O.C. THEATER : ‘West Side’ Leaves Its Heart in the Suburbs

The splashy revival of “West Side Story” that opened over the weekend at the Irvine Barclay Theatre is one of those tantalizing “if only” productions.

If only the inner-city look of the show--dazzling to the eye in design and choreography--were matched by a cast with inner-city feeling (or at least a non-suburban approximation) . . . .

If only the set, with its artful graffiti and its suggestion of steep tenement canyons, didn’t transform the spacious Barclay stage into something like an illustrated walk-in closet . . . .

If only the leads--Trent Bright as Tony and Maria Cominis Glaudini as Maria--could persuade us that those two tragic lovers have more in common, and more at stake, than just their duets. . . .

There’s no question of the effort that has gone into this version of “West Side Story”--a collaboration between UC Irvine’s theater, dance and music departments--or of the talent it displays in certain instances.

But the result, notwithstanding all the pre-show hype about modernizing the Jets and Sharks of the 1957 Broadway original to accord with the style of contemporary gangs, adds up to less than the sum of its updated parts.

The production gets off on the wrong foot with a contrived preamble in which several grade-school kids are playing hopscotch, leapfrog and so on. The whole dopey scene, which takes us to “Sesame Street” instead of Hell’s Kitchen, goes on too long and has nothing do with “West Side Story.”

We are meant to infer, of course, that the slums will have their revenge one day by turning these kids into delinquents. As director Eli Simon comments in a portentous program note about Tony and Maria: “Can love and wonderment overcome the inexorable violence, pain and suffering of inner-city life? Perhaps momentarily. . . . And then, as always, the nightmare of reality awakens us in its timeless fashion.”

Left to sophomoric devices like the opener, however, we’re more likely to snooze through the show. Indeed, the audience at Saturday night’s premiere never seemed to regain consciousness, sitting in deathly silence for most of the show until the second-act number, “Gee, Officer Krupke,” which drew spontaneous applause for its comic relief.

Unfortunately, this is the wrong climax for the second act. The greatest impact ought to come with Tony’s dramatic death in Maria’s arms. Yet that scene plays so limply--as does Bernardo’s stabbing following the vivid first-act rumble--that it goes by without so much as eliciting a sigh.

Another soporific is the casting of Bright as Tony. He seems to have wandered into the wrong show, as though still intent on playing Jack in “Into the Woods,” one of his previous UCI roles. But this time his song delivery is totally misguided. And his acting is even worse.

By contrast, Glaudini gives a vibrant performance as Maria that is surprisingly reminiscent of Carol Lawrence’s original. She endows the role with fervent innocence and romantic yearning in her acting and sings with a strong, if not lush, soprano voice. Her best scenes, moreover, are shared not with Bright but with Julie Seaborn as Anita, another of the show’s better performers.

Because this classic musical depends so much on the choreography for its urgent flavor, the dancing must be honest. Choreographer Donald McKayle keeps it that way with his kicky resetting of Leonard Bernstein’s jazzy, dissonant score.

McKayle’s hip-thrusting, finger-popping, angular style--more like Bob Fosse’s than that of Jerome Robbins, who set the original choreography of “West Side Story”--also manages to disguise the inexperience of the dance chorus while capitalizing on its talents.

Along with Seaborn, one principal who needs no disguise is Larry Sousa. His snappy performance, both as a dancer and singer in the role of Jets leader Riff, is among the show’s genuine highlights.

But no amount of streetwise choreography, garter-belt-and-leather costuming or jungle-gym fire escapes--to say nothing of walls and walls of colorful aerosol art--can disguise the suburban spirit of this collegiate production. And that’s the unmistakable problem.

If only . . . .

‘West Side Story’

Tony: Trent Bright

Maria: Maria Cominis Glaudini

Anita: Julie Seaborn

Bernardo: Mikael Salazar

Riff: Larry Sousa

Doc: Alan Schack

Glad Hand: Buck Stevens

Krupke: Tom Humphreys

Schrank: Joe Batte

Also with Jets: Michael De Mocko, Bart McHenry, Colby French, Jason Ades, Sam Zeller, Stephen Simon, Damon Hill, Jennifer L. Jackson, Dianna (D.J.) Gray, Gabrielle Beimforde, Jude Clark-Warnisher, Lisa Werblun, Kasi Mout, Angele Albuquerque.

And Sharks: Gary San Angel, Patrick Lars Olsen, Rick Crawford, Matt Nelson, Ronald Johnson, Kelly Perine, Federico Flores, Sheetal Gandhi, Dana Mandell, Meredith Quinata, Cynthia Herrera, Sandie Estrata, Tanya Turan, Isabel Garcia.

A UC Irvine presentation of the musical by Jerome Robbins (conception), Arthur Laurents (book), Leonard Bernstein (music) and Stephen Sondheim (lyrics). UCI production conceived and realized by Donald McKayle and Eli Simon. Direction by Simon. Choreography and musical staging by McKayle. Musical direction by Dennis Castellano. Scenic design by Jeff Hall. Costumes by Sandi Sykora. Lighting by Tom Ruzika. Sound by John Feinstein. Stage manager Jim Loder. Graffiti art by Raul Gamboa. Through Saturday at the Irvine Barclay Theatre, 4242 Campus Drive, Irvine. Performances Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 8 p.m. Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m. No performance Thanksgiving Day. Tickets: $12 to $15. Information: (714) 854-4646.