West Side Story is not an Olympic sport, but if were, its degree of difficulty rating would be off the charts.
The symphonic score by Leonard Bernstein requires singers of exceptional skill, the original choreography by Jerome Robbins calls for classically trained, inexhaustible dancers and the acting needs to be of, well, Shakespearean level.
But Wick Theatre executive producer Marilynn Wick went out on a limb by asking her audience what they most wanted to see, and the overwhelming response was this 1957 musical classic about star-crossed lovers from opposite sides of the cultural divide. Not one to shrink from a challenge, she put West Side Story on her Boca Raton theater’s schedule and darned if she hasn’t pulled it off.
It helped that she brought in a director and performers who are longtime veterans of the show. Take MaryJoanna Grisso, this production’s Maria, who has done the role over 550 times, yet she continues to bring a freshness and enthusiasm to the assignment, in addition to a soaring soprano voice. The same goes for Thaddeus Pearson, whose big, sweet tenor has been heard as Tony in London’s West End and on the show’s international tour. And when the two of them combine on such duets as “Tonight” and “Somewhere,” all is right with the world.
The show, of course, is an updating of Romeo and Juliet set on the gang-dominated streets of New York. When it was new, it was considered revolutionary for its venture into such dramatic territory in a genre that was largely lightweight. Today, 60 years later, its reputation has only grown. The reasons are all evident on the Wick stage.
Chief among them is certainly Robbins’ choreography, to which Charles South and Ryan VanDenBoom offer an homage, adapting his steps while including all of the show’s iconic moves. Robbins was known for dances that contain narrative and story themes, like the clashing “Dance at the Gym” and the falsely optimistic “Somewhere Ballet.” The large ensemble is well drilled in Robbins’ style, conveying character nonverbally.
Of the supporting characters, hot-blooded spitfire Anita is usually a standout, as she is here, thanks to Sydney Mei Ruf-Wong, who commands the stage in “America.” Cliff Burgess brings some gravitas to police Lt. Shrank as does Howard Elfman (Doc), appalled by the violence but unable to stop it.
Michael McClain’s scenic solution to the need for multiple locations and maximum dance space is a couple of two-level skeletal units. It does the job, but the frequent movement of the set during musical numbers — often for little change — is distracting. Similarly, the recorded music probably does justice to Bernstein’s music, but remains a drawback to the Wick establishing itself as a first-rate production company.
Still, if all the work here were on the high level of this West Side Story, the Wick would be well on its way towards the success it seeks.
WEST SIDE STORY, The Wick Theatre, 7901 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton. Through Sunday, Feb. 26. $75-$80. 561-995-2333.