Juilliard student Shereen Pimentel is set to lead Ivo van Hove’s reimagined West Side Story
as Maria opposite Isaac Cole Powell’s Tony at the Broadway Theatre beginning December 10. The award-winning soprano from New Jersey previously appeared on Broadway as a child, playing Young Nala in The Lion King at age nine, but this highly-anticipated revival is bound to be a big breakout for Shereen.Eager to hear Shereen’s celebrated voice, we took a YouTube deep dive and here are five of our favorite videos.
“Your Daddy’s Son” from Ragtime
Ultimate 🙌 🙌 moment: The whole thing sits so beautifully in her voice, but 2:01-2:30 is magic.
“Summertime” from Porgy and Bess
Ultimate 🙌 🙌 moment: WOW! Was not ready for that legit, effortless soprano. It’s stunning. Just listen to that “hush little baby, don’t you cry” beginning at 1:14.
“The Girl in 14G” by Jeanine Tesori
Ultimate 🙌 🙌 moment: Shereen brings so much warmth and comedy to this Chenoweth standard and her range of talent is perfect for the challenging changes. If you aren’t familiar with this number, just listen full through, otherwise it takes off at 3:07.
“Dream With Me” from Peter Pan
Ultimate 🙌 🙌 moment: Another opera moment, another slay. Shereen knocks it out of the park with her performance from Leonard Bernstein’s Peter Pan. This is that Juilliard caliber vocal right here.
“No One Else” from Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812
Ultimate 🙌 🙌 moment: One final, killer collab with Tyler Capa at the keys, and it’s another song just made for her voice. I wish I had a professional audio of this. What she does from 2:19-2:48 made me truly excited to see and hear her in West Side Story. (Side bar: the epic “you and I” section of the song begins at 3:37).
See Shereen Pimentel as Maria in ‘West Side Story’ at the Broadway Theatre beginning December 10, 2019.
