1 00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:03,920 Speaker 1: America is not just North America, It's Central and South 2 00:00:03,960 --> 00:00:07,560 Speaker 1: America too. So the center of America is not but Montana, 3 00:00:08,080 --> 00:00:12,440 Speaker 1: but San Juan, Puerto Rico, Porta Prince Haiti, Santo Domingo, 4 00:00:12,480 --> 00:00:16,800 Speaker 1: and the Dominican Republic. That's the real center of America. 5 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:18,080 Speaker 1: So take pride in there. 6 00:00:22,120 --> 00:00:24,919 Speaker 2: From Futuro media, it's Latin the USA. 7 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:26,400 Speaker 3: I'm Maria ino Josa. 8 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:50,519 Speaker 2: In twenty seventeen, a little musical by the name of 9 00:00:50,680 --> 00:01:01,279 Speaker 2: West Side Story celebrated its sixtieth anniversary. The music goal, 10 00:01:01,320 --> 00:01:04,679 Speaker 2: which bade its debut on Broadway in nineteen fifty seven, 11 00:01:05,160 --> 00:01:08,600 Speaker 2: was immortalized on the silver screen in nineteen sixty one. 12 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:11,880 Speaker 3: When you're a jet, You're a jet all the way. 13 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:15,360 Speaker 2: From your That's how West Side's Story reached the masses. 14 00:01:15,920 --> 00:01:19,320 Speaker 2: The iconic film, filled with colorful music and a tragic 15 00:01:19,360 --> 00:01:23,080 Speaker 2: New York love story, graced the screens of many theaters, 16 00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:26,600 Speaker 2: including one in the Bronx, where a young New Yorrekan 17 00:01:26,720 --> 00:01:39,160 Speaker 2: kid named Bobby Sanabria watched in awe. Bobby Sanabria is 18 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:43,039 Speaker 2: a Latin jazz drummer and a composer, and to honor 19 00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:47,560 Speaker 2: West Side Stories legacy, Santabria re envisioned the soundtrack to 20 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,640 Speaker 2: what Latino, New York City actually sounds like. In the 21 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:56,800 Speaker 2: album West Side Story Reimagined, Sanabria is accompanied by his 22 00:01:56,920 --> 00:02:01,320 Speaker 2: big band where he infuses classic numbers like Tonight and 23 00:02:01,600 --> 00:02:11,280 Speaker 2: America with Latin jazz and samba. Bobby Sonabria shared with 24 00:02:11,320 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 2: me what West Side Story has meant to him, and 25 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:17,840 Speaker 2: he broke down how he paid tribute to this classic musical. 26 00:02:19,919 --> 00:02:22,239 Speaker 3: Bobby Sonabia, Welcome to Latino USA. 27 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:23,280 Speaker 1: Thanks so much, Maria. 28 00:02:23,400 --> 00:02:24,560 Speaker 3: Nice being welcome back. 29 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:26,720 Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you. It's always a privilege and honor 30 00:02:26,760 --> 00:02:27,240 Speaker 1: to be here. 31 00:02:27,560 --> 00:02:32,880 Speaker 2: So you wrote this pretty long analysis in the NALIPE, 32 00:02:33,040 --> 00:02:37,320 Speaker 2: the National Institute for Latino Policy, where you're basically saying 33 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:44,600 Speaker 2: we're rethinking West Side Story. But let me just take 34 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:47,360 Speaker 2: it back to when you're a little kid, Puerto Rican 35 00:02:47,400 --> 00:02:48,640 Speaker 2: kid growing up in the Bronx. 36 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:51,040 Speaker 3: When's the first time that you saw West Side Story. 37 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:54,000 Speaker 1: It was the tenth anniversary of the movie, which is 38 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:58,280 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy two, and my parents took me and my 39 00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:01,120 Speaker 1: sister Joanna see at the Lowest Paradise Theater, which was 40 00:03:01,120 --> 00:03:04,119 Speaker 1: the largest theater in the Bronx at the time when 41 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:06,480 Speaker 1: you walked in there, even though the Bronx was burning 42 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:08,919 Speaker 1: and all that kind of stuff was happening, you felt 43 00:03:08,919 --> 00:03:12,480 Speaker 1: like you were in