By: DANIELA PEREZ LEAL / CHIEF ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Be a part of it! An original story by David Thompson and Sharon Washington, the music of John Kander and Fred Ebb, and additional lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, New York, New York brought to Broadway a fresh air and a new proposal that mixed different cultures through music and dance.
The musical directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman was inspired by the film “New York, New York in 1997, starred by Robert De Niro and Liza Minnelli. According to Variety, “New York, New York is more accurately described as a musical-length rhapsody on the dreams crooned out in its title song, made famous by Frank Sinatra and naturally performed here as a big-band finale turned audience singalong”.
New York, New York started telling the story that It’s 1946, the war is over, and a new New York is beginning to rebuild. So, a group of artists come with dreams as big and diverse as the city itself. But the question is here, as Playbill explained in the synopsis, “Do these singers, dancers, musicians, and makers have what it takes to survive this place, let alone to succeed?”, following the lyrics of Frank Sinatra’s song, “If they can make it there, they can make it anywhere.
The musical starred Colton Ryam as Jimmy Doyle and Anna Uzele as Francine Evans. According to the official website of New York, New York, the musical goes around the story of Jimmy, a brilliant but disillusioned musician who is looking for his “Major Chord” in life, described as music, money, and love. Life is against him getting the major chord until he meets Francine, a young singer who just arrived in New York from Philadelphia, and is destined for greatness.
Despite the awesome story, the real magic of the musical is attributed to the awesome production made by Susan Stroman who used her sensorial splendors throughout the show, according to the review made by Variety, the sensorial experience started at “the tap line across an unfinished skyscraper, nighttime snowfall in Central Park, umbrellas blooming in a rainstorm, conjure boldly romantic and relatively timeless visions of the city. Set at the end of World War II and debuting at another time of tenous renewal, “New York, New York” radiates an infectious optimism, as if hoping to deliver an antidote to a city and to an industry still in beleaguered recovery”.
I think “New York, New York” brought so much light to Broadway because the show combines different types of music such as jazz, salsa, and Cuban beats making it so original and showing the reality behind the dancers and singers looking to achieve the dream of success and a famous life while they are working to survive. In addition, It makes you think and appreciate the awesome things of New York, coming from a sunny day that ends in a beautiful sunset between the big buildings, a rainy day, or a snow season where you can play under the stars in a park. Finally, the show ends with Francine singing the Frank Sinatra original song “New York, New York” with the Orquesta and closes with Jimmy kissing Francine making it a perfect ending to a love story.
“While New York, New York lightly grazes serious social issues affecting 1947 New York, its main objective is to show you a good time. It's two and a half hours (much like a subway ride: overlong, but crammed with movement) of dancing, belting, dazzling set pieces and costumes, and ending with a big flourish,” Entertainment Weekly said.
Even through the bad and good critics that the musical received, New York, New York got nine nominations in the 76th Tony Awards and won an award for Best Scenic Design of a Musical, and also the Chita Rivera Award as Outstanding Ensemble in a Broadway Show.
During the moment that the “Phantom of the Opera” was performing its last show at the Majestic Theater, crossing the street “New York, New York” was doing its first previews at St. James Theatre, bringing a new option to the Broadway lovers. The first preview of the musical was on March 24, 2023, it officially opened on April 26, 2023, and closed on July 30, 2023. The musical said goodbye to Broadway with 33 previews and 110 regular performances. Now, the musical is looking forward to bringing its awesome production across North America in 2025.