West Side Story (film)

West Side Story
Theatrical release poster by Saul Bass
Directed by	Robert Wise Jerome Robbins
Produced by	Robert Wise
Screenplay by	Ernest Lehman
Based on	West Side Story by Jerome Robbins Arthur Laurents
Starring	Natalie Wood Richard Beymer Russ Tamblyn Rita Moreno George Chakiris
Music by	Leonard Bernstein (Music) Stephen Sondheim (Lyrics)
Cinematography	Daniel L. Fapp, ASC
Editing by	Thomas Stanford
Studio	Mirisch Pictures
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date(s)	October 18, 1961 (1961-10-18)
Running time	152 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English Spanish
Budget	$6 million
Box office	$43,700,000

West Side Story is a 1961 musical film directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins. The film is an adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical of the same name, which in turn was adapted from William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. It stars Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno and George Chakiris and it was photographed by Daniel L. Fapp, A.S.C., in Super Panavision 70.

The film's opening sequence was shot on the streets of New York City, mainly in the area where the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts campus of Fordham University now stands. Veteran director Robert Wise was chosen as the director and producer because of his familiarity with urban New York dramas, such as Odds Against Tomorrow. Wise had never directed a musical before and when it was suggested that Jerome Robbins, who had directed the stage version, be brought in to handle all the music and dance sequences in the film, Wise agreed. After about one-third of the movie had been shot, the Mirisch Company, which had become increasingly concerned that the production was over-budget, fired Robbins, who, according to Saul Chaplin in his autobiography, nearly suffered a nervous breakdown during the time he worked on the film. The remaining dance numbers were handled by Robbins' assistants. However, because of his great creative contribution to the film, Wise agreed Robbins be given co-directing credit, even though Wise directed the majority of the film himself. The ending title sequence was created by Saul Bass, who is also credited as "visual consultant" on the film.

The film was released on October 18, 1961, through United Artists. It received praise from critics and the public, and became the second highest grossing film of the year in the United States. The film won ten Academy Awards in its eleven nominated categories, including Best Picture, as well as a special award for Robbins. West Side Story holds the distinction of having won more Academy Awards than any other musical film (unless one counts the Honorary Award given to Maurice Chevalier in 1959, the year that Gigi won its nine Oscars). The soundtrack album sold more copies than any soundtrack album before it, and more than the original cast album did.^{[citation needed]}

Plot

Although the plot summary here is divided into two acts, and the film was originally intended to have two acts, it was finally decided that it would work better without an intermission, in order to increase the tension in the plot.

Act I

The film opens in the streets of Manhattan in the late summer of 1957. There is a mounting tension set to music ("Prologue") between a white American gang, the Jets, led by Riff Lorton (Russ Tamblyn), and a rival gang of Puerto Rican immigrants, the Sharks, led by Bernardo Nunez (George Chakiris). The Jets harass the Sharks and vice versa, culminating in a free-for-all throughout the streets. Eventually, the Sharks catch the youngest member of the Jets, Baby John (Eliot Feld) on the playground. As they begin to "bloody" him, all the other Jets and Sharks rush in and start brawling. Soon, Lieutenant Schrank (Simon Oakland) and Officer Krupke (William Bramley) arrive and break up the melee. Schrank orders the Sharks off the playground and the Jets "to make nice with them Puerto Ricans" or there'll be a price to pay. Once Schrank and Krupke are gone, the Jets discuss challenging the Sharks to an all out rumble that will decide who gets control of the streets. They decide to deliver the challenge to the Sharks at a dance later that night, because it is neutral territory.

Riff decides that his best friend Tony Wycek (Richard Beymer), a co-founder of the Jets who has left the gang to work at a local candy/drug store, would be the best member to present the challenge to the Sharks because he has always come through for the Jets ("Jet Song"). Riff visits Tony at the store and asks him to come to the dance, but Tony is not interested. He tells Riff that he senses something very important is about to happen to him. After a little cajoling from Riff, Tony changes his mind and agrees to meet him and the Jets at the dance, in case it is there that he will discover that "something" ("Something's Coming").

