Review: ‘West Side Story’ is back at Lyric Opera, a classic for our moment
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For me, having seen “West Side Story” scores of times, the most exciting moment of the show is the first note of “Maria.”
That’s partly because that Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim composition is of perpetual beauty, a song that perfectly encapsulates a teenage infatuation by his exploring the resonance of a name, and, by extension, a girl, an idea, a future. But it’s also because the equally thrilling “Tonight,” as Shakespeare’s Horatio might say, follows hard upon.
And it’s in that sequence that you always know if your Tony has his head on straight, or rather off with love. Happily, both are true of Ryan McCartan, a present-tense performer who allowed the Lyric Opera audience’s warm response to his beautifully crafted “Maria” to power the jets into “Tonight.” It is a lovely sequence from a gifted young actor and singer.
On Taylor Swift weekend (maybe a few Swifites walked through the door), Lyric reopened Francesca Zambello’s staging of the classic musical, previously seen here in 2019. It’s much the same production, of course, and so fast a reprise was no doubt a way to diminish the expense of crafting an all-new spring musical, as has been the custom here for a few years. But the cast is different.
Back in the day, “West Side Story” productions tended to imply that the Sharks and the Jets were both equal parts of the problem faced by world-weary cops, and that love across boundaries was the solution. Today, Officer Krupke (John Lister) and Lt. Schrank (Keith Kupferer) tend to be entirely on the side of the racist Jets and this second staging (post Stephen Spielberg movie) leans more in that direction. Zambello also has gender-swapped Doc (now well-played by Genevieve VenJohnson).
On the whole, though, this is a traditional, big-night-out ‘West Side Story,” replete of course with the full original orchestrations and expansive scenery. As was true in 2019, I’m not in love with all aspects of the production: the set, from Peter J. Davison, sets Maria’s bedroom high up in the air, which results in some awkward blocking and you sometimes wonder why there is a third gang on the streets, the set-change crew, who occasionally show up a tad too visibly for the whole illusion to function as it could. The production also runs afeard of sensuality; at times on Friday night, it felt like Tony and Maria were more like pals than transgressive young lovers.
But Amanda Castro, who plays Anita opposite Yurel Echezarreta’s Bernardo, offers a vital and fresh interpretation of that role, capturing a historically overlooked quality, which is Anita’s youth.
And if the true test of a Tony is “Maria” into “Tonight,” the equivalent for Maria is the tragic final sequence of the show, wherein the late bookwriter Arthur Laurents brilliantly shifts her character from a young victim to a moral arbiter with the capacity to effect change.
In essence, Maria has to age years in a matter of seconds, and the young soprano Kanisha Marie Feliciano fully makes you believe.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
Review: “West Side Story” (3 stars)
When: Through June 25
Where: Lyric Opera of Chicago, 20 N. Wacker Drive
Running time: 2 hours, 35 minutes
Tickets: $44-$225 at 312-827-5600 and lyricopera.org
