The musical West Side Story was the subject of a 1985 Dramatists Guild Landmark Symposium at which the authors of its conception and choreography (Jerome Robbins, also its director), its book (Arthur Laurents), its lyrics (Stephen Sondheim), and its music (Leonard Bernstein) were on hand to tell an audience of dramatists how it was at the creation of this now-memorable hit. Their discussion was moderated by Vice President Terrence McNally, who as a member of the Guild’s Projects Committee (Gretchen Cryer, chairman; Sandra Schreiber, director of special projects) was in large measure responsible for creating, inspiring, and organizing the Landmark series. Here is the transcript of this session, edited with the approval of the participants. Questioners from the floor are not named.
TERRENCE MCNALLY: It’s hard to imagine what the musical theatre would be like in 1985 without the efforts of the four gentlemen sitting here with me, the authors of West Side Story. In our theatre community, they are held in great, great respect and much love. West Side Story is the one time these four extraordinary talents came together. I’d like to start with the germ of the idea, the first time somebody said, “Hey, there’s a musical there,” up through opening night in New York, in this case September 26, 1957, when West Side Story opened at the Winter Garden Theatre.
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