choreographic, and operatic art.

Musical – abbreviated form of concepts musical comedy ( musical comedy).

The genre arose in the USA at the beginning of the 20th century as a result of the synthesis of operetta, ballad opera, vaudeville, professional pop song and characteristic American variety and concert performances.

Today the musical is one of the most fashionable genres of modern theater. Some consider it an American version of operetta, since it was in the American theater that a qualitative leap occurred that allows many to consider the musical as an independent stage genre.

Characteristic features of the musical:

Breadth of genre range (comedy, drama, tragedy)

The leading role of pop music;

Equality of music, dance and conversation

It is based on literary works that have gained wide popularity and proven their artistic value.

Types of musicals:

Musical-opera (“Jesus Christ Superstar”, cartoon “Musicians of Bremen”)

Musical operetta (“West Side Story” by L. Burnstead)

Musical-drama (“The Threepenny Opera” by B. Brecht)

Musical review (film “Jolly Fellows”).

Cluster

I learned a lot of new things
I know all this, except...
It was interesting to me
I was bored
It was easy for me
It was difficult for me

In two acts, fifteen scenes.
Play by A. Laurents, lyrics by S. Sondheim.

Characters:

"Rockets", American gang - Riff, leader; Tony, his friend; Arab, Little John, Blondie, Gunpowder, Ice, Tomboy, Grizzly; “rocket” girls - Graziella, Vilma, Rosalia; "sharks", Puerto Ricans - Bernardo, leader; Chino, his friend; Pepe; “sharks” girls - Maria, Bernardo’s sister; Anita, Bernardo's girlfriend; Teresita, Consuela; Lieutenant Schrenk, Sergeant Krapke - policemen; Madame Lucia; Doc; American girls, Puerto Rican girls, members of both gangs.

The story takes place in northwest Manhattan during the last days of summer.

In 1949, after the enormous success of the musical Kiss Me, Kate, Bernstein also decided to turn to Shakespeare's plot. He had long been attracted to Shakespeare's immortal tragedy Romeo and Juliet. However, unlike Porter, the composer did not strive to create “theater within a theater.” Nor did he want to simply set Shakespeare's text to music. After an unrealized version in the 50s and work on other works, Bernstein returned to his plan again in 1954-1955. He writes a work about modern Romeo and Juliet - Puerto Rican Maria and Polish-American Tony - victims of national and racial enmity, skillfully incited in the jungles of a “free” country.

The result was a strong and harsh play, boldly exposing the cruelty of modern America, calling for goodness and humanity.

West Side Story created a sensation on Broadway with its tragic plot and unusual concept. This is a musical and theatrical work in which the action is closely connected with music and all musical numbers - songs, ensembles, dances or instrumental episodes - are not of a divertissement nature, but follow from the essence of the events, appear strictly motivated, subordinate to the general musical and stage drama. . The abundance of choreographic scenes brings this work closer to ballet.

First action

First picture. "Street". Here there is a fight between “missiles” and “sharks” * (ballet scene). Schrenk and Krapke disperse the fighting, but at the same time add fuel to the fire, setting the American guys against the “coloreds.” The members of the "rocket" gang decide to assert their superiority at all costs. Their “hymn” “At dances we are more gorgeous than all the guys” sounds with a simple melody and syncopated accompaniment.

Second picture. "Doc's Shop". Riff persuades the employee at Tony's store to return to the gang they once created together. But Tony refuses: he doesn't want to be a bandit anymore. With great difficulty, he agrees to come to the dance in the evening, but is afraid that he will have to pay dearly for this too.

Third picture. "Madame Lucia's Shop". Maria tries on a new dress. In it, she will go to dance today for the first time in a month of living in the States. Bernardo and Chino, who is considered the girl's fiancé, are delighted with her beauty.

Fourth picture. "Gym". All the boys in the area gathered here for the dance. The blues, mambo, cha-cha-cha sound. The dance director announces the “dance of friendship.” It should be danced by random couples: a guy with the girl against whom the music stopped him. Maria becomes Tony's partner. At first sight, love ignites in them. The music that accompanies their explanation sounds tender and fragile. Tony kisses Maria. Bernardo and Chino take her away. Riff has a hard time holding onto Tony. Tony's song "Maria" glorifies his beloved.

