West Side Story

ARTHUR LAURENTS (Book, Director) His first play, Home of the Brave, opened on Broadway in 1945, followed by many others. His newest play, Come Back, Come Back, Wherever You Are, starring Shirley Knight and Alison Fraser came right on the heels of his New Year's Eve starring Marlo Thomas and Keith Carradine at his favorite theatre, the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick. He wrote his first musical, West Side Story, in 1957, followed by Gypsy and others. His first screenplay was The Snake Pit in 1948, followed by others including Rope, Anastasia, The Way We Were and The Turning Point. His own play, Invitation to a March in 1960, was the first of several he directed. I Can Get It for You Wholesale in 1961 was the first musical he directed, followed by others including La Cage aux Folles and Gypsy with Angela Lansbury, then Tyne Daly and most recently, Patti LuPone. In 2000, he wrote a memoir, Original Story By. His latest book, Mainly on Directing: West Side Story, Gypsy, and Other Musicals, was published in March 2009. At present, he is writing a new book, The Rest of The Story.

LEONARD BERNSTEIN (Music) was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Before graduating Harvard University in 1939, he made his unofficial conducting debut with his own incidental music to "The Birds," and directed and performed in Marc Blitzstein's "The Cradle Will Rock." In 1940, he studied at the Boston Symphony Orchestra's Tanglewood, with the orchestra's conductor, Serge Koussevitzky. Bernstein later became Koussevitzky's conducting assistant. Bernstein was appointed to his first permanent conducting post in 1943, as Assistant Conductor of the New York Philharmonic. In 1945 he was appointed Music Director of the New York City Symphony Orchestra, a post he held until 1947. Bernstein became Music Director of the New York Philharmonic in 1958. More than half of Bernstein's 400-plus recordings were made with the New York Philharmonic. Bernstein wrote a one-act opera, "Trouble in Tahiti," in 1952, and its sequel, the three-act opera, "A Quiet Place" in 1983. He collaborated with choreographer Jerome Robbins on three major ballets: "Fancy Free" (1944) and "Facsimile" (1946) for the American Ballet theater; and "Dybbuk" (1975) for the New York City Ballet. He composed the score for the award-winning movie "On the Waterfront" (1954) and incidental music for two Broadway plays: "Peter Pan" (1950) and "The Lark" (1955).

Bernstein contributed substantially to the Broadway musical stage. He collaborated with Betty Comden and Adolph Green on On the Town (1944) and Wonderful Town (1953). In collaboration with Richard Wilbur and Lillian Hellman and others he wrote Candide (1956). In 1957 he again collaborated with Jerome Robbins, Stephen Sondheim, and Arthur Laurents, on the landmark musical West Side Story, also made into the Academy Award-winning film. Festivals of Bernstein's music have been produced throughout the world. In 1985 the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences honored Mr. Bernstein with the Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award. He won eleven Emmy Awards in his career. He received the Handel Medallion, New York City's highest honor for the arts; a Tony award (1969) for Distinguished Achievement in the Theater; and dozens of honorary degrees and awards from colleges and universities. He received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1980. In 1990, Bernstein received the Praemium Imperiale, an international prize created in 1988 by the Japan Arts Association and awarded for lifetime achievement in the arts. Bernstein used the $100,000 prize to establish The Bernstein Education Through the Arts (BETA) Fund, Inc. before his death on October 14,1990. Bernstein was the father of three children -- Jamie, Alexander, and Nina -- and the grandfather of four: Francisca, Evan, Anya and Anna. leonardbernstein.com

STEPHEN SONDHEIM (Lyrics) wrote the music and lyrics for Saturday Night, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Anyone Can Whistle, Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, The Frogs, Pacific Overtures, Sweeney Todd, Merrily We Roll Along, Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Assassins, Passion and Bounce as well as lyrics for West Side Story, Do I Hear a Waltz? and additional lyrics for Candide. Side by Side by Sondheim, Marry Me a Little, You’re Gonna Love Tomorrow, Putting It Together and Moving On are anthologies of his work as composer and lyricist. For films, he composed the score of Stavisky, background music for Reds and songs for Dick Tracy and the television production “Evening Primrose.” He co-authored the film The Last of Sheila and the play Getting Away With Murder. Mr. Sondheim is on the council of the Dramatists Guild, having served as its president from 1973 to 1981.