heaven. And I was sitting there 44 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:17,280 Speaker 1: and I was like mesmerized. My favorite show when I 45 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:20,920 Speaker 1: was growing up was The Twilight Zone. It affected me 46 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:23,760 Speaker 1: a lot. When I was looking at this movie, I said, Wow, 47 00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:26,760 Speaker 1: this is the greatest episode of the Twilight Zone that 48 00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:27,560 Speaker 1: I've ever. 49 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:29,520 Speaker 3: Seen, starring Latinos. 50 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:34,120 Speaker 2: Right, So for me, Bobby, I was growing up in Chicago, 51 00:03:34,480 --> 00:03:37,640 Speaker 2: Mexican kid, and we hear that the movie is going 52 00:03:37,680 --> 00:03:40,680 Speaker 2: to be played on television and I had to get 53 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:43,960 Speaker 2: special permission from my father to go watch the movie 54 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:47,400 Speaker 2: with my sister. And frankly, my life kind of changed 55 00:03:47,440 --> 00:03:49,520 Speaker 2: when I watched West Side Story because it was the 56 00:03:49,560 --> 00:03:53,280 Speaker 2: first time that there were Spanish speaking people on television. 57 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:55,040 Speaker 4: What is going on with you, Marie? 58 00:03:55,160 --> 00:03:56,680 Speaker 1: Yeah, I feel pretty? 59 00:03:57,320 --> 00:04:02,040 Speaker 3: Also pretty I existed in the United States. Because of that, I. 60 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:04,920 Speaker 1: Had the same feeling. I mean, imagine me growing up 61 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:08,040 Speaker 1: a New yor Rican with my sister. My parents had 62 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:11,280 Speaker 1: experienced racial prejudice, bigotry, and then all of a sudden 63 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:15,920 Speaker 1: we see people portraying us on film. It validated us. 64 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:19,039 Speaker 1: And because I had that music gene inside of me, 65 00:04:19,160 --> 00:04:22,760 Speaker 1: the music just blew my freaking head apart. I just 66 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:27,560 Speaker 1: couldn't believe it what I was hearing everywhere I go. 67 00:04:33,720 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 2: And so now, Bobby, you have reimagined what Leonard Bernstein reimagined, 68 00:04:40,560 --> 00:04:44,520 Speaker 2: and your version it's basically a Latin jazz version of 69 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:51,680 Speaker 2: West Side Story. 70 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:56,480 Speaker 1: Well, first of all, West I Story in and of itself, 71 00:04:57,200 --> 00:05:00,320 Speaker 1: is the most difficult music that has ever been holds 72 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:04,800 Speaker 1: for a Broadway show. It's still the gold standard. And 73 00:05:05,320 --> 00:05:14,160 Speaker 1: because it combined, it combined lyric opera, opera, show music, vaudeville, jazz, 74 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:19,640 Speaker 1: Latin music, orchestral music, all that in a bag of chips, 75 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:24,280 Speaker 1: as we would say in the Bronx. I mean, it's 76 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:26,920 Speaker 1: all in there. And you have to have incredible skills 77 00:05:26,960 --> 00:05:31,560 Speaker 1: to play the music. Just the song cool yet cool boy, 78 00:05:32,800 --> 00:05:35,400 Speaker 1: got a rocket in your pocket. 79 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:38,279 Speaker 3: Keep coolly cool boy. 80 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:41,880 Speaker 1: Is what we call in classical music, a fuke, all 81 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,359 Speaker 1: these different melodies colliding against each other. You had to 82 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:50,440 Speaker 1: have actors who could sing and dance, but on a 83 00:05:50,600 --> 00:05:54,560 Speaker 1: level that had never been attempted before the and that 84 00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:58,880 Speaker 1: was one of the reasons the original backers of West 85 00:05:58,920 --> 00:06:02,359 Speaker 1: Side Story pulled out because they said, you'll never