Download grammy award winning broadway smash hit is coming to atlanta

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jennifer Walker / BRAVE Public Relations
[email protected] / 404.233.3993
GRAMMY AWARD WINNING BROADWAY SMASH HIT
IS COMING TO ATLANTA
OPENING JANUARY 25, 2011
AT THE FOX THEATRE
Tickets On Sale Sunday, December 5
The tour of the current smash hit Broadway production of WEST SIDE STORY is coming to
Atlanta. WEST SIDE STORY will play at the Fox Theatre from January 25 -31, 2011 as part of the
Broadway Across America – Atlanta 2010-2011 season. Tony Award-winning librettist Arthur
Laurents’ Broadway direction will be recreated for the tour by David Saint, the Associate Director
on Broadway. The original Jerome Robbins choreography is reproduced by Tony Award-nominee
Joey McKneely (The Boy from Oz, The Life).
Tickets for WEST SIDE STORY go on sale Sunday , December 5 at 12 p.m. Pricing starts at
$18.00. Tickets can be purchased through authorized ticket sellers at The Fox Theatre Box Office,
Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com, or by phone at 1-800-982-2787. Orders for
groups of 15 or more may be placed by calling 404-881-2000.
The new Broadway cast album of WEST SIDE STORY won the 2010 Grammy Award for Best
Musical Show Album on January 31, 2010. The Bernstein and Sondheim score is considered to be
one of Broadway’s finest and features such classics of the American musical theatre as “Something’s
Coming,” “Tonight,” “America,” “I Feel Pretty” and “Somewhere.”
The new Broadway production began previews at the Palace Theatre on Broadway Monday,
February 23, 2009, opened to critical acclaim breaking box office records at the Palace Theatre on
Thursday, March 19, 2009, and recouped its $14 million investment after running only 30 weeks.
WEST SIDE STORY features scenic designs by James Youmans (Gypsy), costumes by Tony
Award nominee David C. Woolard (The Farnsworth Invention, The Who’s Tommy), lighting by
Tony Award winner Howell Binkley (Gypsy, Jersey Boys), sound design by Tony Award nominee
Dan Moses Schreier (Gypsy, A Catered Affair) and hair by Mark Adam Rampmeyer (The
Farnsworth Invention).
WEST SIDE STORY is written by three theatrical luminaries: two-time Tony Award winner
Arthur Laurents (book) and multiple Tony and Grammy Award winners Leonard Bernstein
(music) and Stephen Sondheim (lyrics) in his Broadway debut.
WEST SIDE STORY is produced by Kevin McCollum, James L. Nederlander, Jeffrey Seller with
Terry Allen Kramer, Sander Jacobs, Roy Furman / Jill Furman Willis, Robyn Goodman / Walt
Grossman, Hal Luftig, Roy Miller and Broadway Across America.
PRODUCTION HISTORY
WEST SIDE STORY had a long journey to Broadway. Six years elapsed between Jerome
Robbins's first idea of a modern musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet and its actual Broadway
debut in 1957. Originally, the action of the musical was to take place on New York's Lower East Side
with tensions flaring between Jews and Catholics during the Passover and Easter holidays. The
original setting left the authors uninspired and the project was put on hold. Years later, when
Arthur Laurents proposed changing the basis of conflict from religion to race, the show gained
creative momentum and WEST SIDE STORY was born.
Originally directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins, WEST SIDE STORY opened at the
Winter Garden Theatre on September 26, 1957 and garnered passionate reactions from critics and
audiences alike. The piece has often been credited with changing the entire course of the American
musical theatre. Applauding the creators’ innovation in dance and musical style, TIME Magazine
exclaimed “Robbins’ energetic choreography and Bernstein’s grand score accentuate the satiric,
hard-edged lyrics of Sondheim and Laurents’ capture of the angry voice of urban youth.” New York
Times critic Brooks Atkinson described the show as “profoundly moving; an incandescent piece of
work where theatre people, engrossed in an original project, are all in top form.”
The original production starred Larry Kert as “Tony,” Carol Lawrence as “Maria,” Chita
Rivera as “Anita,” and won six Tony Award nominations including Best Musical of 1957. Jerome
Robbins won the Award for his groundbreaking choreography and Oliver Smith took home the
prize for Best Scenic Design. Also nominated were Carol Lawrence for Best Supporting Actress,
Max Goberman for Best Musical Director and Irene Sharaff for Best Costume Design. WEST
SIDE STORY ran for 732 performances before launching national and international tours and a
successful mounting at London’s Majesty Theatre in 1958. The first revival of the musical opened
on April 8, 1964 at New York City Center by the New York City Center Light Opera Company. The
production closed on May 3, 1964 after a limited engagement of 31 performances. The City Center
production was staged by Gerald Freedman based on Robbins' original concept. A Broadway revival
opened at the Minskoff Theatre on February 14, 1980 directed and choreographed by Robbins with
the assistance of Tom Abbott and Lee Becker Theodore. The revival was nominated for a 1980
Tony Award for Best Revival as well as nods for Debbie Allen as “Anita” and Josie de Guzman as
“Maria.” The current revival of WEST SIDE STORY on which this tour is based began previews at
the Palace Theatre on Broadway Monday, February 23, 2009, opened to critical acclaim breaking
box office records on Thursday, March 19, 2009, recouped its $14 million investment after running
only 30 weeks and is still in performances.
An exciting and innovative motion picture version, directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert
Wise, was released in 1961 and starred Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer as the star-crossed
lovers “Maria and Tony” and Rita Moreno as “Anita.” The film also received wide praise from
critics, winning ten Academy Awards out of its eleven nominated categories (including Best Picture)
as well as a special award for Robbins. The film’s soundtrack grossed more than any other album
before it.
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ABOUT BROADWAY ACROSS AMERICA
Broadway Across America: Owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and entertainment
industry veteran Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman), Broadway Across America presents first-class touring Broadway
musicals and plays, family productions and other live events throughout a network of 43 North American cities. Broadway
Across America is also dedicated to the development and production of new and diverse live theatre for productions on
Broadway, across America and throughout the world. Broadway Across America most recently produced Irving Berlin’s
WHITE CHRISTMAS on Broadway, while current and upcoming productions include WEST SIDE STORY, BLITHE
SPIRIT, MINSKY’S, and the DeafWest production of PIPPIN. Broadway tours include DORA THE EXPLORER,
FROST/NIXON, SPAMALOT, CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG and FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. For more information or to
purchase tickets through an authorized agent go to BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.