JEROME ROBBINS (Choreography) is world renowned for his work as a choreographer of ballets as well as his work as a director and choreographer in theater, movies and television. His Broadway shows include On the Town, Billion Dollar Baby, High Button Shoes, West Side Story, The King and I, Gypsy, Peter Pan, Miss Liberty, Call Me Madam, and Fiddler on the Roof. His last Broadway production in 1989, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, won six Tony Awards including best musical and best director. Among the more than 60 ballets he created are Fancy Free, Afternoon of a Faun, The Concert, Dances at a Gathering, In the Night, In G Major, Other Dances, Glass Pieces and Ives, Songs, which are in the repertories of New York City Ballet and other major dance companies throughout the world. His last ballets include A Suite of Dances created for Mikhail Baryshnikov (1994), 2 & 3 Part Inventions (1994), West Side Story Suite (1995) and Brandenburg (1996). In addition to two Academy Awards for the film West Side Story, Mr. Robbins has received four Tony Awards, five Donaldson Awards, two Emmy Awards, the Screen Directors' Guild Award, and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. Mr. Robbins was a 1981 Kennedy Center Honors Recipient and was awarded the French Chevalier dans l'Ordre National de la Legion d'Honneur. Mr. Robbins died in 1998.

JOEY McKNEELY (Reproduction Choreographer) first was introduced to West Side Story by Mr. Robbins himself when he danced in Jerome Robbins’ Broadway. He was then chosen 11 years later to direct and reproduce his choreography for West Side Story at La Scala Opera House in Milan, Italy, his directorial debut. His productions of West Side Story have been produced throughout the world, including the Chatalet in Paris and will premiere at the Saddler's Wells Theater in London summer ’08. On Broadway, Joey’s choreographic debut was Smokey Joe’s Cafe, followed by The Life, Twelfth Night at Lincoln Center, The Wild Party, and The Boy From Oz starring Hugh Jackman. He has earned 2 Tony Award Nominations, 2 Outer Critics Circle Nominations, an NAACP Image Award, and a LA Ovation Award. He has also directed/choreographed US national tours of Thoroughly Modern Millie, Annie Get Your Gun, Crazy For You, Smokey Joe's Cafe, and the off-Broadway production of Jerry Herman’s revue, Showtune. In addition, he has directed Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton's The Beautiful Game in Tokyo, Japan. Other theatre credits include Whistle Down the Wind, A Wonderful Life, Time of Your Life, Juno, Making Tracks and the national tour of Jolson, The Musical. McKneely's feature film choreography can be seen in IQ and Ben Stiller’s Zoolander, as well as a TV episode of “Hope and Faith.” As a performer, McKneely was in the original casts of Starlight Express, Roza, She Loves Me (Revival), and of course, the endlessly infamous Carrie.

PATRICK VACCARIELLO (Music Director) is currently the Music Supervisor for the hit revival of Gypsy starring Patti LuPone as well as the National Tour of A Chorus Line. Broadway: A Chorus Line, La Cage aux Folles, The Boy From Oz starring Hugh Jackman, Gypsy w/Bernadette Peters (music supervisor), Cabaret w/Alan Cumming and Natasha Richardson(supervisor worldwide), Dance of the Vampires w/ Michael Crawford, Jesus Christ Superstar, Victor / Victoria, Joseph… Dreamcoat, Cats, Take Me Along. Conducted The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber worldwide, including at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People. Also conducted at Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall, City Center and Passion for the Sondheim Celebration at the Kennedy Center.

JAMES YOUMANS (Scenic Design) Broadway: Gypsy (Patti Lupone); Swinging on a Star. Off-Broadway: Matt and Ben; Hedwig and the Angry Inch; Jeffrey; Sight Unseen; After Play; The Petrified Prince (dir: Harold Prince), The Swan (Public Theater); Raised in Captivity (Nicky Silver). Other: Randy Newman’s Faust (La Jolla Playhouse); The Bozwell Sisters (The Old Globe); Cinderella (National Tour); 1776 (The Guthrie). Upcoming: Creature from the Black Lagoon (Universal Studios Hollywood); New Year's Eve (Arthur Laurents) George Street Playhouse. Love to Liz and the kids.

