Leonard Bernstein: I feel Pretty ( from West Side Story)
Performer: Alexa Elyash

West Side Story is a musical with a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. It was inspired by William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.

The story is set in the Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City in the mid 1950s, a multiracial, blue-collar neighborhood. The musical explores the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds. The members of the Sharks, from Puerto Rico, are taunted by the Jets, a white gang. The young protagonist, Tony, a former member of the Jets and best friend of the gang's leader, Riff, falls in love with Maria, the sister of Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks. The dark theme, sophisticated music, extended dance scenes, and focus on social problems marked a turning point in American musical theatre. .

The original 1957 Broadway production, marked Sondheim's Broadway debut. It ran for 732 performances before going on tour. The production was nominated for six Tony Awards including Best Musical in 1957. West Side Story won the Tony Awards for choreography and for scenic designs. The show had an even longer-running London production, a number of revivals and international productions. A 1961 musical film adaptation, starred Natalie Wood. The film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won ten.
Synopsis
In the bridal shop where she works, Maria sings about being happy and feeling beautiful because she is "loved by a pretty wonderful boy", while her coworkers tease her about her silly behavior. Music commentators of AllMusic comment that the song "features one of Bernstein's more memorable melodies: its first four notes, deliciously rhythmic in their rising contour, repeat, then are reduced to three, then to two. …Bernstein's instrumentation colors the music with a Latin character…and so does the girls' chorus that enters midway through. Lyrics deftly capture Maria's bliss and newfound sense of confidence".
The song has been covered by many artists, including Annie Ross and Julie Andrews.

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