Fifth picture. "Balcony". Tony sings to Maria about his love. Their duet sounds like an enthusiastic hymn to a bright feeling. The young man begs the girl to come down to him even for a minute, but Maria is afraid. Her father is already calling out to her. Having agreed on a date, Tony runs away.

Sixth picture. "America". Puerto Ricans say bitterly that they are second-class citizens in America. Anita passionately proves that they still live better here than at home. A large, varied vocal and choreographic scene unfolds.

Second act

Seventh picture. "Doc's Shop". The "Rockets" have convened a "war council": a fight with the Puerto Ricans is brewing. The sharks enter. Riff and Bernardo, as leaders, begin negotiations. Tony proposes a fair fight, without weapons, between two of the best fighters. Bernardo accuses him of cowardice, but Tony does not succumb to any provocation (he is always accompanied by the melody of love, as if sounding in his soul). The appearance of Shrenk once again intensifies passions: he mocks the Puerto Ricans and drives them out.

Eighth picture. "Sewing workshop". Maria is happy, and her friends notice this. Madame Lucia lets the girls go home, but Maria stays: she has a date with Tony. And here he is. Tony tells his beloved that he has fulfilled her request: there will only be a fair fight between the two strongest. The girl has nothing to fear! But Maria, in fear, asks him to stop, to prevent a fight... And Tony promises her this. The lovers play out a touching scene of meeting their parents and getting engaged. The scene opens against the backdrop of the dance that accompanied their first meeting.

Ninth picture. "Now". "Rockets" and "sharks" are going to fight. A large, dramatically intense musical scene unfolds. A fight between Bernardo and Icy starts. Tony runs in and interrupts her. He wants to keep his word to Mary. Bernardo showers him with insults. Riff attacks him and falls dead. Tony kills Bernardo.

Third act

Tenth picture. "Mary's Bedroom". The carefree, pastoral musical scene of Maria and her friends is interrupted by Chino, who appears with terrible news. Maria doesn't believe him... But Tony enters. He's trying to justify himself. Maria must forgive him before he turns himself in to the police! Maria doesn't let him in: she loves him! The song “Somewhere on earth there is a place for us” sounds like a timid dream. She transitions into a dream ballet scene that ends with Tony’s phrase: “Give me your hand, and we will go towards this life together.”

Eleventh picture. "Street". Arab and Little John cannot recover from a terrible event. If only yesterday could be returned...

Twelfth picture. "Garage". Almost all of them are “missiles”. They are confused: after all, no one wanted murders! But we need to agree on how to conduct the police. The song “Officer Krapke,” deliberately militant, with decisive marching intonations, satirically depicts the hated policeman. Tomboy appears with the news that Chino is planning to take revenge on Tony. We need to help out a friend. Everyone leaves to look for Tony.

Thirteenth picture. "Mary's Bedroom". Tony is with his beloved. Hearing a knock on the shit, he hides. Anita enters. Realizing who was here, she bitterly reproaches Maria. Another knock. This is Schrenk. He wants to interrogate the girl. Maria sends Anita to Doc to warn Tony.

Fourteenth picture. "Doc's Shop". The Rockets are waiting to see what happens next. Tony is hidden in the basement. Anita enters. She wants to see Tony, but the “rockets” don’t believe in her good intentions: she’s Bernardo’s girlfriend! The guys turn on the pianola. Under deliberately harsh sounds rushing from her, they shower the girl with ridicule and insults. And the furious Anita says: tell Tony that Chino found out the truth and killed Maria. Tony, who has gone upstairs, hears these words.

Fifteenth picture. "Street". Tony runs out of the shop in despair. He calls Chino loudly, he also wants to die. Maria responds to his voice. The lovers see each other, but it is too late: Chino shoots Tony. “Missiles” and “sharks” come running from all sides. Maria takes the revolver from Chino and shoots herself. For the last time, as if fading away along with modern Romeo and Juliet, the melody of their dream of happiness (“Give me your hand”) sounds.

L. Mikheeva, A. Orelovich

West Side Story. USA, 1961. Directors – Robert Wise, Jerome Robbins. Screenplay by Ernst Lehmann (based on a libretto by Arthur Lorenz). Lyrics - Stephen Sondheim. Cinematographer: Daniel L. Fapp. Music by Leonard Bernstein. Cast: Natalie Wood (Maria), Richard Beymer (Tony), Rita Moreno (Anita), George Chakiris (Bernardo), Russ Tamblyn (Riff) and others. 152 min.