be 86 00:06:02,400 --> 00:06:06,039 Speaker 1: able to get actors that can sing and dance all 87 00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:16,560 Speaker 1: that incredibly hard, difficult music. In nineteen fifty seven, it 88 00:06:16,680 --> 00:06:21,200 Speaker 1: was the Puerto Rican community being looked at as intruders 89 00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:27,000 Speaker 1: into these established white, working class ethnic communities. But since 90 00:06:27,080 --> 00:06:32,080 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty seven, everything has changed. Those communities now are 91 00:06:32,120 --> 00:06:36,400 Speaker 1: our communities, and now the gentrifiers want those communities back. 92 00:06:36,880 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 1: So what I did was flip the script. So now 93 00:06:39,880 --> 00:06:42,480 Speaker 1: when you hear the whistle in the beginning, you go, oh, 94 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:44,880 Speaker 1: West Side Story. You hear the snapping of the fingers 95 00:06:45,080 --> 00:06:47,520 Speaker 1: in the beginning, oh yeah, West Side Story. But then 96 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:49,120 Speaker 1: on top of that, all of you hear a son 97 00:06:49,160 --> 00:06:59,200 Speaker 1: you hear which is the rhythm of clovette, which is 98 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:04,599 Speaker 1: the any present ground force metaphorce in Cuban, Puerto Rican 99 00:07:05,040 --> 00:07:08,520 Speaker 1: Dominican music, and it informs everything we do in New 100 00:07:08,560 --> 00:07:11,360 Speaker 1: York City. So now when you hear from the beginning, 101 00:07:11,400 --> 00:07:13,280 Speaker 1: you go, oh, wait a minute, this is a different 102 00:07:13,320 --> 00:07:19,640 Speaker 1: West Side Story. The neighborhood has changed, and now it's 103 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:23,280 Speaker 1: the white, gentrified other ones who are the intruders on 104 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:27,200 Speaker 1: our communities. So to do that, every piece has different 105 00:07:27,280 --> 00:07:33,040 Speaker 1: Latin American rhythms, represents what the Latino community of New 106 00:07:33,080 --> 00:07:35,560 Speaker 1: York is now. It's not just Puerto Rican anymore. It's 107 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:39,520 Speaker 1: not just with some Cubans. It is now all of 108 00:07:39,600 --> 00:07:49,040 Speaker 1: Latin America. I'm hoping that for fans of West Side Story, 109 00:07:49,600 --> 00:07:52,360 Speaker 1: they look at this as wow, all of this was 110 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:57,080 Speaker 1: generated by Maestro Lennard Bernstein, who had a supreme love 111 00:07:57,560 --> 00:07:58,520 Speaker 1: of all things Latino. 112 00:08:02,320 --> 00:08:03,640 Speaker 3: There was your remake. 113 00:08:03,880 --> 00:08:10,320 Speaker 2: I mean, I think everybody loves the piece Tonight, and 114 00:08:10,360 --> 00:08:12,560 Speaker 2: I have to say that in your version, I just 115 00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:15,239 Speaker 2: found myself falling in love with the song all over again. 116 00:08:21,880 --> 00:08:26,080 Speaker 1: In the song Tonight, it's about Maria's anticipation of finding 117 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:30,560 Speaker 1: something new in this country, which is basically love and 118 00:08:30,720 --> 00:08:32,000 Speaker 1: also her womanhood too. 119 00:08:41,760 --> 00:08:44,360 Speaker 2: Coming up on that the New USA. My conversation with 120 00:08:44,400 --> 00:09:36,240 Speaker 2: Bobby Sacenabria continues. Stay with us, Yes, hey, we're back. 121 00:09:36,840 --> 00:09:41,240 Speaker 2: And earlier we mentioned a column that Bobby Snabia wrote 122 00:09:41,640 --> 00:09:45,400 Speaker 2: for the National Institute of Latino Policy, and we're going 123 00:09:45,440 --> 00:09:48,520 Speaker 2: to dive into that piece of writing now. So, in 124 00:09:48,559 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 2: your reading of Leonard Bernstein's work and in your writing, Bobby, 125 00:09:54,320 --> 00:09:58,719 Speaker 2: your interpretation is that in West Side Story, Leonard Bernstein 126 00:09:58,920 --> 00:10:03,320 Speaker 2: essentially was working with the Orishas. People might be like, 127 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:04,640 Speaker 2: what are the Orishas. 