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Folger Shakespeare Library: Shakespeare Unlimited

Bernstein, Shakespeare, and West Side Story

Folger Shakespeare Library: Shakespeare Unlimited

Folger Shakespeare Library

Arts

4.8 • 878 Ratings

🗓️ 22 August 2017

⏱️ 32 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Next year, 2018, is the 100th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein’s birth. To honor him, we’re taking a look at the creation of "West Side Story," Bernstein’s most significant contribution to the world of Shakespeare. To help us out, we’ve invited in two guests with extensive knowledge. Mark Horowitz is archivist for the Leonard Bernstein Collection at the Library of Congress—nearly 400,000 items, including music manuscripts, letters, photographs, audio and video recordings, fan mail, and even some of the maestro’s old batons. Nigel Simeone has produced two books on Bernstein, "Leonard Bernstein: West Side Story" (2009) and "The Leonard Bernstein Letters" (2013). Nigel and Mark are interviewed by Neva Grant. From the Shakespeare Unlimited podcast series. Published August 23, 2017. © Folger Shakespeare Library. All rights reserved. This podcast episode, "Juliet Appears Above, At A Window" was produced by Richard Paul. Garland Scott is the associate producer. It was edited by Gail Kern Paster and Esther Ferington. Esther French is the web producer. We had help from Eric Engler, the Summer News Operations Intern at NPR in Washington, from Sheryl Cannady at the Library of Congress, and from Jono O'Neill at Yellow Bean Studios in Leicester, England.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Romeo stands beneath Juliet's window and speaks.

0:04.0

Maria?

0:05.0

Shh.

0:06.0

Maria!

0:08.0

Quiet.

0:09.0

Come down.

0:17.0

No.

0:18.0

Maria.

0:19.0

Please.

0:20.0

My mother and father will wake up.

0:22.6

Just for a minute.

0:24.6

A minute is not enough.

0:26.6

For an hour then.

0:27.6

I cannot.

0:28.6

Then forever.

0:29.6

Shh.

0:30.6

Come enough.

0:31.6

Maria.

0:32.6

Momentito, Papa.

0:36.6

Of course it's not Romeo and Juliet.

0:40.3

But all of us know it really is.

0:48.2

From the Folger's Shakespeare Library, this is Shakespeare Unlimited.

...

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