DAVID C. WOOLARD (Costume Design) Broadway: Dividing the Estate, The Farnsworth Invention, Old Acquaintances, Ring of Fire, All Shook Up, 700 Sundays, The Smell of the Kill, The Rocky Horror Show (2001 Tony Award nomination), Voices in the Dark, The Who’s Tommy (1993 Tony and Olivier Award nominations) Bells are Ringing, Marlene, Wait Until Dark, Horton Foote’s The Young Man From Atlanta, Damn Yankees, and A Few Good Men.

HOWELL BINKLEY (Lighting Design) Honored to be collaborating once again with Mr .Laurents after having just worked on Gypsy with Patti LuPone. Designs include: In the Heights (2008 Tony nomination), Jersey Boys (2006 Tony Award Winner), Avenue Q, The Full Monty, Minnelli on Minnelli, Parade, Kiss of The Spider Woman (1993 Olivier Award Winner) and How to Succeed... Parsons Dance (co-founder), Joffrey Ballet (Billboards), Alvin Ailey, MoMix and the Kennedy Center’s Sondheim Celebration. Five time Helen Hayes Award recipient.

DAN MOSES SCHREIER (Sound Design) Broadway: Gypsy, A Catered Affair, Radio Golf, Sweeney Todd, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Gem of the Ocean, Julius Caesar, Pacific Overtures, Assassins, Anna In The Tropics, Into The Woods, Topdog/Underdog, Dirty Blonde, The Tempest, Bring in ‘Da Noise, Bring in ‘Da Funk. Off Broadway: Road Show, Stuff Happens, Homebody/Kabul, Floyd Collins, others. Awards: 3 Drama Desk Awards, an Obie Award for sustained excellence and a Tony nomination for his work on Gypsy. www.myspace.com/danmosesschreiermusic

MARK ADAM RAMPMEYER (Hair Design) Mark is thrilled to return to Washington, DC with this exciting production. His design career began at Arena stage, under the guidance of Jon Aitchison, nearly twenty years ago. Since then he has enjoyed working for a variety of theatres including, La Jolla Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Hartford Stage Company and George Street Playhouse. On Broadway Mark’s work was seen in The Farnsworth Invention.Thank you to Jon and all for their continued support on this journey. *peep*

STUART HOWARD CASTING Stuart Howard, Amy Schecter, Paul Hardt – have cast hundreds of shows over the past 25 years in the USA, Canada and Great Britain. Among their favorites are the Tony Award & Pulitzer Prize winning August: Osage County, the original production of La Cage aux Folles and Gypsy starring Tyne Daly.

DAVID SAINT (Associate Director) has directed seven premieres by Arthur Laurents. Currently Artistic Director of the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, NJ where he has directed more than twenty-five mainstage productions, and will soon direct Laurents’ New Year’s Eve with Marlo Thomas. NY: A.R .Gurney’s The Fourth Wall (Primary Stages), The Spitfire Grill (Playwrights Horizons), Anne Meara’s Down the Garden Paths and After-Play (MTC) among others. This is for Tom Hatcher.

LORI WERNER (Associate Choreographer) Associate Choreographer West Side Story productions at La Scala Opera, Le Chatelet Opera, and Sadler's Wells. Principal performer Broadway companies Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, and Forum. Assistant Choreographer Smokey Joe’s Cafe. Solo artist with Ricky Martin, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, and Prince.

LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA (Translations) is the creator-composer-lyricist of In the Heights, winner of four Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Score, and a Best Leading Actor nomination for his performance as Usnavi. Other Credits: Stephen Schwartz’ Working (contributing composer), Freestyle Love Supreme (Co-founder/performer) TV/Film: "The Electric Company", "Sesame Street", "The Sopranos". He is honored to work with three of his heroes on this production: Arthur Laurents, Stephen Sondheim, and Luis Miranda.