128 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:10,120 Speaker 1: Orishas are superhuman deities. Compare them for a reference point 129 00:10:10,120 --> 00:10:14,640 Speaker 1: for your listeners to Marvel superheroes. The religion comes from 130 00:10:14,640 --> 00:10:17,679 Speaker 1: the Yooba people in Nigeria in West Africa, and it 131 00:10:17,760 --> 00:10:20,200 Speaker 1: was brought to the island of Cuba and it spread 132 00:10:20,200 --> 00:10:24,280 Speaker 1: out to Brazil and Haiti, etc. Puerto Rico during the 133 00:10:24,320 --> 00:10:27,440 Speaker 1: colonial period. One of them is a Legua and he 134 00:10:27,600 --> 00:10:30,120 Speaker 1: is the avatar of what we call ache, which is 135 00:10:30,880 --> 00:10:35,520 Speaker 1: the positive energy force that permits all throughout the universe, 136 00:10:36,000 --> 00:10:42,280 Speaker 1: and that is evoked by Bernardo. Our Legwise colors are 137 00:10:42,320 --> 00:10:45,240 Speaker 1: red and black, red for life and black for death. 138 00:10:45,600 --> 00:10:48,760 Speaker 1: He's the beginning, he's the end. So when you see 139 00:10:48,800 --> 00:10:50,840 Speaker 1: Bernardo for the first time, right in the beginning of 140 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:54,360 Speaker 1: the movie's he dressed as black and red. 141 00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:55,720 Speaker 3: He's wearing black and red. 142 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:58,559 Speaker 2: And then I was like, oh wait, so, Bobby, you're 143 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:03,199 Speaker 2: saying that Leonard Bernstein actually knew that that Leonard Bernstein, 144 00:11:03,280 --> 00:11:06,439 Speaker 2: because of his relationship with the Latin American and Latino community, 145 00:11:06,720 --> 00:11:10,360 Speaker 2: he had an inkling into what Yoruba and Santania was 146 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:12,800 Speaker 2: and maybe knew who Allegui was. 147 00:11:12,960 --> 00:11:14,640 Speaker 1: I'm sure he did because he used to go to 148 00:11:14,679 --> 00:11:17,520 Speaker 1: the Palladium Ballroom. He was good friends with Tito Pointe, 149 00:11:17,640 --> 00:11:20,520 Speaker 1: and that was permeated throughout the culture in the music, 150 00:11:20,600 --> 00:11:24,439 Speaker 1: especially in the nineteen fifties, because Cuban music was ubiquitous 151 00:11:24,840 --> 00:11:27,040 Speaker 1: not only in New York but all over the world 152 00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:30,760 Speaker 1: at that time. And there's other references. When you see 153 00:11:30,840 --> 00:11:34,280 Speaker 1: Riff in the beginning walking across the park, there's a 154 00:11:34,320 --> 00:11:38,240 Speaker 1: little girl and she's joined concentric circles in chalk on 155 00:11:38,280 --> 00:11:42,240 Speaker 1: the ground in the cement that was always represented by 156 00:11:42,320 --> 00:11:48,199 Speaker 1: young child and concentric circles. The tribe opening the opening whistle, 157 00:11:48,280 --> 00:11:50,760 Speaker 1: the triates on the three notes leg was numbers three. 158 00:11:51,320 --> 00:11:54,000 Speaker 1: The whole show is based on those three notes, the 159 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:57,360 Speaker 1: number three I mean. And then in the prologue, when 160 00:11:57,400 --> 00:11:59,599 Speaker 1: you hear the prologue in the beginning, the melody of 161 00:11:59,640 --> 00:12:02,960 Speaker 1: the pro log, it's a three bar pattern that keeps 162 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:06,000 Speaker 1: inverting in on itself. So when you hear it in 163 00:12:06,040 --> 00:12:08,720 Speaker 1: our version with the clavit, it keeps inverting and inverting. 164 00:12:16,040 --> 00:12:19,880 Speaker 1: There's been a lot of criticism of Westside Story, especially 165 00:12:19,880 --> 00:12:23,720 Speaker 1: in the Puerto Rican intellectual community. When I read frances 166 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:28,079 Speaker 1: Negrong's opinion piece saying that West Side Story to Puerto 167 00:12:28,160 --> 00:12:31,640 Speaker 1: Ricans is what birth of a nation is to African Americans. 168 00:12:31,920 --> 00:12:34,400 Speaker 1: That's when I decided to write this, because when I 169 00:12:34,400 --> 00:12:38,040 Speaker 1: get mad, there's two things. I start expressing my feelings 170 00:12:38,120 --> 00:12:42,760 Speaker 1: viscerally out loud, and then what usually happens, I start 171 00:12:42,840 --> 00:12:45,960 Speaker 1: figuring out a way to, in my opinion, rectify this situation. 172 00:12:46,080 --> 00:12:47,560 Speaker 1: That's why I wrote the opinion piece. 