Classic makes a full-hearted return You can see why they were terrified. Gang fights, race hatred, flick knives – you call this a musical? It's no wonder the Tony judges, with – in the language of Arthur Laurents' book – the spit scared out of them, gave the award for the best show of 1957 to The Music Man (now enjoying a dazzling revival at Chichester, for those who want to make their own comparisons). But, though the initial Broadway run was also disappointing, the subject matter of this uptown Romeo and Juliet, as well as the lyrics by a new writer, Stephen Sondheim, and the dances of choreographer-director Jerome Robbins, would prove enormously influential. The current revival, directed by Joey McKneely, is, inevitably, less shocking than the original, but it is hardly lacking in excitement. The show suffers, of course,...
[read full story]
Your Web Site