THE CHARLOTTE WILCOX COMPANY (General Manager). Broadway credits include Grease (all three Broadway productions), [title of show], Cyrano, Drowsy Chaperone, The Times They Are A-Changin’, The WeddingSinger, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Bombay Dreams, Taboo, The Full Monty, Ragtime, Jesus Christ Superstar, By Jeeves, On the Waterfront, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Damn Yankees, Chicago, City of Angels. Touring: Sunset Boulevard, Busker Alley, On Your Toes, La Scala Ballet, Canton Acrobats and the Peking Opera.

BRIAN LYNCH (Technical Supervision) Technical/Production Management on numerous Broadway shows including: In the Heights, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Avenue Q, The Drowsy Chaperone, [title of show], A Moon for the Misbegotten, High Fidelity, The Odd Couple, Ring of Fire, Movin’ Out, Baz Luhrmann’s La Boheme, Contact, Side Show, De La Guarda, Riverdance and Rent.

JOSHUA HALPERIN (Production Stage Manager) Broadway: The Drowsy Chaperone, LoveMusik, Movin’ Out, Anna in the Tropics, The Graduate, Seussical the Musical, Parade, Miss Saigon, Bring in ‘da Noise/Funk, The Phantom of the Opera and Candide. Other New York Credits include A New Brain (LCT) and On The Town (NYSF).

LISA DAWN CAVE (Stage Manager) Showboat, Smokey Joe’s Café, Parade, Wild Party, Into The Woods with Vanessa Williams, Hollywood Arms, Hairspray, Caroline, or Change, Julius Caesar with Denzel Washington, The Woman in White, The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, Hot Feet, The Color Purple, 13. Namaste.

JASON BROUILLIARD (Assistant Stage Manager) Broadway: Jersey Boys, LoveMusik, Hairspray, A Year With Frog and Toad, Dance of The Vampires, The Civil War. National Tours: Ragtime, Chess, Company. Off-Broadway: The Cocoanuts, When Pigs Fly.

KEVIN McCOLLUM (Producer) won Tony Awards for Best Musical for In the Heights (2008), Avenue Q (2004) and Rent (1996), which also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and was made into a major motion picture. Mr. McCollum also produced The Drowsy Chaperone (2006), winner of five Tony Awards; Baz Luhrmann’s Broadway production of Puccini’s La Boheme (2002), which won two Tony Awards; High Fidelity (2006); [title of show] (2008); the debut stage productions of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas; and the Off- Broadway hit De La Guarda.

JAMES L. NEDERLANDER is the President of the Nederlander Organization and the son of James M. Nederlander (Chairman). He is the third generation of a family known for owning and operating theatres around the world as well as theatrical productions, cultural presentations and popular music attractions. Among Mr. Nederlander’s producing credits are Peter Brook’s The Tragedy of Carmen (recipient of a special Tony Award), Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf starring Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin, Billy Joel and Twyla Tharp’s Movin’ Out, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Legally Blonde and Cyrano de Bergerac starring Kevin Kline and Jennifer Garner and Grease. Upcoming productions include a live show with magician David Blaine.

JEFFREY SELLER (Producer) is the winner of three Tony Awards for Best Musical: Rent (1996), which also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Avenue Q (2004), and In the Heights (2008). Jeffrey has also produced and/or developed: De La Guarda (1998), Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party (2000), Baz Luhrmann’s production of Puccini’s La Boheme (2002), and High Fidelity (2006). Jeffrey is a graduate of the University of Michigan.

TERRY ALLEN KRAMER (Producer) Good News, I Love My Wife, A Meeting By the River, The Crucifer of Blood, Frankenstein, Sugar Babies, Me and My Girl, Shadowlands, Nick & Nora, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Royal Shakespeare Company’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Play About the Baby, 2002 Tony winner The Goat, 2003 Tony winner Movin’ Out, Fiddler on the Roof, La Cage aux Folles, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Times They Are A-Changin’, Grease, Cyrano de Bergerac, Passing Strange, 9 To 5, Dirty Dancing, Turn of the Century, Knock Knock, Reefer Madness, Beckett/Albee.

