West Side Story
Based on a Conception of Jerome Robbins
Book by Arthur Laurents
Music by Leonard Bernstein
Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Performed
July 2-3, 5-6, 8-12, 15-19, 2008
at
The Boal Barn Playhouse
Director | Tom McClary |
Conductor | Joshua Horsh |
Vocal Music Director | Phillip Mackenzie Torbert |
Scenic Designer | Jon Vickers-Jones |
Lighting Designer | Susan L. Polay |
Sound Designer | Michael Blake |
Choreographer | Heather Arnold Torbert |
Costume Designer | Edna Rentschler |
Stage Manager | Gina Bowker |
Assistant Stage Manager | Sarah Rafacz |
Apprentice Coordinator | Kathi Lunardi |
About the Show
Shakespeare’s tragedies have usually been adapted only by operatic composers such as Rossini, Donizetti, Gounod, Adam, and Verdi. Musical composers have stuck to the Bard’s comedies and given us the likes of Kiss Me Kate, The Boys from Syracuse, Your Own Thing, and Two Gentlemen of Verona. Only Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, and Arthur Laurents have successfully taken a tragedy and brought it to the Broadway musical stage.
Romeo and Juliet, with its tale of bigoted, feuding clans in Renaissance Italy, has been transferred to a rough Manhattan neighborhood in the 1950s where the war is between teen gangs of native-born Americans (Jets) and Puerto Ricans (Sharks). Like their Shakespearean counterparts, Tony and Maria meet, love, and lose the battle against mindless hatred-but the ending is perhaps a bit more hopeful than its antecedent. In a world still torn by senseless discrimination and violence, this ray of hope could not be more timely.
Shakespeare’s stage was a spare, open unit set that could easily house any manner of exterior and interior scenes. A line or two of dialog and the imagination of the audience were all that was needed to whisk the theatre-goer from one locale to another. Taking our cue from this tradition, this production of West Side Story swiftly and fluidly moves from space to space with just the slightest scenic hints in order to heighten the relentless force of the drama.
In many ways, I feel as if the title “director” is the incorrect one for me for this production. The cast, artistic team, and design staff have so taken ownership of what you are about to see that I think a more appropriate title for me might be “guide.” I have pointed the way here and there and suggested certain routes, but that is about it. All I can say is thank you one and all for taking me along for the journey!
Tom McClary
The Cast
Tony | Kyle Tomlin | ![]() |
Maria | Amberlee Weber | ![]() |
Anita | Deanalis Resto | ![]() |
The Jets | Their Girls | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Riff | Will Mills | ![]() | Graziella | Deb Saxe | ![]() |
Action | Matt Greer | ![]() | Velma | Suzie Shoffner | ![]() |
A-Rab | Joey Hergenreder | ![]() | Minnie | Amanda Karl | ![]() |
Baby John | Phil Irvin | ![]() | Clarice | Page McDonough | ![]() |
Snowboy | Tristan Wilson | ![]() | Pauline | Aimee Piersall | |
Big Deal | Dan Landers-Nolan | ![]() | Trixie | Tricia Timney | ![]() |
Diesel | Andrew Saxe | ![]() | |||
Anybodys | Ellie Gilmore | ![]() |
The Sharks | Their Girls | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bernardo | Ben Thomas | ![]() | Rosalia | Christen Buckley | ![]() |
Chino | Erik Larson | ![]() | Consuela | Hilary Caldwell | ![]() |
Pepe | Kenny Dupler | ![]() | Teresita | Kaitlyn Deutsch | ![]() |
Indio | Seth Cornwall | ![]() | Francesca | Courtney Lope | ![]() |
Luis | Will Barksdale | ![]() | Estella | Amanda Jones | ![]() |
Anxious | Michael Cicippio | ![]() | Margarita | Ashley Lope | ![]() |
Juano | Tyler Greer | ![]() | Ingrid | Stephanie Shoffner | ![]() |
Toro | Eli Beers-Altman | ![]() | Sharkettes | Emelia Brannen Helen Fleischer Alexis Lunardi Kaitlin Lunardi | ![]() |
The Adults | ||
---|---|---|
Schrank | Jerrod Miller | ![]() |
Krupke | Amanda Karl | ![]() |
Glad Hand | Eli Beers-Altman | ![]() |
Doc | Gert Aron | ![]() |
Publicity Photos
















