Tag Archives: Jerome Robbins

West Side Story Preview

20th Century Studios has released the first teaser for the upcoming film adaptation of the 1957 stage musical West Side Story, directed by Steven Spielberg. The screenplay by Tony Kushner and choreography by Justin Peck are based on the original … Continue reading

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Essential Musicals: Fiddler on the Roof

Novelist Philip Roth called it “shtetl kitsch,” and writer Cynthia Ozick said it was an “emptied-out, prettified romantic vulgarization” of Sholem Aleichem’s work. Even if it wasn’t entirely true to its source material, Fiddler on the Roof did tackle the … Continue reading

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Essential Musicals: Gypsy

New York Times critic Ben Brantley believes Gypsy “may be the greatest of all American musicals.” He is not alone. Previous Times critic Frank Rich considers the show to be “Broadway’s own brassy, unlikely answer to King Lear.” The Lear … Continue reading

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Essential Musicals: West Side Story

When West Side Story premiered in 1957, it marked a turning point in American musical theater — “a provocative and artful blend of music, dance, and plot,” as one critic noted — but getting the work to Broadway had not … Continue reading

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