West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic 7 years old

As the world prepares to celebrate the 60th anniversary of West Side Story in 2017, dancer Bruno Tonioli and broadcaster Suzy Klein go in search of the true stories behind the inception of this classic show. For the first time on television, they hear first-hand from those involved in the show when it opened on Broadway in September 1957, including Sondheim himself, producer Hal Prince and original cast members from both show and movie, including Chita Rivera Carol Lawrence and Rita Moreno. With the BBC Symphony Orchestra and specially cast singers, we re-live some of the wonderful music and, in the company of Suzy and Bruno, we discover how West Side Story placed the 1950s phenomena of racial tension and teenage gangs centre stage to create a hit that changed musical theatre forever.

Credits

Rita Moreno as

Chita Rivera as

Stephen Sondheim as

Hal Prince as

Leonard Bernstein as

Jerome Robbins as

West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic Cast

Name	Character
Rita Moreno She was 85, now 92 years old
Chita Rivera She was 83, now 91 years old
Stephen Sondheim He was 86, 91 years old when he died
Hal Prince He was 88, 91 years old when he died
Leonard Bernstein He was 98, 72 years old when he died
Jerome Robbins He was 98, 79 years old when he died
Carol Lawrence She was 84, now 92 years old
Bruno Tonioli He was 61, now 68 years old
Arthur Laurents was 98, 92 years old when died

West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic Crew

Name	Department

West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic poster

West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic (7 years)

Release day: Monday, December 26, 2016
Runtime: 60 minutes