Hayley Westenra in the 50th Anniversary Audio Recording of " West Side Story ".

It's the 50th anniversary year of the ever-popular musical " West Side Story ", originally conducted by Leonard Bernstein. On this 50th anniversary, with the authorisation of the Bernstein foundation in New York, UCJ has assembled some of the biggest classical crossover stars, including the Soprano voice of New Zealand, Hayley Westenra, to record a brand new glitzy version of the musical. In this special edition, Hayley Westenra stars as the character of Maria, pairing up with Italian tenor, Vittorio Grigolo, who plays the character of Tony. Quoting from Hayley Westenra's Official Web Site : " Other stars include Connie Fisher [ who just recently featured at The Concert for Diana, singing 'Memory' from 'Cats', accompanied by Andrea Ross ] and Melanie Marshall ( currently playing the lead in Porgy and Bess ). With a bright young cast (the singers' ages on this new UCJ recording also more closely resemble the youth of both Romeo and Juliet and Maria and Tony) and timeless tunes, this is set to become the recording of choice for the 21st Century West Side Story lover. "

Cast and Album Recording Information from Hayley Westenra's Official Web Site :

Cast :

* Tony – Vittorio Grigolo
* Maria – Hayley Westenra
* Riff – Will Martin
* Anita – Melanie Marshall
* A girl – Connie Fisher
* The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra/Nick Ingman

Album Tracklist :

.1. Prologue
.2. Jet Song – Riff and the Jets
.3. Something's Coming – Tony
.4. The Dance at The Gym (Blues, Promenade, Mambo, Cha Cha Cha,
_._Jump) – Jets and Sharks
.5. Maria – Tony and Maria
.6. Tonight (balcony) – Tony and Maria
.7. America – Anita, Rosalia and girls
.8. Cool – Riff and Jets
.9. One Hand, One Heart – Tony and Maria
10. Tonight (ensemble) – Tony and Maria and cast
11. I Feel Pretty – Maria and girls
12. Somewhere – A Girl
13. Gee Officer Krupke – Jets
14. A Boy Like That – Anita and Maria
15. I Have A Love – Maria and Anita
16. Finale – Tony and Maria

This album is scheduled to be released on Monday 30th July, 2007. It is available for pre-order @ 9.98 UK Pounds ( approximately just under AUD $ 24.00 ) at Amazon.co.uk. ( Price does not include Package, Handling, and Shipping costs, which vary depending on the geographic location of your home town. )
I've already placed my pre-order at Amazon.co.uk, and the estimated delivery date for my order is sometime between 8th August and 13th August, 2007.
Although not strictly a pure Hayley Westenra record, nonetheless, I believe it'd be a great addition to any good Hayley Westenra collection.

Again, I have 'Not' yet discovered any evidence of this product's availability for local purchase in Australia. It seems this is yet another product that can only be acquired by importing it from the UK via online import-purchase. One source is Amazon.co.uk. I'll probably check the local availability again closer to the product's actual release date. For now, if you want to pre-order it, you'll have to get it from Amazon.co.uk.

Update : Thursday 16th August, 2007 : 9:50 AM :

I have recently recieved a message from Amazon UK regarding a delay in the release of this product. The estimated delivery date of my order has now been pushed back til the end of August, though the order has apparently been dispatched as at time of this update. I should be expecting delivery arrival at the end of August.

You can find more information about this product on Hayley Westenra's Official Web Site.

Preview Video Clip : Watch a preview video clip of Hayley Westenra and Vittorio Grigolo singing a brief from the new West Side Story Recording. The short clip is of Hayley Westenra and Vittorio Grigolo singing a short sample from the track " Tonight " - the Balcony Scene.

West Side Story ( 2007 ) - 50th Anniversary Recording - The UK Import Edition ( 2007 ). .Buy This Album On-Line at Amazon (UK)

Related Articles :
* Hayley Westenra : ' Prayer ' Album - The Exclusive Japanese Import Edition ( 2007 ).
* Hayley Westenra Featured on Soundtrack of New British Movie " FLOOD ".
* Hayley Westenra : 'Treasure' and 'Celtic Treasure' Album Review.

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* Hayley Westenra's Official Web Site.

Credits/Reference : Hayley Westenra's Official Web Site.