West Side Stories

Viewers of a certain age won’t be able to resist singing along to songs like Maria and America during this documentary about West Side Story...
(Image credit: BBC/REEF TELEVISION/LAURENCE CEN)

Viewers of a certain age won’t be able to resist singing along to songs like Maria and America during this documentary about West Side Story...

Viewers of a certain age won’t be able to resist singing along to songs like Maria and America during this documentary about West Side Story, one of the most successful musicals ever (handily, it’s on C5 today at 2.15pm).

Suzy Klein and Bruno Tonioli search out the real stories behind the show and talk to those who knew and worked with creators Leonard Bernstein, Jerome Robbins and Arthur Laurents.

Meanwhile, Stephen Sondheim, who was in his 20s when he wrote the lyrics, talks of his struggle to be taken seriously.