Above and left: The “West Side Story” cast at the Tyler Civic Theatre practices scenes from the musical on Thursday evening.

The cast and crew at the Tyler Civic Theatre are ready to transport audiences into 1950s Upper West Side New York City as the theater presents “West Side Story.”

After a year of having to postpone the production due to COVID-19, many cast members who started rehearsing in 2020, along with new ones, have returned to bring the show to life this summer.

Fritz Hager, who plays the role of Tony, said he is excited to be able to pick up where they left off and have the show go on.

“West Side Story” is a musical retelling of Romeo and Juliet, with a rivalry between two gangs, the Sharks and the Jets, of different ethnic backgrounds. Tony, a former Jet and friend of the gang’s leader, falls in love with the Sharks leader Bernando’s sister, Maria.

“It’s about finding love and passion and equality between those two groups through love and a kind of innocence I’d say,” Jon Dickson, who plays the character Bernardo, said. “Learning to get past differences and be able to work together and live together.”

The cast is really amazing and does a great job of bringing this story to life, Steve Jones, the director of the production, said, adding he’s truly amazed at the talent pool we have here in Tyler.

Jones added he’s excited to be a part of this production. When he lived in Manhattan, he got to work with a lot of the original cast and crew of “West Side Story” and the director, so he is happy to have the opportunity to bring what he learned to the Tyler Civic Theatre.

“I want to pass on as much as I’m capable of to this new generation of performers,” Jones said.

A lot of work has been put into singing and dancing. For the most part, the choreography is from the original show, but some changes have been made to accommodate the theater, Jones said.

When singing, the goal is to sound like they did on classic Broadway, so a lot of the notes are high, Jasmine Martinez, who plays Maria, said. While this style is challenging to stay true to throughout the entire production, it’s also rewarding.

Despite the 1950s New York City setting, the cast feels the show has a strong and relevant message to be shared.

“In this show, there’s a lot of racial discrimination, so I think it relates a lot to today,” said Lizzy Tucker, who plays Anita. “There’s less of it now but it’s still present, and we can’t forget that it is present.”

People can order tickets online at tylercivictheatre.com or call the theater box office at (903) 592-0561.

Tickets for the first week will be $20 and $25 for the following two weeks.

Dates to attend the show are:

• July 22 through 24 at 7:30 p.m.
• July 25 at 2:30 p.m.
• July 29, 30 and 31 at 7:30 p.m.
• Aug. 1 at 2:30 p.m.
• Aug. 5 through 7 at 7:30 p.m.
• Aug. 8 at 2:30 p.m.