Review: Bright Voices but Dull Romance in a West Coast West Side Story

The biggest rumble in LA Opera’s West Side Story is not between the Sharks and the Jets but between two musical styles. As Romeo and Juliet, the lead opera stars clash with the rest of the cast, who emphasize a Broadway style singing and acting—and that clash keeps audiences from experiencing any deep-felt emotions for Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim’s 1957 version of Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers.

The streets of New York are a battleground for a gang of poor Polish kids, The Jets, and a rival gang of young Puerto Ricans, the Sharks. The turf is the only thing they can call theirs, so they fight for it bitterly. Tony (Duke Kim), a Jet who wants out of the gang, and Maria (Gabriella Reyes), the sister of Shark’s leader, fall madly in love. Only hate could tear them apart, but there’s plenty of hate on the West Side.

The production of this iconic show, directed by Francesca Zambello, still contains enough to wow audiences. Bernstein and Sondheim’s score sounds epic with its almost 40-piece orchestra, conducted by James Conlon. The sweeping melodies feature many standards that sound fresh with this full assemblage of instruments, and Bernstein’s motifs chill when they hint at cheerier songs during tragic moments.

Joshua Bergasse, along with his assistant choreographer Courtney Ortiz, and fight director Andrew Kenneth Moss, lovingly re-create Jerome Robbins’s iconic moves and find a perfect cast to reenact the jumps, pirouettes, and back flips. During most numbers, eyes focus on Jet flunky Matt Dean’s flawless form and seeming ability to defy gravity. Witnessing this cast comingle their bodies is like reading the Kama Sutra. Robbins’s dance vocabulary was gleefully limber.

Amanda Castro as Anita is lusty and imposing. A choreographer herself, Castro meticulously captures Robbins moves while bringing intelligence to Laurents’s dialogue. P. Tucker Worley, an understudy for Riff, gives a strong portrayal of the leader of a ragtag crew of rebels with little cause. David Prottas, as the short-fused Action, brings cocky ignorance and dangerous cult leadership to the role. Yurel Echezarreta is campy as Bernardo, but that quality deflates his character.

Kim has a great voice, and his version of “Maria” deservedly received a hearty applause, but unfortunately, his acting is a bit stodgy. Reyes is too worldly and coy from the start to be a believably naïve Maria, who in this portrayal would more likely have knocked the gang members’ heads together and stopped their nonsense immediately. It doesn’t help that Reyes and Kim also lack chemistry. Facing the audience throughout “Tonight,” they never made it clear that they were even in love.

Peter J. Davison’s set captures a gritty 1950s New York. The depth of the full stage utilized in the opening is vital; a labyrinth of hidden corners allows the gangs to scurry around like mice. Jessica Jahn’s costumes, though, fail to convey any time period or character. That may be more the fault of direction than sets and costumes, but exactly when this show supposed to be taking place isn’t clear, with Zambello modernizing clothing and adding anachronistic props. The musical immigrant imagery is already text, not subtext, and Bad Bunny poster and Patrick Ewing basketball shirts seem like confusing afterthoughts.

A performance of a Broadway musical at LA Opera can be glorious due to the company’s high-budgets. In this West Side Story, Tony and Maria sound pitch-perfect, but the production itself doesn’t feel all that pretty.