Ariana DeBose and David Alvarez shine as Anita and Bernardo in

Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story

by Kathia Woods

West Side Story is one of those musicals where everything comes together except representation. When Steven Spielberg announced that he wanted to remake it, shockwaves rang out worldwide. Why would one of our most illustrious directors wish to tamper with Musical Royalty?

It turns out that this has been Mr. Spielberg's passion project for a while, and with encouragement from his wife, he decided to take the plunge.

Here is a recap for those unfamiliar with the West Side Story storyline. The musical is an adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Jerome Robbins came up with the idea to modernize the musical and make it an immigrant story. He wanted to use New York as a backdrop and collaborated with Leonard Bernstein to create history. A young Stephen Sondheim wrote the lyrics. It received ten Academy Award nominations, including one for Rita Moreno, who is still the only Latina to win an Oscar in the main acting categories. She was also the only Latina of Puerto Rican descent in the cast.

Steven Spielberg made a significant commitment to right certain wrongs, beginning with the Sharks. Latino actors would play them. Every actor in the Shark's entourage is of Latin descent, and at least ten of them are of Puerto Rican descent. What's more incredible is that Afro-Latinos play Bernardo and Anita. DeBose (Anita) is of Puerto Rican ancestry, and Alvarez (Bernardo) is of Cuban ancestry. In addition, Spielberg looked to the Broadway community for his Riff (Mike Faist) and Graziella (Paloma Garcia-Lee). Also, that hideous brown makeup is gone.

Maria would also perform her singing this time. Rachel Zegler, a newcomer of Colombian descent who learned about the audition through social media, won the role after a difficult audition process. With all the aforementioned, this film is already distinguishing itself.

West Side Story needs to be broken down into three categories acting, singing, and dancing.

We'll begin with the acting. Spielberg made specific decisions. He chose to keep the accents for authenticity's sake. He wanted the audience to realize that Bernardo, Maria, and Anita are newcomers to New York. They are still learning English, which explains the accent. There's an argument to be made about whether those accents were genuine.  Many of us who are immigrants or come from immigrant families can attest to this. Each actor beautifully embodies this in one of the best scenes in the film, when they switch from Spanish to English and back. It felt like I saw a part of my own immigrant experience on film. I grew up in a bilingual household, and this is something I still do without thinking twice. I also appreciated the fact that he did it without subtitles. It does not affect the fluidity of the film. Certain Spanish expressions simply do not translate into English.

Another great casting choice was Mike Faist as Riff. He has the look and attitude that Riff needs as the Sharks' leader. Also, Rita Moreno as Valentina is nothing more than chef's kiss.

Let’s discuss the backbone of this musical “dancing”. The dancing in the original West Side Story is the best. Jerome Robbins combined ballet and jazz and expected a lot from his dancers. Justin Peck, a native New Yorker and an Argentine immigrant, was tasked with breathing new life into this iconic choreography. He first saw West Side Story as a child. Peck who previously danced with New York City Ballet was also well-versed in the original choreography. Robbins, who died in 1998, was a former Ballet Master at the New York City Ballet. He felt that he needed to create something new. He also didn't have the luxury of having every dancer on Robbins' level.

This can be seen with the unevenness in the main characters dancing solos. Haist is a fantastic singer and actor, but his dancing is average at best. A good example of this is that some of the Jets were stronger dancers and Peck would position them around Faist to help balanced out the routine. Most effectively done in the opening number of the film.

Another example can be found in the gym scene. In the original there was dance off between Riff and Velma vs Bernardo and Anita. This was missing. Paloma (Graziella) is a Broadway baby and a fantastic dancer. She has previously worked in shows such as Moulin Rouge, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and On the Town, to name a few. The partnering and lifts did not occur because Faist couldn’t present her as strongly.

Meanwhile Ariana and Danny are both trained dancers. David Alvarez, who once won a Tony Award for Billy Elliot, attended the School of American Ballet. Ariana DeBose studied at the CC & C Dance Complex in North Carolina and was nominated for a Tony Award as Disco Donna in Summer: The Donna Summer Musical.

 The scene in "America" where Ariana sweeps her hand across the skirt of her gown to begin the dance part of the song is simply divine. Her turns and leg kicks require no effort. When the men get a chance to show off their skills, Alvarez is just as stunning. His grand jete (a big jump signature move for men) has perfect air. Once DeBose and Alvarez connect as seen in the gym, he presents her so beautifully that they make a stunning tableau. In essence, it matters when people can make the difficult appear simple.

The singing part of this musical also got better. No one's voice was dubbed. Both Natalie Wood (original Maria) and Russ Tamblyn (original Riff) were dubbed (he in parts). Rachel's voice soared effortlessly through one of the most complex scores in musical history. She was the perfect Maria. Haist had the characterization and attitude for Riff. Danny as well as was stellar in his duet with Debose in 'America". The heartfelt version of "Somewhere (There's a place for us)" is just perfect and sung amazingly by Rita Moreno.

The one weak link in this film is Ansel Elgort as Tony. His singing was decent, and his dancing simply did not exist. It was as if his body didn't get the memo that this role required movement. Standing next to angelic Rachel, he just seemed out of sorts. Their connection just took forever to gel.

If there’s one standout from West Side Story its Ariana Debose. She shines in every frame, and what a gift for little brown bunheads to see an Afro-Latina front and center in such a big production. She simple is the epitome of a breakout star, and one hopes that Hollywood lets her shine more instead of shelving her like her predecessor.

Look for West Side Story to make major noise this award season in the acting categories, set design, sound, hair/makeup and costumes, sound, director and best picture.

West Side Story 2021 is its own thing. It's a gift for those who love musicals and the escape we need. It also reminds us that different doesn't mean worse or better and that immigrants are a vital part of the American Landscape no matter where your origin is.