50 years ago, in October 1961, a film was released that ushered in a new era in the history of the movie musical - West Side Story.

The musical before West Side Story is, as a rule, a comedy with elements of melodrama, closely related to the mother of the genre - operetta. Experiments with dramatic complication of the musical have been made before, starting with Oklahoma by R. Rodgers and O. Hammerstein (1943), but they have not yet changed the face of the genre.

Leonard Bernstein - a serious composer who wrote quite modernist works, conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera - among other things, created several musicals, including the 1949 film version of "Going to the City" with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra, " Peter Pan" and "Candide".

West Side Story was groundbreaking from the very beginning. The plot of “Romeo and Juliet”, transferred to the modern American environment with a noticeable intensification of the conflict - instead of the long-standing enmity of two clans, ethnic criminal groups collide here: young Puerto Ricans (“sharks”) and children of white emigrants from Europe, mostly non-English speaking (“missiles” ); the social status of the latter is also low. The material for the musical was both Shakespearean tragedy for all centuries and modern social drama. As the next half century showed, this was an extremely productive renewal of the genre, to which the films of Bob Fosse, the rock operas that appeared at the end of the same decade, and the French musical theater that is so fashionable today owe a lot.

It is always difficult for us to return to an era that we missed. This film is my age. But I saw it only in 1979, when it was finally bought for Soviet distribution. Expectations were high, and disappointment was simply immeasurable. By this time I was a rock fan, I knew “Jesus Christ Superstar” and “Hair” very well, and Bernstein’s music seemed terribly archaic to me. The production also did not surprise me in any way, and even the beautiful Natalie Wood, memorable from The Great Race, here seemed boring and mediocre to me. True, the unexpected trace of the film’s appearance in the Soviet cultural space caught up with me in the summer of 1980: as a student, I worked as a counselor in a pioneer camp and at a concert of children’s talents (who cares), my 12-year-old ward sang “Maria” very well in English "; This surprised me quite a bit at the time.

To mark the 50th anniversary of the film’s release, a lecture by film expert Igor Fishkin was organized at the Bakhrushinsky Theater Museum. The lecturer managed to present the atmosphere of that era so wonderfully and comprehensively that I will allow myself to retell some facts from his speech.

Bernstein's musical based on a libretto by Arthur Lorenz with songs by Stephen Sondheim was staged on Broadway in 1957 and was a resounding success. It almost immediately caused a resonance in the Soviet Union as a work with a socially critical orientation, showing racial conflict in a dying bourgeois world. In 1959, a translation of the libretto entitled “The History of the Western Outskirts” (literal translation of the title “West Side Story”) appeared in the anthology “Modern Drama”. The songs were given interlinearly.

In the same year, the composer himself came on tour to Moscow as conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He was received very warmly. But there was an incident. The newspaper “Soviet Culture” published an article “Good, but not everything, Mr. Bernstein!” In it, the American musician was accused of two things. Firstly. a performance of a strange four-minute play by Charles Ives, which Bernstein introduced with a six-minute introduction. “He saw the significance of the play in the fact,” the newspaper wrote, “that it anticipates the work of the “ultra-left avant-garde artists” K. Stockhausen and P. Boulez, the scandalous destroyers of musical culture.” Ives’s minimalist means were not adequately received by the public, there were “liquid pops,” as the reviewer assured, and Bernstein, “forgetting modesty,” himself offered to repeat the play, which he did, although he was definitely not asked to encore (Ives really still had worldwide recognition ahead). The second, even more scandalous, demarche of the conductor seemed to be the undeclared (naturally, the entire program was previously agreed upon with Soviet cultural officials) performance of a concert for piano and winds by Igor Stravinsky, from the late period when our illustrious compatriot-emigrant had completely broken away from his national roots and took a direct path rolled towards cosmopolitan dodecaphony. The article in “Soviet Culture” was the only fly in the ointment among the benevolent responses of the Soviet press, but, according to the testimony of composer Alexander Zhurbin, Bernstein was deeply offended by it. He came to the Soviet Union again only during perestroika in 1988.

