Blogoland

The NYT treats us to a magical story about an uppity performing arts school (the one immortalized in "Fame") that's staging West Side Story on the very same piece of real estate where the action was alleged to have taken place. Some real classics here, including this bit from Bernstein's daughter:

"I said, 'This is probably the most authentic production of 'West Side Story' ever, because you're actual New York City teenagers and here you are performing it on the very turf where the story is purported to have taken place,' " she said later. "They razed that very slum to build Lincoln Center. That's pretty cool. And there are so many Latinos there in the cast. It has some true grit to it."

Still waiting to hear whether they got any of those black people in there, you know to add some true soul to the thing.

And then, of course, the PC police took over:

But this is a thoroughly modern production. "The best part is we didn't follow the whole cliché that the Jets have to be white and the Sharks have to be black or Hispanic," said Brandon Gill, 17, who plays Riff, another Jet.

Next up for the kids? "Angels in America," but without all those cliched gay people with AIDS.