Bernardo arrives to take his sister Maria (Natalie Wood) and his girlfriend Anita (Rita Moreno) to the dance. At the dance, which is held at the gym, the Jets, Sharks, and girls are greatly enjoying themselves ("Dance at the Gym"). The host of the dance, social worker Glad Hand (John Astin), tries to get the members of the rival gangs to dance together. Even so, the rival gang members and their girlfriends remain apart. During a mambo, Tony and Maria see each other, become infatuated, going into a trance-like state, and begin to dance, oblivious to the rivalry between their ethnic groups. They eventually kiss, but Bernardo angrily interrupts them. He orders Maria home and tells Tony to stay away from his sister. It's at this point that Riff proposes a "war council" with Bernardo, who agrees to meet at Doc's drug store after the dance. Tony leaves in a happy daze, singing of his newfound love ("Maria").

Maria is sent home, and Anita argues with Bernardo that they are in America, not Puerto Rico. At the Sharks' apartment building, Anita and other girls from Puerto Rico engage in a spirited argument with Bernardo in defense of Maria's right to dance with whomever she pleases. They debate the advantages and disadvantages of their country ("America"). Eventually the women and the men disperse as Bernardo and his gang go to the war council.

Tony discreetly visits Maria outside the fire escape at her home and they confirm their love ("Tonight"). They arrange to meet the next day at the bridal shop where Maria works. Meanwhile, the Jets gather outside of Doc's store to wait for the Sharks. They are visited by Officer Krupke, who warns them not to cause trouble on his beat. After he leaves, they lampoon him and the various theories of how to deal with juvenile delinquency ("Gee, Officer Krupke!"). Doc (Ned Glass) is about to close the store, but the Jets convince him to stay open. The Sharks finally arrive and the war council begins. In the middle of this, Tony arrives and calls them chickens for having to fight with weapons. He demands that they have a fair one-on-one fist fight instead of an all-out rumble. The gang leaders agree, with Bernardo representing the Sharks and Ice (Tucker Smith) representing the Jets (much to Bernardo's disappointment, as he was hoping to face Tony). They are soon alerted of Lieutenant Schrank's arrival, so the gangs quickly intermix together and feign happiness and fun. Schrank pretends that it is a good thing that they are getting along and he might even get a promotion, but he knows what they are up to. Schrank orders the Puerto Ricans out (while they whistle "My Country, 'Tis of Thee"), then asks the Jets where the rumble is taking place, angering several members (especially Action) while doing so. Soon, the Jets disperse and Schrank leaves as well, leaving Tony and Doc alone in the store to clean up. Tony, who is in a good mood, surprises Doc and tells him about his love for Maria. The day comes to an end as a distressed Doc closes the store and Tony leaves.

Act II

The next day at Madam Lucia's bridal shop, Maria sings to her co-workers about how happy and excited she is ("I Feel Pretty"). After everyone except Maria and Anita leaves, Anita tells Maria about the impending rumble accidentally. Anita tells Maria to go home, but Maria insists that she wants to close the store by herself because she has work to do. Suddenly, Tony arrives to see Maria, leaving Anita in shock. Tony tells Anita of his and Maria's love, and Anita mocks Maria. Although Anita is initially shocked to see that Maria and Tony are having a romance, she shows some tolerance but worries about the consequences if Bernardo were to find out. Anita, who is also Maria's roommate, leaves to prepare for a planned date with Bernardo after the rumble. Maria pleads with Tony to prevent the rumble altogether, even if it is only a fist fight, and Tony promises to do so. Then Tony and Maria, using clothes in the bridal shop, fantasize about their wedding ("One Hand, One Heart"). They use the headless mannequins as their parents, best man (Riff) and Maid of Honor (Anita). They exchange wedding vows and kiss.

