Director Arthur Laurents was looking for his Maria for the upcoming Broadway revival of “West Side Story.” She needed to be Latina, a talented soprano, familiar with musical theater not too old for the part. He and his team looked all over the United States, but he found Josefina Scaglione, an Argentine actress, on YouTube. The video featured a rendition of Libertango, by Astor Piazzolla, and the director was mesmerized, “She has this incredible, ineffable something. She’s trained as an opera singer, she’s trained as a ballet dancer and she’s trained as an actress. It’s unbelievable in somebody that young.” Scaglione got the job just three days after her 21st birthday. Her casting was part of an effort to update the musical, by adding more Spanish words and authentic actors.
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[…] the sacred cry: “Freedom! Freedom! Freedom!” Hear the noise of broken chains… Broadway’s New Maria[Argentina’s Travel Guide] Director Arthur Laurents was looking for his Maria for the upcoming […]