The ladies certainly stole the show as the IU South Bend Theater Company put on their own rousing rendition of the famous musical, West Side Story. The singing, dancing, and strong chemistry between the actors truly made the show memorable, and one you certainly didn’t want to miss out on.
The story, based on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, is set in the rough streets of New York City. American gang the Jets, led by Riff (Ryan Haffron) are feuding with the Puerto Rican immigrant gang the Sharks. Amidst the fighting, Tony (Zack Hickle) of the Jets falls in love with Maria (Ashley Goodson), younger sister of Sharks leader Bernardo (Victor Kamwendo).
The musical opens up with the Jets, dressed in orange and goofing around. The Sharks, in purple, come in. The two groups play hacky sack separately, but a feud is obvious as various members of each gang push around the others on occasion.
As the first song begins, it is obvious that Haffron is a little nervous. His voice is just off key and he tries to connect with the audience too much, but he recovers quickly and the rest of his acting after this first scene sparkles.
He isn’t the only one with the nerves – Hickle too is a little too stiff during his solos, choosing to keep to one corner of the stage instead of utilizing the space for emphasis of the lyrics. For his first lead role, however, he did a strong job of maintaining chemistry between the rest of the cast as well as the audience, keeping everybody interested and believing in Tony’s character.
There is no doubt that the Sharks’ ladies stole their show with their skilled acting, singing, and dancing. Goodson made her acting debut, but she seemed at ease on stage, unafraid to fulfill her role even as it required her to stand on stage in her underwear.
Without a doubt, the character of Amanda Hernandez was the fireball that lit up the stage. She played the snarky, sexually charged Anita, wife of Bernardo. Not only does Hernandez sing her lungs out, but she can dance as well. During her solos, she moved along the stage, pulling the audience with her along the floor and up stairways.
The rest of the cast performed fantastically, rarely missing a beat. It was obvious that this cast had a lot of chemistry, as their friendships and feuds felt completely real.
As the audience was pulled through an emotional storyline, sexual innuendos and foul language provided PG-13 comic relief.
Overall, the musical was very well done and definitely a hit. According to Dean Marvin Curtis, the show had over 1,000 attendees by Saturday night. West Side Story was only the second musical in two years, and it was a huge success.