173 00:12:50,840 --> 00:12:53,240 Speaker 2: So in some ways, if you can read that, Bobby, 174 00:12:54,000 --> 00:12:56,319 Speaker 2: isn't that kind of your summation of it all? 175 00:12:56,360 --> 00:12:58,839 Speaker 1: But I'll read it already read it. But that's looking 176 00:12:58,880 --> 00:13:02,760 Speaker 1: at things superficially. It's a complex story of romance set 177 00:13:02,760 --> 00:13:06,640 Speaker 1: in the energy of the inner city, amidst racism, bigotry, 178 00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:11,840 Speaker 1: territorial imperative and what causes it fear and ignorance. It's 179 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:15,560 Speaker 1: offset by cultural pride, humor, and the spirit of fighting 180 00:13:15,600 --> 00:13:18,120 Speaker 1: for what one believes in, be it good or bad. 181 00:13:18,920 --> 00:13:23,520 Speaker 1: In the lovers Tony and Maria's case, it's about their hopes, dreams, 182 00:13:23,559 --> 00:13:27,920 Speaker 1: and their ultimate power love, setting aside the ridiculous move 183 00:13:27,960 --> 00:13:30,520 Speaker 1: by the producers to actually spray paint the actors playing 184 00:13:30,559 --> 00:13:33,880 Speaker 1: the Porto Rican characters in the film Orange, something my 185 00:13:34,000 --> 00:13:37,080 Speaker 1: sister and I noticed right away and confirmed by star 186 00:13:37,160 --> 00:13:40,760 Speaker 1: Rito Moreno in her memoirs. When I first heard the music, 187 00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:45,680 Speaker 1: I was flabbergasted. Mariestro Lena Bernstein had tapped directly into 188 00:13:45,720 --> 00:13:48,600 Speaker 1: what sets our fair city apart from any other place 189 00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:55,839 Speaker 1: on Spaceship Earth a chair, energy, hypness, and ultimately cool. 190 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:09,280 Speaker 2: So on the one hand, you're saying, look, this West 191 00:14:09,280 --> 00:14:11,800 Speaker 2: Side story totally got us in ways that we weren't 192 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:14,360 Speaker 2: even aware of. On the other hand, it was coming 193 00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:18,400 Speaker 2: from kind of a white perspective and putting brown face 194 00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:21,040 Speaker 2: and orange makeup on people of color who, many of 195 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:24,040 Speaker 2: them were not Latinos, and playing the role of Latinos 196 00:14:24,400 --> 00:14:24,960 Speaker 2: in this film. 197 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:27,000 Speaker 1: It's funny that you mentioned that, because when my sister 198 00:14:27,080 --> 00:14:28,840 Speaker 1: was sitting next to me at the theater, We're watching 199 00:14:28,920 --> 00:14:30,880 Speaker 1: it and I'm like enthralled with the music and I'm 200 00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:34,440 Speaker 1: the visuals and the spectacular images. My sister goes to me, 201 00:14:34,880 --> 00:14:38,440 Speaker 1: how come the Puerto Ricans are all orange? 202 00:14:37,720 --> 00:14:37,960 Speaker 2: Yeah? 203 00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:41,920 Speaker 1: And then I go, you gotta you know, yeah, You're right. 204 00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:45,160 Speaker 1: Then she goes, it only looks Puerto Rican too. I 205 00:14:45,240 --> 00:14:48,240 Speaker 1: understood it from the perspective of the producers because they 206 00:14:48,280 --> 00:14:52,960 Speaker 1: wanted to heighten the tension between the White gang and 207 00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:53,880 Speaker 1: the Puerto Ricans. 208 00:15:03,240 --> 00:15:08,160 Speaker 2: So you mention a lot in your writing about Ashe, 209 00:15:08,200 --> 00:15:10,760 Speaker 2: which you have just brought forth right, which is the 210 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:15,240 Speaker 2: general positive energy. And I'm wondering you're talking about love, 211 00:15:15,360 --> 00:15:18,720 Speaker 2: You're talking about Ashe, and we're talking about West Side Story, 212 00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:21,240 Speaker 2: and do you think that most people come away from 213 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:25,600 Speaker 2: West Side Story as a hopeful love story or rather 214 00:15:26,640 --> 00:15:32,680 Speaker 2: really like oprescient of war and hatred and division. 