Combined 6,7,8 song for May Concert - "Somewhere" from West Side Story

Hello All!

Thank you so much for coming out to support your students last Thursday night!

It is so important to me to do diverse repertoire in genre as well as representation and truly meaningful, beautiful music.

"Somewhere" from West Side Story, accomplishes all of this and more. With music by Leonard Bernstein and the lyrics written by Stephen Sondheim, this song tells a beautiful message in the middle of a bleak, and horrible conflict.

West Side Story is based on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, but is set on the Upper West Side of New York City in the late 1950's or early 1960's. Two groups of American immigrants (one white, of Polish and/or Irish descent and the other Puerto Rican) struggle to live in peace and create feuds, especially among the young teen groups the Jets (Polish/Irish) and the Sharks (Puerto Rican).

The show and film both depict hardship for both groups of immigrants, but highlight that at times things were even harder for the Puerto Ricans, even from people of authority due to the color of their skin and the perceived differences within their culture. Unfortunately, you can see bias against the Puerto Ricans in the way that the character Lieutenant Schrank favors the Jets over the Sharks even when they are guilty of the exact same thing multiple times over the course of the movie or musical production.

In the musical and the 1961 film, you see that Tony (Polish/Irish) and Maria (Puerto Rican) have to fight for their love for each other because of the expectations thrust on them by their cultures. They feel forced to hide in secret to spend time together, while the events of the show attempt to drive them as far apart as possible.

"Somewhere" is hopeful, and at its heart means that Tony and Maria's love is beautiful, and though their world is not ready for their love yet, someday, somewhere, it will be.

There's a place for us, Somewhere a place for us. Peace and quiet and open air Wait for us Somewhere. There's a time for us, Some day a time for us, Time together with time to spare, Time to look, time to care, Some day!

The lyrics of this song are very simple, but still carry great meaning! No matter our backgrounds and family cultures, I think we can all agree that the world could use more love. This song is the embodiment of our human need for peace and love.

Looking forward to the next concert on Tuesday, May 7th at 7:00 p.m.!

Best,

Ms. Neuberger

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