Chloe Zuel and Lyndon Watt (centre) with the ensemble. Photo Jeff Busby
With its high-octane energy and first-rate balletic dancing this Opera Australia production of West Side Story draws the audience in straight away. The cast is youthful, as befits a couple of warring street gangs in 1950s New York, too young and too proud to control their emotions and rein in their violence. The tension begins in the Prologue.
As nearly everyone will already know – this is a tragedy, based on Romeo and Juliet. Instead of Capulets and Montagues, we have the Jets and the Sharks – the Jets were born in America but have Polish roots; the Sharks are Puerto Rican immigrants and resented – and these star-crossed lovers are Tony and Maria. The action takes place in and around metal fire escapes somewhere on the Upper West Side (a great set by Paul Gallis), which evoke the constricted choices the gangs make and highlight the cast’s exuberant and precision dancing. In contrast is the bright and flamboyant costuming (by Renate Schmitzer). Also a big shout out to Peter Halbsgut’s lighting, which evinces so many different moods and memorable images.
West Side Story premiered more than 60 years ago, and it has endured. First, there are the unforgettable songs, including Maria, Tonight, Somewhere, America and I Feel Pretty, courtesy of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim; the fabulous choreography from Jerome Robbins; and, sadly, the racism that evolves and doesn’t go away. Some of the words spoken in the opening confrontation between the Jets and the Sharks could have been scripted by a white supremacist leader in the United States today. Humans are very slow learners.
But back to the Opera House. This homage to the original is under the musical direction of Donald Chan and is directed by Joey McKneely. The First Act speeds along to the closing rumble, as Tony (on opening night Daniel Assetta stepped in for an unwell Todd Jacobsson) meets and falls in love with Maria (Sophie Salvesani) and tries unsuccessfully to prevent his friend Riff (Noah Mullins ) escalating tension with the leader of the Sharks, Bernardo (Lyndon Watt). Meanwhile, Anita (Chloe Zuel), Maria and their friends examine the pros and cons of their new life in America.
A fine tenor, Assetta took a little while to get into his acting stride but relaxed into the role as the evening progressed. By the time he and Salvesani performed Tonight, he was convincing. As for Salvesani, her glassy and clear soprano is a pure delight.
Standouts: Zuel in the gym scene, in America and in A Boy Like That; her dancing is mesmerizing and she gives us a caring, vibrant and eventually grief-struck although understanding Anita. Salvesani whenever she sings; her Maria is very young and naïve, as the script demands. Watt’s Bernardo, taut in his vulnerability and pride; he is more than a match for Riff. The choreography, reproduced here by McKneely.
From the opening number to the sad and poignant closing scene, this is a polished and vibrant West Side Story, which is as horribly relevant today as it was 62 years ago with its messages against intolerance and racism.
Until 6 October