215 00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:34,960 Speaker 1: I was very aware of what was happening when I 216 00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:37,200 Speaker 1: was young and watched West Side Story because I was 217 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:40,680 Speaker 1: experiencing it in the neighborhoods. I was experiencing being called 218 00:15:40,680 --> 00:15:44,400 Speaker 1: a Spic, being called a half breed. The main thing 219 00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:46,960 Speaker 1: is education, and one of the things that we have 220 00:15:47,040 --> 00:15:50,680 Speaker 1: to educate our youth, especially Latino youth, is that we 221 00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:55,800 Speaker 1: are multi cultural society. We are like the uber multicultural society. 222 00:15:55,840 --> 00:15:58,920 Speaker 1: Octavio Pass the great Mexican writer, talks about that that 223 00:15:59,040 --> 00:16:03,320 Speaker 1: the greatest civilisations have always been combinations of all these 224 00:16:03,320 --> 00:16:07,760 Speaker 1: different cultures coming together. And who is more representative of 225 00:16:07,800 --> 00:16:11,480 Speaker 1: that than Latinos. We got it all. It's like God 226 00:16:11,760 --> 00:16:14,640 Speaker 1: looked at Earth and said, you know what, you guys 227 00:16:14,640 --> 00:16:16,560 Speaker 1: are gonna suffer. You know, you're gonna get a lot 228 00:16:16,600 --> 00:16:19,320 Speaker 1: of crap, but I'm going to give you everything. The music, 229 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:24,120 Speaker 1: the dance, you know, the romance, everything. 230 00:16:23,960 --> 00:16:26,960 Speaker 3: The racial spectrum. Yeah, the light to dark. 231 00:16:27,120 --> 00:16:30,840 Speaker 1: Yeah, we as Latinos have to be prideful of that, 232 00:16:30,920 --> 00:16:34,400 Speaker 1: but in a very positive way. And that's what the 233 00:16:34,400 --> 00:16:39,720 Speaker 1: purpose of this, this reimagining is, and and that was 234 00:16:39,760 --> 00:16:43,240 Speaker 1: the purpose that Master Bernstein had in the score. 235 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:52,920 Speaker 2: Bobby, thank you so much for reimagining West Side Story 236 00:16:53,320 --> 00:16:54,560 Speaker 2: for yourself and for all of us. 237 00:16:54,560 --> 00:16:55,560 Speaker 3: We really appreciate it. 238 00:16:55,600 --> 00:16:55,920 Speaker 1: Thank you. 239 00:17:00,800 --> 00:17:05,000 Speaker 2: Bobby Sanabria is a multi Grammy Award nominee. He's a drummer, 240 00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:08,600 Speaker 2: a composer, and an educator, and he's a self proclaimed 241 00:17:08,840 --> 00:17:12,080 Speaker 2: son of the Bronx. His tribute to West Side Story, 242 00:17:12,320 --> 00:17:33,719 Speaker 2: West Side Story Reimagined is out now. This episode originally 243 00:17:33,760 --> 00:17:36,639 Speaker 2: aired in September of twenty eighteen. It was produced by 244 00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:40,240 Speaker 2: Jimmy Montalvo and Janet Jamoca and edited by Marlon Bishop. 245 00:17:40,880 --> 00:17:45,240 Speaker 2: The Latino USA team includes Niel Massis, Sofia Palissa, Ka, 246 00:17:45,600 --> 00:17:50,800 Speaker 2: Luis Dreyes, Antonia Seejidro Alisa Escarce and Alejandra Salasad with 247 00:17:50,920 --> 00:17:54,480 Speaker 2: help from Raul Berees. Our engineers are Stephanie Lebou and 248 00:17:54,520 --> 00:17:58,000 Speaker 2: Julia Caruso. Additional engineering this week by Lea Shaw. Our 249 00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:02,280 Speaker 2: director of Programming and Operations Natalia Fiedehotz. Our digital editor 250 00:18:02,359 --> 00:18:06,040 Speaker 2: Isamandel Candra. Our New York Women's Foundation Ignite fellow is Julia. 251 00:18:06,720 --> 00:18:09,960 Speaker 2: Our interns are Sophia Sanchez and Marie Mendosa. Our theme 252 00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:12,680 Speaker 2: music was composed by Zee RINOs. If you like the 253 00:18:12,760 --> 00:18:15,400 Speaker 2: music you heard on this episode, stop i Latinousa dot 254 00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:18,400 Speaker 2: org and check out our weekly Spotify playlist. I'm your 255 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:21,679 Speaker 2: host and executive producer Maria Nokosa. Join us again on 256 00:18:21,720 --> 00:18:24,040 Speaker 2: our next episode, and in the meantime, look for us 257 00:18:24,119 --> 00:18:25,359 Speaker 2: on all of your social media. 258 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:27,320 Speaker 3: A Stella Proxima. 259 00:18:26,800 --> 00:18:37,879 Speaker 4: Joe Latino USA is made possible in part by the 260 00:18:37,920 --> 00:18:42,760 Speaker 4: wind Coat Foundation, the Ford Foundation, working with visionaries on 261 00:18:42,800 --> 00:18:47,199 Speaker 4: the frontlines of social change worldwide, and the John D. 262 00:18:47,480 --> 00:18:49,240 Speaker 4: And Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.