In 1961, the film West Side Story appeared. The director was Robert Wise, what is called a strong professional who has succeeded in various genres, and the dance episodes were choreographed by Jerome Robbins, who is also the director and choreographer of the musical on Broadway.

The film was shot in wide format (70 mm instead of the usual 35 mm). It is worth noting that the world's first wide-screen full-length film is a musical. This is a film adaptation of the already mentioned musical drama “Oklahoma!”, staged in 1955 by Fred Zinneman. Despite its technical innovation, its success was moderate, since the screen "Oklahoma!" slavishly followed the stage original.

By becoming co-director, Jerome Robbins avoided the Zinnemann trap. Realizing that cinema is a different kind of art than theater, he brought dance scenes into real urban space, trying to find a harmonious combination of convention and realism. Episodes such as a fight that turns into a knife fight occur to the music, in a dance rhythm, but leave the impression that this is not a ballet, but a real fight with knives.

Robbins and Wise tried to maximize the possibilities of a wide format and found interesting solutions to combine different scales - group dances and lyrical episodes of the main characters. Tony and Maria first meet in a dance hall, where two warring factions - the “sharks” and the “missiles” - aggressively converge and diverge. When the boy and girl see each other, the entire background goes into “fog”, and in focus we see only the main couple and listen to their dialogue; then the picture of the dance hall becomes sharp again and two waves of dancers tear the heroes away from each other.

Nuances were introduced into the script that were not in the libretto. The duet of two Puerto Rican women, which glorified America in the stage version, was remade by Stephen Sondheim at the request of the directors into a more ironic and poignant one - in the film, one side praises America, and the other makes fun of them.

- Where is it not lousy? In America!
– They pay you pennies in America...
- I wish I could get a washing machine...
– What will you wash in it? Holes?..
– You hear the roar of wheelbarrows in America!
– Where do you breathe smog? In America!..
– Everything’s cool, since you’re in America!
– For the white race in America!
– Here everyone has a lot of freedoms and rights!
– Whose wallet is thicker is right! And so on.

We will talk about this scene later.

The Broadway production ended with a general reconciliation of the parties, just like the Shakespearean source. Wise and screenwriter Ernst Lehmann made the ending less clear-cut. When the body of the murdered Tony is taken from the street, most of the young people on both sides follow him. But we see that some of the remaining, in spite of everything, diverge in different directions. The conflict is too deep and it is not resolved this way for everyone, the film says.

The triumph of the film version was even more deafening than that of the theatrical production. West Side Story won 10 Oscars: Best Picture, Director, Cinematography (Daniel L. Fapp), Supporting Actor (George Chakiris), Supporting Actress (Rita Moreno), Musical Arrangement (Saul Chaplin, Johnny Green, Sid Ramin, Irwin Kostal), editing (Thomas Stanford), set design (Boris Leven, Victor Gangelin), costumes (Irene Sharaff), sound (Fred Hines, Gordon Sawyer). Jerome Robbins received a personal Oscar for all of his outstanding choreographic achievements in film, so his award is not included in the film's awards. Bernstein, naturally, could not be nominated for music previously written for the theater. Rita Moreno and George Chakiris deservedly received Oscars for their outstanding supporting roles, but the work of the main performers seemed quite traditional and were left without awards. And so the film had every chance to overtake the Oscar-winner of those years, “Ben-Hur” (1959), which earned 11 coveted statuettes.

In July 1963, “West Side Story” was brought to the III Moscow International Film Festival, where it was shown in the out-of-competition program. The wide-format version was shown at several screenings at the Rossiya cinema (now Pushkinsky) and at Udarnik. The Americans were afraid that the Russians would be able to make a copy, so as soon as the next part was shown, it was immediately taken to the embassy.

And this time the Soviet press did not do without a sting. The Izvestia newspaper reported that representatives of the American delegation, allegedly under the pretext that a simultaneous interpreter only interferes with the perception of musical scenes, asked during the evening sessions not to translate the highly critical dialogue of Puerto Ricans about America. This offended the American delegation, and, as the same Izvestia wrote a little later, festival jury member director Stanley Kramer himself came out before the screening at Udarnik and, with the help of a translator, brought to the attention of the public the content of the notorious couplets, showing that it is necessary to hide criticism of one’s country Americans don't even think about it.

