West Side Story Flashcards
Jerome Robbins life dates:
1918-1998
How was he introduced to dance?
- in Jewish culture the arts and cultural pursuits were part of his upbringing
- his older sister Sonia was a modern dancer
What styles did he study?
- modern dance
- Spanish
- oriental
- interpretive
- piano, violin, acting, voice
- he studied with some of the best teachers of the time
- the wide range of styles enriched his creativity for later years
Robbins training, journey, career:
- Tudor worked on character and also he would repeat phrases until he got what he wanted
- reputation of being a perfectionist, difficult taskmaster
Cultural struggles:
-Sandor suggested he changed his name to a more American sounding one
Choreographic career, Fancy Free:
- 1944 Fancy Free
- his initial ideas were considered too grandiose
- worked with Leonard Bernstein who was unknown at the time
- about 3 sailors on leave in NYC
- changed the face of American ballet
- audiences could relate and it was current
- gave Robbins success
On the town:
- 1994
- followed similar themes of 3 sailors in New York
- again worked with Bernstein
- the success of both quickly established Robbins as choreographer of the moment
- worked with established producer George Abbot who was known for his ruthless personality
Choreographic career:
- after these 2 works he began to direct
- his works aimed to have a story, characters and a point
- worked on Broadway
- retired from performance in 1952
- 1954 co-directed The Pajama Game, Bob Fosse choreographed
- Peter Pan, Bells are Ringing
- choreographed film version of The King and I
- 1964 choreographed fiddler on the roof
- choreographed 2 masterpieces for the NYCB afternoon of a faun and The Concert
Troubles in his personal life:
- had relationships with both men and women
- Robbins appeared before the House of Un-American Activities Committee, admitted membership to the Communist Party, named 8 other members, his decision haunted him, made in the centre of autobiographical piece The Poppa Piece
Basis of WSS:
-a retelling of Romeo and Juliet set against a background of gang warfare in New York’s Puerto Rican ghetto
How was WSS a ‘concept musical’?
- commented on social problems of the time such as gang warfare, racism, immigration - real life and real life situations
- performers had to act sing and dance in equal measures - an unprecedented demand
- the movement was the driving force of the narrative, the choreography imparted information that words could not
Influence of Gluck Sandor:
- hybrid choreographer
- expressive theatrical style
About New Dance Group:
- dedicated to social change through dance and movement
- set up by students from Hanya Holm’s studio - her technique stressed the importance of pulse, planes, floor patterns, direction and spatial dimensions
- would have a class, improvisation then discussion of social issues
- 2 rules: dance about something important to you and create work so that the audience can understand the dance’s thrust
About George Balanchine:
- fusion of modern concepts with older ideas of classical ballet
- “the important thing is ballet is the movement itself”
- “the visual spectacle, not the story, is the essential element”
Influence of New dance group:
-social statements, make dance accessible to a wide audience
Influence of Balanchine
-fusion of traditional with new concepts, musicality, visual spectacle
About Antony Tudor:
-believed ballet should engage the general public
-his exploration of the emotional choreography and psychological content changed classical ballet forever
-he chose universal themes such as death, societal oppression and the nuances of personal relationships, exploring emotions at a primal level
-similarly to Robbins he was a perfectionist
-his dancers had to have “feeling, sensitivity, soul, artistry and intelligence”
“emotion through motion”
Influence of Tudor:
-working methods, dramatic content, dancers ‘living’ the moment,internalising the inner state of his characters
About Agnes de Mille:
-created her own style, blending classical with modern
-added lyricism and comedy
=creates Oklahoma! a musical which integrated the choreography with the plot in a way that hadn’t been done before
Influence of Agnes de Mille:
- dream ballet sequence
- individual characterisation vitally important, blending styles of movement and theatre
What made WSS such a success, change the face of musical theatre and made Robbins considered a genius?
- the way he used movement to say what words cannot
- choreography to progress the narrative
- created a depth of emotion and character
- draws attention to destructive social issues that were prevalent
- against the background of Shakespearian classic R and J
Robbins’ character:
- challenged every cast member to totally understand their role so that they lived their character on stage/film
- created a real understanding of gang culture within the cast - kept the two groups separate and pinned newspaper cuttings
- relentless in rehearsal, drive for ultimate perfection
- he would repeat phrases over and over until he got what he wanted
- his attention to detail was all-encompassing
Typical trademarks of Robbin’s work:
- narrative
- characterisation
- links to current issues/social references
- cultural references
- musicality
- setting
How does Robbins use narrative and how is it linked to other works?
- storylines that audience can relate to
- took Shakespearean play and created modern day parallels that provoked an emotional response
- Fiddler on the roof - used his personal background to get an empathetic response to the difficulties faced by the Jewish community
- classical pieces such as The Concert series of observations of human behaviour and imagination
How did Robbins link to social issues in his works?
- Fancy Free which was based on American sailors on shore leave was topical at the time
- WSS made connections to what was going on in New York and showed a grim reality
What cultural references does Robbins make in his works?
- Fiddler on the Roof linked his own Jewish roots
- The King and I brought together a blend of English and Siamese culture making a stark comparison between the two yet uniting them
- WSS demonstrated differences between American and Puerto Rican culture
What is an important part of his work especially in the choreography of WSS?
- musicality
- choreography and music are very closely linked
- every nuance, pause, shift in dynamic was discovered and delivered
How does Robbins use setting in his work?
- in musical theatre he would create a realistic environment on stage
- Fancy Free although classical has a musical theatre feel and was placed in the realistic setting of a New York bar
- classical works tended to use a blank, open stage with just hints of theme to support the choreography - allowed movement to be the main focus
- e.g. En Sol used a simple background portraying a sun and waves which is echoed on the costumes
- The Concert is a blank stage apart from the piano and other props
Typical movements in WSS:
- the click/finger snap
- pencil jump
- jazz 4th
- low crouched ready position with arms in front
- grand battements to second on releve, arms extended, one straight up other to side, fingers outstretched, focus upwards
- Mambo - swishing skirts, rhythmic stamping feet, inverted hands in 4th, isolations of shoulders and hips
Who did his sister Sonia introduce him to and what did they do for him?
- Irma Duncan and Gluck Sandor
- awarded him an apprenticeship in his modern dance company, he then appeared in a production choreographed by Sandor
What did he do at Tamiment and what was it?
- he started dancing and choreographing at Tamiment progressive resort,
- he choreographed in a number of styles such as Burlesque or dramatic works
What happened that was a revelation and when?
- in 1939
- he saw Swan Lake which
- he realised the classical vocabulary allowed you to say anything you wanted in dance, this changed everything
Who did he meet at Tamiment?
-worked on a number of Broadway shows where he met George Balanchine
who were Robbins’ first teachers who influenced him?
Anthony Tudor and Agnes De Mille
what was Robbins’ first dancing job?
- with Ballet Theatre
- danced contemporary and traditional classical Russian repertoire
- had the tutelage of Anthony Tudor and Agnes De Mille
what was his first major role and what impact did this have on him?
- Petroushka
- inspired him to create real characters onstage
what happened in 1949 and how did the relationship with the person he met there help him?
- joined George Balanchine’s New York City Ballet as associate artistic director
- gave him security and a sense of kinship that nourished his genius
what was Anthony Tudor’s working style?
- worked a lot on character
- would repeat phrases until he got what he wanted
what was Robbins’ reputation as a teacher/choreographer?
- difficult taskmaster
- perfectionist