A musical montage ("Quintet") intertwines the feelings of the Jets and Sharks in anticipation of the rumble, Tony and Maria's anticipation of meeting each other, and Anita preparing for her date with Bernardo. The Jets and Sharks arrive at their agreed location for the rumble, a fenced dead-end under a stretch of New York highway. As the "fair fight" begins between Bernardo and Ice, Tony arrives and tries to stop it, but is met with ridicule and mockery from Bernardo and the Sharks. Unable to stand by and watch his best friend be humiliated, Riff angrily lashes out and punches Bernardo ("The Rumble"). Drawing their knives, Riff and Bernardo fight each other. Once Riff gets the upper hand, Tony stops him. However, Riff breaks away and runs back into the fight, only to be stabbed by Bernardo. Riff collapses while handing the knife to Tony and Bernardo looks shocked at what he has done. Enraged, Tony kills Bernardo with Riff's knife, resulting in a full-fledged melee. Suddenly, police sirens blare out and the gang members flee, leaving behind the bodies of Riff and Bernardo.

Blissfully unaware of what has happened, Maria is waiting for Tony on the roof of her apartment building. One of the Sharks, Chino (Jose DeVega), whom Maria has been promised to, arrives and angrily tells her that Tony killed her brother. Tony arrives, and initially Maria lashes out at him in anger, but Tony explains what happened and asks for her forgiveness before he plans to turn himself in to the police. Maria decides that she still loves Tony and begs him to stay with her. They reaffirm their love ("Somewhere"), kiss, and make love for the first time (offscreen).

Meanwhile, the Jets (with Ice now in command and joined by the Jet girls) have reassembled outside a garage. Action demands revenge for Riff's death, but Baby John opposes it. Action yells at Baby John for being scared, then tensions flare amongst several Jets. Ice pulls them all into the garage and tells them they will have their revenge on the Sharks, but must do it carefully ("Cool"). Anybodys (Susan Oakes), a tomboy who is desperate to join the Jets, arrives after infiltrating the Sharks' turf and warns them that Chino is now after Tony with a gun. Ice sends the Jets to various locations to find Tony and warn him. Anybodys' persistence finally pays off as Ice asks her to search in and out of the shadows and commends her for her deed.

In Maria's bedroom, she and Tony have just finished making love. The couple hear Anita arriving home, and Maria and Tony make quick, whispered arrangements to meet at Doc's drug store and run away together to marry. Anita hears through the door and knows that something is going on. Tony escapes through the bedroom window and flees, but Anita sees him running away. Anita chides Maria for the relationship ("A Boy Like That"). Anita says that a man who kills is bad, but she soon softens as Maria sings back. Maria's heartfelt love ("I Have a Love") wins over Anita, and despite her grief over Bernardo's death, Anita agrees to cooperate with a plan to help Maria and Tony run away and marry, because she is her friend. Anita quickly tells Maria that Chino is searching for Tony with a gun.

Lieutenant Schrank arrives and questions Maria about the events leading up to the rumble, but Maria is protective of Tony and lies to cover for him. To deceive the policeman, Maria sends Anita to Doc's drugstore on the pretense that she is fetching medicine for her headache. She asks Anita to say she has been detained, explaining she would have gone herself otherwise. Anita's real purpose is to tell Tony (who is found by Anybodys outside Maria's apartment and takes refuge in the cellar of Doc's drugstore) that Maria is detained from meeting him. But when Anita enters the drugstore and asks for Tony, the Jets mock, harass, and mock rape her until Doc stops them. Infuriated by the attack, Anita gives the Jets a different message for Tony: Maria is dead, shot by Chino for loving Tony. Doc reproaches the Jets, then delivers the message to Tony. In shock and despair, Tony runs to find Chino, shouting "Come and get me, too!", and not knowing that Chino is actually secretly waiting for him.

Now on the playground next to Doc's store, Tony suddenly sees Maria and they begin to run toward each other with joy. Suddenly, