The West Side Story Musical Analysis

‘West Side Story’ is one of the most famous musicals in Broadway history. It is a re-telling and more modern remake of Shakespeare's ‘Romeo and Juliet.’ The same love story is there, just a more modern take on it. The slight modern message on inequality because of skin color is what makes it so modern. It has been revived many times and mostly it's always been a success. ‘West Side Story,’ is watched, taught and revived worldwide and will be for many generations to come.

The Film "West Side Story" illustrates how the Puerto Ricans of New York faced discrimination and were used as scapegoats by the American people during the cold war time period to escape their anxieties. Due to the fear of communism and possible nuclear war the 1950-1960s time period was a very fragile time for the American people which produced an air of xenophobia throughout the country. The air of xenophobia is present throughout the play due of the repeated mention of stereotypes about Puerto Ricans and the constant feeling that the Puerto Ricans do not belong. The people of American often dealt with these anxieties in one of two ways, through escapism or through and through the scapegoating. This is made very clear through the comparison of West Side Story to the play The Music Man in the document “West Side Story and The Music Man: Whiteness, Immigration, and Race in the US during the late 1950s”. Like many waves of immigrants, the Puerto Ricans faced discrimination when they arrived and for some time after. This came in the form of people being discriminatory directly to them, housing discrimination and job discrimination. Therefore, the play “West Side Story” expresses the discrimination that Puerto Ricans faced due to the xenophobic nature of the time period.

The literary elements used in the stories help to reveal the characters and their ideals in life, such as the use of characterization to introduce everyone in both stories. The usage of metaphor and simile in The Outsiders helps the reader to better understand what the characters are like and how diverse everyone is, but they all still accept one another in their gang. The utilization of rhyme scheme in West Side Story helps make the main idea more memorable and clearer through the song, in this case the fact that Jets will always be welcome, no matter what you do. When you are accepted into a lifetime association like the greasers from The Outsiders or the Jets from West Side Story, this is where you’ll make your friends for the rest of your time. Once you finally belong with everyone, no matter what you do or who you are, you will always be recognized by your

West Side Story is a musical that includes gang violence and full-hearted relationships Between Tony, the ex leader of the Jets and Maria, the leader of the Sharks sister. It all takes place in Verona, a township in New Jersey. The movie starts with an Ariel view of the city shifting from site to site showing off of the pleasant areas. The movie goes on to show that there is a gang of white boys that call themselves the Jets, the Jets have a rival gang made up of Puerto Rican guys that go by the name of the Sharks. The jets are informed by the police that if they cant get along with the other boys, they will all be taken to jail. Obviously none of them want to go to jail so they come up with an idea for a settlement, a sort of agreement with the other gang. This agreement is a “Brawl” a fair even fist fight between the toughest guys of the two gangs, whoevers gang loses the fight has to leave the area. Tony aka Richard Beymer and Maria aka Natalie Wood are in an unbreakable relationship

On the west side of Manhattan two groups compete for turf, the Jets, a group of white juveniles, and the Sharks, a group of young Puerto Rican men. The conflicts that arise from racial and cultural differences are what lead to West Side Story’s message. The Jets do not like the Sharks because they came from a different part of the world. They don’t want them in their neighborhood because they are worried that they will change things, take their jobs, and make the neighborhood dirty. People have always and still have this fear for immigrants because they can’t accept change. When Tony and Maria fall in love, it makes the two gangs’ rivalry even more complicated.

Humorous, energetic, enjoyable and all-around fun, Legally Blonde: The Musical captured my attention from the get-go. This comical yet heartwarming musical portrays the story of a young woman following an ex-love to Harvard Law School only to realize the potential she possessed within herself and in the new life she creates for her own. After viewing this hit Broadway production, I am fascinated with how this theatre play was brought to life on stage with the lighting, sound, spacing and overall entertainment from the cast to the costumes. Altogether, this play is one of my all-time favorite productions and it is one that keeps my attention from the moment it takes off to the closing of the curtain at the end.

