West Side Story in Spain
The Transcultural Adaptation of an Iconic American Show

This Element explores a detailed consideration of West Side Story's reception in Spain, including comparison of two Spanish adaptations of book and lyrics.

Paul R. Laird (Author), Gonzalo Fernández Monte (Author)

9781108970457, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 7 July 2022

75 pages
23 x 15.2 x 0.4 cm, 0.12 kg

West Side Story first became famous in Spain when the Robert Wise film opened there in 1962, the version remaining popular for decades. Brief international tours came to various cities in Spain in the 1980s, but their presence did not diminish memory of the film, which played a major influence on the country's first stage adaptation of the show in 1996. Directed by Ricard Reguant and produced in Barcelona by Focus, the production also toured. After another international tour played in three Spanish cities in summer 2009, the Madrid company SOM Produce mounted a rendition in 2018 directed and choreographed by Federico Barrios, the first Spanish stage version based on the original 1957 staging. This Element compares the adaptations of the 1996 and 2018 versions in detail, illuminating issues encountered when translating a musical for another culture.

1. Introduction. 2. First encounters of West Side Story with Spanish culture in the 1950s and 1960s
3. West Side Story in Spain in the 1980s
4. Ricard Reguant and focus's production (1996)
5. The West Side Story summer tour (2009)
6. 'El clásico original de Broadway…' (2018)
7. Comparing the adaptations by Albert Mas-Griera (1996) and David Serrano (2018)
8. Steven Spielberg's West Side Story arrives in Spain (2021)
9. Conclusion
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: 20th century & contemporary classical music [AVGC6]