Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1438629
work is absolutely key. The production had a remarkable graphics teamled by ddie offreda, along with Zach Zirlin and Nicole Eckenroad. Eddie and his team took all the research and ran— laying out countless signs an oy, a eteran sign painter (who also did all the signs for 12 Years a Slave, oerpainted these layouts, bringing them to vibrant life. We knew that signage would be our key signifier of territory. e wanted the audience to feel the tension of the ets inading uerto ican turf without a word being spoken. nd we were hyper-aware of trying to get the details right—both to nail the period and to get the reality across accurately of the richness of the different communities. The core of West Side Story is the dance, and was concerned how we were going to make the locations safe for ustin ecks choreography. had visions of twisted ankles in potholes. I couldn't hae been more wrong ar from delicate, ustin and the dancers actually seemed to seek out the most dicult terrainincorporating it into the dance. They scrambled up the mountain of rubble in the demolition yard—strewn with real loose bricks—and vaulted from an old pickup onto the ool pier. t was ust amaing to watch. One set where we were actually able to help the dancers was for ance at the ym. fter a long search, we found a terrific gymauditorium combo in arine ark, rooklyn. The space was ust greatsie and details were ust right. The only problem was the oorit was a bright green tile! We ended up installing a full wood sprung basketball court oor. eb worked with the endor to find a intage one. ur scenic painters traeled A. "DANCE AT THE GYM" PRODUCTION STILL. B. MARIA OUTSIDE DOC'S STORE. PRODUCTION STILL. C. MARIA WALKING THROUGH JETS' NEIGHBORHOOD. ILLUSTRATION BY ALEXIOS CHRYSIKOS. A B C