Jennifer Gillis as Maria and Matt Montgomery as Tony in West Side Story.| Photo courtesy of Tim Matheson Photography.
For Alexandra Lainfiesta, a recent grad of Studio 58, the decision to move to Canada from Guatemala to pursue the performing arts was a ‘click away.’ The actress, who plays Anita in Theatre Under the Stars’ (TUTS) upcoming production of West Side Story, chose Vancouver as a place to study acting and pursue a career in the performing arts.
“It was 2010, and the Olympics were happening in Vancouver. Somehow I clicked something [on the computer] and a Wikipedia page about Vancouver popped up on my screen and I thought, ‘Oh maybe Canada!’” she says.
West Side Story, an American musical set in 1950s New York City, tells the story of two rivalling teenage gangs: the Jets and the Sharks. The Jets are white Americans while the Sharks are ethnically Puerto Rican. When a relationship develops between a Jet and a Shark, the rivalry between the two gangs escalates.
A grounded production
Prior to getting the role, Lainfiesta says she had never seen a live performance but had seen snippets of the movie. But she loves researching her roles and says playing Anita is a dream role.
“Anita is a very powerful, energetic, sensual woman. She emigrated from Puerto Rico to New York City in the 1950s, and there was a lot of discrimination. Anita is someone with thick skin and a big heart,” says Lainfiesta.
Lainfiesta says she can relate to Anita as she too moved to a very different culture and environment.
“The story of West Side Story is very relevant today with the ongoing discrimination in the States and separation between Latinos and ‘white’ Americans,” says Lainfiesta.
According to Lainfiesta, TUTS’ production of West Side Story is a very grounded, raw and earthy show, all of which is due to director Sarah Rodgers’ vision.
“[Sarah Rodgers] is bringing a lot of truth to it. We are using Spanish in the musical like the actual Puerto Ricans do, and the core of the story is Romeo and Juliet,” Lainfiesta says.
The TUTS production has close to 30 cast members forming a diverse group of people from Vancouver, Guatemala and Mexico.
“What’s great about big groups is that we balance each other out magnificently in that we have strong talented dancers, singers, musicians and actors,“ she says.
Exhilarating music and songs
Lainfiesta, who previously worked with the production’s musical director, Christopher King, says King not only understands the music so precisely but also the story.
“We’ve worked together before; he knows my strengths and vulnerabilities so there’s an enormous sense of trust. Every performer works differently and he got to know the kind of performer that I am, how I learn the music and songs, which is fantastic,” she says.
Lainfiesta says West Side Story has an amazing, catchy score written by Leonard Bernstein. As Anita, she has two major songs in the piece: America and A Boy Like That, the latter of which is a duet with Maria, the lead female character. For Lainfiesta, the duet is one of the most exhilarating, exciting female duets she has ever heard in her life.
“It’s two women who have strong but different views on a subject, and the music and singing really fit in. It has truly been an honour to be able to sing this duet,” Lainfiesta says.
When she sings, she finds it really exciting but also remembers the ultimate objective.
“I try not to focus solely on sounding good but that the story is coming across. It’s more pressure because we are actors – we are storytellers,” she says.
Music, dancing and songs move the story along while hinting at the upcoming narrative. Lainfiesta believes it makes the musical unique.
“I’d love to see people who don’t usually go to theatre to come see West Side Story – especially those who can identify themselves with what it is like to move from one country to another and make a life with new beginnings, or anyone who unfortunately has been affected by war gangs and losing people to violence,” says Lainfiesta.
For more information, please visit www.tuts.ca.