The musical lived in the USSR. Back in 1965, it was staged by the Operetta Theater with Tatyana Shmyga, and a little later by the Leningrad Theater. Lenin Komsomol. It was staged in Latvia and Estonia and in some other places on the periphery of the Union. In some provincial theaters, West Side Story was performed as a dramatic performance, without singing.

At the end of 1964, the text of the film script was published in the magazine “The Art of Cinema”, and two years later in the 1st issue of the collection “Foreign Film Scripts” translated by the Americanist Alexander Kukarkin (well remembered by my generation from various editions of the book “Beyond Heyday” and other similar books). The poetic translation of the songs was performed by Vladimir Pozner Sr. (father of the famous TV presenter). This translation is also used in modern Russian productions of the musical.

A lot was written about the film... but not bought. From materials published already in the 2000s, we learn that in the early 60s, American distributors asked for 750 thousand dollars for a film, but the Soviet side considered that this was too expensive - for the same money you could get ten worse films. It's a pity. When West Side Story finally dropped in price and reached us, it was already too late. (Although some may disagree).

Robert Wise came to Moscow for a symposium of USSR and US cinematographers in 1971 and showed two of his films, West Side Story and The Andromeda Strain, to the Soviet film elite.

He made completely different films: war films (“The Gunboat”), peplum (“Helen of Troy”), drama (“Someone Up There Loves Me”), science fiction (“The Andromeda Strain,” “Star Trek”), mysticism ( "The Haunting of Hill House", "Someone else's Daughter"). His second film musical, The Sound of Music (1965) with Julie Andrews, was also a huge success and became a classic of the genre, although it is undoubtedly inferior to West Side Story, if only because it is a traditional sugary melodrama, even with an anti-fascist accent. “The Sound of Music” was released in Soviet theaters in 1971. My mom and my aunt really liked this movie; I then forcefully sat through it to the end, but everything has an objective and subjective side. Wise’s third experience in our genre is “Star!” (1968), a musical based on the biography of actress Gertrude Lawrence, also played by Julie Andrews, was not a success.

In 1997, Rita Moreno and George Chakiris attended the Moscow Film Festival. Rita Moreno was shocked when one of the critics (Igor Fishkin) said that he had seen West Side Story 17 times.

Part of Igor Fishkin’s anniversary lecture was devoted to the influence of “West Side Story” on subsequent cinema. Of course, it is huge and a review of influences, reflexes, quotes would take up a decent volume. I was especially amused by the presence of Louis de Funès in this series - in the film “The Gendarme in New York” (1965), following fresh tracks, the street dances of Jerome Robbins were hilariously parodied; poor Mr. Cruchot, who found himself on the “western outskirts” of the said metropolis, had to jump for glory - well, such are the customs and customs there.

An expressive reflection of “West Side Story” in the new Russian cinema is Vladimir Alenikov’s film “The Princess’s War.” It was filmed in 1999, but due to a conflict with the producer, it was re-edited by another director and is now known under three titles: “Triumph”, “Triumph of the Red One” and “Triumph: The Red One”. In 2009, Alenikov won the trial and gained access to his footage. He plans to complete restoration of his version of the film in 2012 or 2013. A draft version of it currently exists. The action takes place in the village of Mosrentgen near Moscow, where very young groups of Russians and Armenians collide. Showdowns among modern teenagers are even more brutal than in Verona and New York. One of the roles was played by 13-year-old Natalya Ionova, now better known as Glyuk’oZa.

Well, the original version of “West Side Story” was released on Blu-Ray this year – and now anyone who was at all interested in our story can enjoy watching it in their home theater.

Having decided to adapt Shakespeare's famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet for musical theater, choreographer and director Jerome Robbins, composer Leonard Bernstein and playwright Arthur Laurents wanted to make a modern Romeo and Juliet a Jewish boy and an Italian Catholic woman, separated by social and religious prejudices . The musical was to be called East Side Story. Due to other plans, the project was postponed and then completely buried. Returning six years later to his plan, Bernstein decided to entrust the writing of the lyrics to the then almost unknown librettist Stephen Sondheim.

By that time, the Catholic-Jewish feud had lost its relevance; the newspapers were full of stories about gangs of young Latinos. Laurents and Bernstein convinced Robbins to move the action to the eastern part of Manhattan and build the plot on the rivalry between the descendants of white immigrants - Poles, Italians, Germans - and immigrants from Puerto Rico.