The musical “Hamilton” is the most sought after musical in years. It is the first seen rap musical and it has received the most ‘Tony’ awards and nominations in Broadway history. Hamilton premiered off Broadway in 2015 and soon moved to Broadway to stun the world with it’s incredible everything, from plot to casting. For best albums, Hamilton was second ranked in Billboard magazine and has got endless supply of recognition for the ingenious play written by the phenomenal Lin Manual Miranda. Hamilton is currently the most popular sensation on Broadway because of the music with its creative lyrics and hidden messages, it’s stellar performance and the perspectives it gives us on the people that founded our county. (on the people that shaped our past and developed our future).

Your Obedient Servant is one of the last songs in the musical Hamilton: An American Story. This song is based off a set of interactions between the title character, Alexander Hamilton, and his antagonist, Aaron Burr. It follows the Song, Election of 1800, in which Hamilton openly supports Thomas Jefferson to become president instead of Burr after the electoral tie between the two candidates. The tension that has been growing throughout the entire musical has climaxed at that point and then the infamous duel is set. All the letters that are written to each other during the song are ended with, “your Obedient Servant,” to add humor and also a reference to the actual series of five letters sent in 1804. While this makes for fantastic theatre, it is not completely accurate. Part of what makes Lin Manuel Miranda’s writing so compelling is that he takes Aaron Burr and makes him more dimensional than the man who killed Alexander Hamilton. However, the actual exchanged letters that the song is based off of show the tension breaking by a small incident, not directly relating to the presidential race, and do not actually set the terms of the duel.

Tony and Maria - more romantic love, idealised, though Tony has to agree with Riff,

West Side Story came out in 1961 as a melodramatic musical that took place in New York. It takes the same theme as Shakespeare's, Romeo and Juliet, in that it is about two lovers whose relationship is not accepted by others because of conflicting backgrounds.

Race and social status in culture is not only shown in history, it is also depicted in several films such as the original 1968 Planet of the apes, and 1961 West side story. Both films are unique in their own ways but go hand in hand presenting specific perspectives on race and social status from the beginning of history through today.

On April 20th, 21st at 7 p.m. and the 22nd at 2 and 7 p.m. Oswego East High school present Footloose the Musical. It starred Ren McCormack as Mitchell Crispi and Ariel Moore as McKenna Kreiling. It starred my other characters including, Willard as Alec Ludacka, Rusty as Ally Filicicchia, Urleen as Vera Mehnert, Ethel as Miranda Johanson, Reverend Shaw as Christian Mack. The musical was based in the small town of Bomont in 1988. Ren McCormack and his mother Ethel move from Chicago to Bomont after his father left them. Ren expecting a nice family community but, experience something way different. Ren finds himself constantly in trouble with other teens, the school, a new job and even the law. Although, through a battle of Ren trying to convince

Gangs have been occupied New York City for hundreds of years. In the 1950s, the city saw a rise of Latino immigrants from Latin America, the Caribbean, and notably Puerto Rico as well as a rise in gang violence. Leonard Bernstein’s musical West Side Story uses the real-world subject of gang warfare in New York City to depict a modern-day adaptation of Romeo and Juliet by playing into the ethnic divide between the two gangs, but in doing so it simultaneously acts as a medium through which the uninformed public can learn about the culture of the gangs from this time.

     The characters of the West Side Story were not good people. The two gangs focused their lives on fighting with each other rather than attempting to get along and accept the differences between them. The gangs did not have any

In 1965 Robert Wise presented the world with his smashing box office hit film, The Sound of Music. Over time it has become known as one of the most loved and well-known musicals of all time. Shortly after its release it won many Academy awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Sound, Best Adapted Score, Best Film Editing, Best Film-Musical, Best Color Cinematography, and Best Costume design (Freiden par3). The movie is based upon the true story of the VonTrapp family and allows its audience to relive their family experience as well as their flight from Nazism just before the outbreak of World War Two.