Ryan McCartan and Shereen Pimentel in WEST SIDE STORY at the Washington National Opera

All new photos and video have been released featuring a preview of Washington National Opera’s production of West Side Story. Ryan McCartan and Shereen Pimentel will lead the cast of this upcoming production at the Lyric Baltimore on May 8, 9, 10; and at the Music Center at Strathmore, May 14, 15. Check out the photos below and video above!

West Side Story will be conducted by Bernstein protégé Marin Alsop (May 8, 9, 15) and Grammy Award-nominated conductor James Lowe (May 10 and 14).

In the leading roles, Tony will be played by Ryan McCartan, whose star turns on Broadway include Hans in Disney’s Frozen, Fiyero in the long-running Wicked, and most recently Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby. Shereen Pimentel will perform the role of Maria—a role she performed both in the 2020 Broadway revival of West Side Story, earning an Outer Critics Circle nomination for Best Actress in a Musical, and last season in Houston Grand Opera’s production.

West Side Story reimagines Romeo and Juliet as mid-century New York City residents who navigate between their love and their neighborhood’s ethnic rivalries. The work was created in 1956, the year WNO was established. The production will get the big orchestra treatment that only an opera company can deliver, with Robbins’ original choreography, and will be conducted by Bernstein protégé Marin Alsop and James Lowe.

Photo Credit: Elman Studio

Shereen Pimentel and Ryan McCartan

Ryan McCartan

Jets dance

Sharks ladies

Sharks and Jets with Shereen Pimentel and Ryan McCartan

Shereen Pimentel and Ryan McCartan

Marin Alsop and Washington National Opera Orchestra

Shereen Pimentel and Sharks ladies

Shereen Pimentel and Ryan McCartan

Sharks and Jets with Ryan McCartan, Amanda Castro, and Shereen Pimentel

Jets dance scene

Ryan McCartan and Washington National Opera Orchestra

Amanda Castro and Sharks ladies

Amanda Castro, Yurel Echezarreta, Shereen Pimentel, Julio Catano-Yee