The Pioneer Arts Center of Easthampton (PACE)Theater is presenting West Side Story April 23-27 at the Academy of Music in Northampton.

 I hope we get to see it.

In 1999 Amherst failed to transcend protests against the staging of WSS and the play was derailed , unfortunately.  It was deemed racist – of course it is – but the opportunity to discuss racism was silenced by the very people who work against racism.

This time, in this new climate where the Democratic presidential campaign has produced a white woman and black man as the front runners for the nomination, race is back on the table, where it belongs.

The nation cannot begin to heal wounds from racism as long as it lets them continue to bleed. Racism exists in all its forms from the overt to the covert, every single day. Look at the magazine racks as see who’s on the cover. Look at who’s in charge in big and small companies.  Look at the judges, the principals and politicians.

It’s wrong to reduce the view as the result of work ethics. Nothing works quite as hard as racism and we have to talk about it to move forward.

David Fried Oppenheim, director of this version of West Side Story, populated the characters with diverse actors from across the Pioneer Valley.

On April 26 at 3 p.m. at the Dewey Commons, Smith College, the director and members of the multicultural cast will be part of a public conversation. Smith College Professor Ginetta Candelario will lead the discussion. Joining her will be Mt. Holyoke CollegeProfessor Alberto Sandoval-Sánchez, author  of  the phenomenal, Jose can you see? Latinos on and off Broadway, West Side Story choreograoher  Maura Nyugen Donohue, and musical director Jane Hanson.

Come join the conversation. First, see the play.