Review: West Side Story (UK Tour) at the Aylesbury Waterside Theatre

West Side Story (UK Tour) 

Aylesbury Waterside Theatre

Reviewed on Tuesday 11th February 2014

West Side Story, which first opened on Broadway in 1957, is a show which holds a very special place in many people’s hearts. Based on Romeo and Juliet, Arthur Laurents (book), Leonard Bernstein (music) and Stephen Sondheim's (lyrics) musical is set on Manhattan’s Upper West Side and explores the rivalry between two teenage gangs - one white, the other Puerto Rican. Tony falls in love with Maria, the sister of the rival gang’s leader but their relationship blossoms... that is until Tony kills Maria's sister. 

The Phantom of the Opera continues to wow audiences all over the UK

Photo Credit: Michael Le Poer Trench
and Robin Savage.

The Phantom of the Opera has won over 60 major theatre awards, including seven Tonys on Broadway and three Olivier Awards in the West End. It won the ‘Most Popular Musical Audience Award’, voted by the public, in the 2002 Laurence Olivier Awards. The show opened at Her Majesty’s Theatre on 9 October 1986 starred Michael Crawford as ‘The Phantom’ and Sarah Brightman as ‘Christine.’ It is produced by Cameron Mackintosh by arrangement with The Really Useful Group.

The show is currently in the middle of its current UK tour. Upcoming stops on the tour include Milton Keynes, Cardiff, Southampton, Liverpool and Birmingham. The tour stars Earl Carpenter as 'The Phantom' and Katie Hall as 'Christine'.