SANDER JACOBS (Producer). Most recent success is the 2008 Tony Award-winning Best Musical In the Heights. Mr. Jacobs has served as a co-producer and/or major investor for numerous Broadway, national and international productions, including a selection of theatre’s most celebrated and critically acclaimed musicals. Les Miserables, The Phantom of the Opera, Grand Hotel and Follies are among his many investments. His business career began with the creation of a multi-product fashion manufacturing and distributing company and quickly expanded to include ventures in the real estate and cosmetic industries.

FREEDY DEMANN (Producer). This is the ninth Broadway production for Freddy DeMann. His shows have garnered three Tony Awards and two Pulitzer Prizes. They are Proof, Topdog/Underdog, Take Me Out, and Spring Awakening. DeMann began his career in music, managing two legendary stars Michael Jackson and Madonna, with whom he co-founded Maverick Records. DeMann also produced "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" for HBO, which won nine Emmy Awards and two Golden Globes.

ROY FURMAN (Producer) currently on Broadway: Spamalot (Tony Award), Gypsy, All My Sons. Recent productions include: The Color Purple, The History Boys (Tony Award), Legally Blonde. Mr. Furman co-founded the investment firm Furman Selz and is currently Vice Chairman of Jefferies & Co., and Vice Chairman of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

JILL FURMAN WILLIS (Producer) won a 2008 Tony Award for Best Musical for In the Heights. On Broadway Jill produced The Drowsy Chaperone, and associate produced Sly Fox and Fortune's Fool. Other productionsinclude On The Line, Adult Entertainment, and Freestyle Love Supreme. She is on the Board of MCC Theater.

ROBYN GOODMAN and WALT GROSSMAN (Producer) partnered on two Tony Award-winning musicals...Avenue Q (2004) and In the Heights (2008). They also partnered on the long running Off Broadway hit Altar Boyz. Robyn co-founded the Second Stage Theatre and currently produces through Aged In Wood Productions. She is also Artistic Consultant to Roundabout Theatre Company. Walt is an active private investor.

HAL LUFTIG (Producer): Hal Luftig and his producing partners Yasu Kawana and Warren Trepp are proud to be part of the producing team of this historic production of West Side Story. Together they are bringing the Broadway musical Legally Blonde around the world, including Japan. They are actively developing a musical version of Catch Me If You Can for Broadway next season, as well as producing the 30th anniversary production of Evita on Broadway for the following year.

ROY MILLER (Producer). Broadway: The Pee-wee Herman Show, Ragtime (2009), [title of show], The Drowsy Chaperone (five 2006 Tony Awards), Is He Dead?, High Fidelity, I'm Not Rappaport (2002). Tour: A Christmas Story the musical, A Chorus Line (2002), Joseph/Technicolor Dreamcoat (2000). From 1991 to 2004 Mr. Miller was with the acclaimed Paper Mill Playhouse producing shows such as Follies (Ann Miller), Gypsy (Betty Buckley), Crazy For You (PBS Broadcast), and Stephen Schwartz's Children Of Eden.

THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY (Producer) Bob and Harvey Weinstein are co-chairmen of The Weinstein Company. They founded and ran Miramax Films which, during their tenure, was nominated for 249 Oscars and won 60. The Weinsteins have produced several award winning shows on Broadway and in the West End including, The Real Thing, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Baz Luhrmann’s La Bohéme, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Producers, Frost/Nixon, Rock 'N’ Roll, Young Frankenstein, August: Osage County, Boeing-Boeing, The Seagull and Billy Elliot.

BROADWAY ACROSS AMERICA (Producer). Owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and led by Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman), Broadway Across America presents touring Broadway and other live events in 43 North American cities. Broadway Across America is also dedicated to the development and production of new and diverse live theatre. Productions include Irving Berlin’s White Christmas on Broadway, Boeing-Boeing, Spamalot, 13, A New Musical, West Side Story, and Dora the Explorer.

LAMS PRODUCTIONS (Associate Producer) is a NY-based production company founded by Bradley Reynolds and David Siesko. West Side Story marks their second Broadway endeavor beginning with [title of show]. Their third project will be the upcoming Minsky's. They have invested in several Broadway productions, most recently In the Heights. David is an attorney and Bradley is a member of SAG and AEA.