All Theatre
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • About The Editor
  • Calendar Submissions
Theatre Review

Eleanor Pearson
17 November 2015

A Happy Place Too Far Away

Two star-crossed lovers, two warring gangs, dance-offs and rumbles, chorus and dance ensembles - West Side Story has all the elements of great musical theatre, and this November Chatswood Musical Society did it full justice.
Picture
Maria (Michaela Leisk) and Tony (Anthony Levin)
I’d seen this musical done professionally, both on film and live at the Capitol Theatre, and I’ve also performed in a high school production, but I was actually moved to tears when the lights went down on West Side Story at the Zenith Theatre last night.
So what sets this production apart? As soon as Jets gang leader Riff (Jon Goodsell) ignites his first cigarette amid the darkness, a raw energy is palpable in the theatre.
Picture

West Side Story

polls
Director Chapin Ayres (who directed the company’s similarly gut-wrenching Blood Brothers in 2009) brings out the story of two young lovers caught up in a mess of racial tensions, and the poverty cycle, and makes it real.

We can understand the conflict between the rival gangs, whose members all face much the same difficulties eking out a pitiful existence in the back streets of a poor New York City neighbourhood. But it doesn’t make the senseless violence any more palatable. So when the elderly store owner Doc (James Worner) accusingly says to the Jets gang.
“You make this world lousy.”
Picture
The Sharks' dance-off at the gym
We want more than gang member Action’s perfunctory response.​
“That’s how we found it.”
It is a reflection on the layered characterisations that we can still laugh at (and with) the gang when they send up the authorities and themselves in Gee, Officer Krupke! The manic energy of Action (Luke Davis) is particularly infectious.
​

The testosterone-driven angst of this show is offset by the lovely, romantic frisson between Tony (Anthony Levin) and Maria (Michaela Leisk) that occurs when they meet.


When these two star-crossed lovers first see each other across a crowded dance floor, their chemistry is so apparent. You can follow their line of vision, and see they don't lose eye contact, until they are literally standing right in front of each other.
Special mention should also be made of supporting lead Susana Downes who plays Puerto Rican girlfriend, Anita, with spunk and style. The orchestra ironically playing I like to be in America, while Jet members attack her poignantly echoes Anita’s ultimate disillusionment with America.
​

There are also delightful moments in this show: the Romeo and Juliet style balcony scene, the Puerto Rican girls singing I Feel Pretty, and the dance at the gym, to name a few. In the intimate performance venue of the Zenith Theatre, the world of warring gangs is recreated and resonates with clarity. Expect to be taken on a wild emotional rollercoaster ride. I also liked the production choice to finish with a mambo, and not a whimper.
 
West Side Story plays until November 21, 2015

Address:  Zenith Theatre
Railway Street & McIntosh Street, Chatswood NSW 
Picture

See the Preview for West Side Story Here
Book Now

All Theatre

 Contact   About
Picture
Share this page