By 1956, the authors had truly innovative material in their hands, full of realism and deep drama. Shortly before the start of rehearsals, it turned out that investors were not ready for experiments - no one wanted to give a penny for the production. Producers Harold Prince and Robert Griffith came to the rescue. They helped overcome financial difficulties, coped with Robbins' whims and did everything to ensure that not a single day of the two months allocated for rehearsals was wasted.

West Side Story premiered on September 26, 1957, at the Winter Garden Theatre. In total, the performance was shown 732 times. Starring Carol Lawrence, Larry Kert and Chita Rivera. Reviews from the press were generally positive, but when it came time for the Tony Awards, the show, which had two characters die at the end of the first act and one at the end of the second, lost out in nearly every major category to Meredith Willson's buoyant and sentimental musical. Music Seller" (The Music Man), except for one - "Best Choreography", which went to Robbins. Bernstein's score, which intertwines classical music with jazz and Latin rhythms, has remained underappreciated. Only in 1961, after the release of the film adaptation by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, the musical gained cult status. The film stars Richard Beymer, Natalie Wood, George Chakiris and Rita Moreno. The film received 10 Oscars, two of which went to Wise and Robbins, as well as a Grammy for best soundtrack.

In 2009, the revival of the musical, staged on Broadway by 91-year-old Laurents, was nominated for several Tony Awards, winning one for Best Supporting Actress. It was awarded to actress Karen Olivo for her role as Anita. In addition to classical dances from Jerome Robbins, this production is notable for the fact that the libretto was partially translated into Spanish. This work was performed by composer and lyricist Lin-Manuel Miranda.

The plot of the musical repeats the main conflicts of Shakespeare's source material.

In New York's West Side, populated by immigrants from different countries, two youth groups - the descendants of white immigrants, the Jets, and the Puerto Ricans, the Sharks - are fighting for control of the neighborhoods. Police break up another fight (Prologue). Law enforcement officers Lieutenant Schrank and Sergeant Krupke demand that the youth stop fighting and pursue the Sharks.

The Rockets intend to finally secure control over the streets of the West Side. To do this, they decide to provoke a fight with the Sharks. Rocket leader Riff plans to challenge Puerto Rican leader Bernardo at a dance party. Riff wants his friend and former gang member Tony to join him, but not all of his comrades are confident in Tony's (Jet Song) loyalty.

Riff visits Tony at Doc's pharmacy where he works. To support his friend, Tony agrees to come to the dance, but he does not connect his future with the gang - the young man lives with a premonition that his life will soon change (Something’s Coming).

Bernardo's sister Maria works in a wedding dress store with Anita, her brother's lover. Maria's family has already found a groom for the girl - Chino. Maria just recently arrived from Puerto Rico, and, like Tony, dreams of a bright future. Anita is sewing a dress for her friend that she could wear to the dance.

At the party, the young people continue to sort things out, this time with the help of dance (Mambo). Tony and Maria, located in opposite corners of the hall, notice each other and cannot look away. They dance, and the tense atmosphere of the evening fades into the background, giving way to the love that has arisen between Tony and Maria. An enraged Bernardo pulls Maria away from Tony and sends her home. Riff and Bernardo arrange to meet on neutral territory - at Doc's pharmacy - to hold a council of war.

Overcome with emotions, Tony searches for Maria's house and serenades the girl (Maria). The lovers meet on the fire escape and reveal their feelings to each other (Tonight). Meanwhile, Anita and her friends discuss their American life, comparing it to what they left behind in Puerto Rico (America).

The Rockets are looking forward to seeing the Sharks at Doc's candy store. They let off steam in a dance full of aggression (Cool). The Sharks arrive and a discussion begins about the weapons that will be used in the fight. Tony proposes a “fair fight” in which the opponents will sort things out hand-to-hand. The gang leaders agree. Bernardo is going to fight with Tony, but he gets another opponent - Diesel.

Lieutenant Schrank tries unsuccessfully to determine where the next skirmish will take place. Tony tells Doc about Maria. Doc is worried about the young people, but Tony is convinced that everything will be fine...

Tony comes to the bridal salon where Maria works. Someday they will get married - the lovers dream (One Hand, One Heart). Maria asks Tony to stop the fight and he agrees.

