West Side Story’s Costume Designer On Bringing New Meaning to the Remake’s Wardrobe
December 11, 2021 at 01:20AM After more than six decades since its original release on Broadway, Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story hit theaters on Dec. 10. Set in 1957 New York City, the Romeo-and-Juliet-inspired remake, tells the story of two rival gangs - the Sharks, a Latinx group who migrated from Puerto Rico; and the Jets, a Caucasian group from New York City. The story follows the conflict associated with the two over their fight to claim territory, mixed in with a forbidden love story between Puerto Rican born Maria (Rachel Zegler) and New Yorker, Tony (Ansel Eglort). Costuming, designed by Tony Award-winning designer Paul Tazewell, known for his work in Hamilton, In the Heights, The Color Purple, found the experience honorable and inspiring. “It blew my mind that I would even have the opportunity to approach designing West Side Story,” Tazewell told…