William Shakespeare -- Romeo and Juliet

How it all began.

Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, Jerome Robbins --
West Side Story ****

The libretto and lyrics of the original stage musical.

Shakespeare, Laurents, Sondheim, Bernstein, Robbins --
Romeo and Juliet / West Side Story

The source and the product in one volume, with an excellent essay by editor Norris Houghton.

Geoffrey Block -- Enchanted Evenings ***

Insightful and extensive analysis of fourteen musicals from the so-called Golden Era of Broadway.

Darcie Denkert -- A Fine Romance *

What looks like a standard-issue coffee-table book is in fact a wonderful account of the journey from Broadway to Hollywood for "West Side Story" and eleven other musical productions.

Keith Garebian -- The Making of West Side Story ***

The comprehensive backstage story of the events leading up to the Broadway production.

Otis L. Guernsey, Jr. (ed.)-- Broadway Song and Story **

A round-table conversation with the four original collaborators. Arthur Laurents and Stephen Sondheim discuss their later work in subsequent chapters.

Scott Miller -- From Assassins to West Side Story ***

Must reading for serious musicians and casual readers alike.

Ethan Mordden -- Coming Up Roses ***

The masterwork shines brightly in this insightful and articulate chronicle of 1950s Broadway musicals.

Mark Rigney -- Deaf Side Story **

As if the musical did not present enough inherent challenges, this is the account of a company of young amateurs whose production called for one gang to be deaf, and portrayed by deaf actors. A unique and remarkable experience.

Mary E. Williams (ed.) -- Readings on West Side Story **

Essays and articles about the masterwork, including the scathing film review by Pauline Kael.

General

BERNSTEIN

Leonard Bernstein -- The Joy of Music *

Leonard Bernstein -- Findings**

SONDHEIM

Stephen Banfield -- Sondheim's Broadway Musicals **

Sandor Goodhart (ed.) -- Reading Stephen Sondheim: A Collection of Critical Essays

Joanne Gordon -- Art Isn't Easy

Joanne Gordon -- Stephen Sondheim: A Casebook (Casebooks on Modern Dramatists)

Mark Eden Horowitz -- Sondheim on Music: Minor Details and Major Decisions *

Craig Zadan -- Sondheim & Co. ***

Biographies and Autobiographies

Christine Conrad -- Jerome Robbins, That Broadway Man, That Ballet Man

The life and works of the dance master

Deborah Jowitt -- Jerome Robbins: His Life, His Theater, His Dance

A comprehensive account of the man and his achievements in theater and ballet.

Arthur Laurents -- Original Story by ***

A candid memoir of Broadway and Hollywood.

Review from The Denver Post

Review from Book Magazine

Greg Lawrence -- Dance with Demons

An extensive biography of choreographer Jerome Robbins.

Review from BookPage

Joan Peyser -Bernstein

Updated edition includes additional material and posthumous tributes.

Harold Prince -- Contradictions

The 1974 autobiography of West Side Story  producer and frequent Sondheim collaborator.

Meryle Secrest -- Stephen Sondheim, a Life

Amanda Vaill -- Somewhere: The Life of Jerome Robbins

Fiction

Irving Shulman -- West Side Story

A novelization.

Note: Some books 0n this list are not exclusively devoted to West Side Story.

Asterisks (*) indicate books on the Webmaster's top shelf.

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