Tony, Maria, Anita, Bernardo, Reef and the gang members are looking forward to the evening, which will be decisive for everyone (Tonight Quintet).

Tony arrives at the scene of the fight and tries to stop it. Bernardo makes fun of him and engages him in a fight. Riff rushes to help his friend. Bernardo grabs a knife - but Reef also has a weapon with him (The Rumble).

Tony begs his friend to back off, but Riff doesn't listen. At the most tense moment, when he has almost reached Bernardo, Tony intervenes in the fight again and Bernardo stabs Riff. In a fit of rage, Tony kills the leader of the Puerto Ricans. Gang members attack each other. You can hear the howl of sirens - it's the police. Everyone rushes away except Tony, who can't come to his senses after what he just did. He is taken away by a teenage girl named Anybody, who dreams of becoming "Rocket". Only the bodies of Riff and Bernardo remind us of the fight.

In her room, Maria dreams of meeting Tony. She shares her feelings with her friends Francisca (I Feel Pretty). Chino brings bad news - Tony killed Bernardo. Maria prays that this turns out to be a mistake. Tony comes to his beloved. Maria is overwhelmed with anger - she rushes at Tony with her fists, but he calms the girl down. They decide to run away together. After all, somewhere there is a place where they can hide from the horrors of life (Somewhere).

The “Rockets” cannot recover after the death of their leader. They believe that it is the adults who are to blame for what they have become (Gee, Officer Krupke). Anybody talks about Chino's plan to find and shoot Tony. The Rockets go looking for Tony to protect him.

Anita, mourning the death of her lover, comes to Mary. There she almost runs into Tony, who arranges for Maria to meet at Doc's to leave the country together. Anita is horrified that Maria is dating her brother's killer (A Boy Like That). Maria passionately replies that she cannot resist love (I Have a Love), and Anita realizes that her friend’s love for Tony is not inferior in strength to her own feeling for Bernardo. She warns Maria that Chino has a gun and has vowed to find Tony.

Lieutenant Schrank comes to question Maria, and she begs Anita to go to Doc and ask Tony to wait. However, Anita runs into "Rocket" at Doc's store. They insult the Puerto Rican woman and then attack her. Luckily, Doc appears and prevents the violence. A tearful Anita tells the Rockets that Bernardo was right about them and adds that Chino found out that Maria was dating Tony and killed her.

Doc relays the sad news to Tony. Now that he has nothing left to live for, Tony goes in search of Chino so that he can kill him too. However, he finds Maria alive and unharmed. The lovers' meeting does not last long - Chino appears and shoots Tony. The young man dies in Mary's arms (Somewhere-Reprise). Enraged by the death of their friend, the Rockets advance on the Sharks. Maria, who has Chino's gun in her hands, blames the gang members for the fact that their hatred destroyed Tony. She points the gun at the warring parties, but is unable to pull the trigger... “Sharks” and “Rockets” finally realize that the conflict has come to an end. Together they carry Tony's body away. Schrenk and Krupke take Chino away. Sitting on the ground, Mary mourns her love.

"West Side Story" is one of the few Broadway musicals translated into Russian back in Soviet times. In 1965, in the production of the Moscow Operetta Theater, the main role was played by Tatyana Shmyga. In 1969 the musical was staged
G. Tovstonogov on the stage of the Leningrad Theater named after the Lenin Komsomol. Since 2007, the play has been staged in Russia legally. After difficult negotiations that lasted more than a year, the Novosibirsk Academic Youth Theater "Globus" was able to acquire a license, according to which the Russian side was obliged not only to pay the usual interest on fees in such cases, but also to invite an American director, musical director and choreographer, and also to retain original choreography by Jerome Robbins.

The Novosibirsk performance was created with the direct participation of a creative team from America - musical director Keith Clark, director Greg Ganakas and choreographer Mark Esposito. In 2009, the performance was awarded the “Musical Heart of the Theater” award in the categories “Best Performer in a Supporting Role” (Yulia Churakova, Anita) and “Best Conductor” (Alexey Lyudmilin), and was shown to the Moscow public on stage from June 29 to July 3 MDM. The role of Maria was performed by the star of musicals of the Stage Entertainment theater company Natalia Bystrova.