"West Side Story" (film)

I just watched "West Side Story" again for the first time in years.

I remember the time before I started studying Shakespeare, when I thought "Romeo & Juliet" was stupid. I also didn't like "West Side Story" the first time I saw it, thinking it was based on a story that didn't deserve to be told again. Here we have two teenagers, stupid enough to fall in love overnight, then spend the rest of the play risking their lives and causing troubles for a whole lot of others until they, at last, they die. But of course, I was young then, and dumb.

What makes the Shakespeare play works isn't much different from what makes the musical works. Shakespeare's flowery language makes the story believable. Sure, anybody who has actually been in love knows that it ain't that easy, but you are taken into the realm of fiction, wherein his words make the love seem real. They peer through to our heart and remind us what it feels like to love. Maybe this love is romantic and not realistic, but we all know how it feels, don't we?

As I watched the musical, the lovers were getting on my nerve a little bit. I didn't like how quickly Tony and Maria became so emotionally involved with each other. The film expands over about two days, and already there were talks of love and marriage? Get real! However, my annoyance went away as soon as they started singing. Just as Shakespeare's language makes the love story come alive, the music by Leonard Bernstein and the words by Stephen Sondheim do the same for the musical. During the balcony scene, for example, the lovers sing a song called "Tonight, Tonight," whose lyrics carefully focus on the feelings of the characters on that particular moment, how the world has changed, and how their meeting had marked the beginning of a new life for both of them. If they were saying those lines I would probably continue to be annoyed, but in songs I can believe just about anything. There are some stories that work on stage and not on screen; I think the theater has more power to convince the audience of unbelievable things than films do, and most film audiences expect things to be more believable, unless they pay to see a sci-fi or a fantasy. Fortunately this film is a musical, and it has some of the best songs ever written, which made me sympathize with Tony and Maria.

The cinematography is brilliant; it is what makes the film not just one of the best movie musicals but one of the best films ever made. The choreographies are some of the most outstanding I have ever seen. The only thing that I thought should have been better is the singing; most of the singing was dubbed by other singers, and I just don't think they do that good of a job. I was particularly dissatisfied by Tony's singing. But that isn't a major issue.

I found myself crying several times, all during songs. I don't think the same story can be updated to modern time unless it uses Shakespeare's text or unless it's a musical. That's why musical is a necessary genre; it doesn't only entertain but it can tell a different kind of story that non-musicals cannot.

This and That

I recently finished reading, along with listening to the cast recording, "Assassins" by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman. It is a musical about assassins of American presidents--some of them are based on historical figures, and some are fictional. I find it very interesting to read the books of Sondheim's musicals. He chooses such great materials to work with, and he too is a great writer. The way he uses the words to tell the story in songs is simply intelligent.

I find that going to the theater isn't just an absolutely entertaining experience, but also very inspiring. When I see a good show it makes me want to come home and write my own work. (I'm working on a play now that I'm really enjoying. It may not turn out to be a masterpiece, but I'm sure it is at least a bridge to something good.) Reading plays at home is great, but there is nothing like seeing things performed. Plays are meant to be seen and heard, not read.

This is the back patio of the lovely coffee shop wherein I spend most of my days

I am now reading "Writing: Working in the Theatre," which is a book that compiles quotes about the theater and play writing from many notable playwrights. It offers different insights into the theater lives, assuring readers that there is no one way to write or to be a writer. In my opinion the greatest advice is one that offers more than one way to look at things, because everybody is different.

I've also been enjoying "The Peanuts!" I got a copy of a collection from '67-'68 and it's absolutely fantastic. I wish I had read it as a child, but reading it as an adult is good also. Other things I've been reading are "The Blue Room," a play by David Hare, and "Suly," a novel by Toni Morrison. Both are great; I will probably write about them later.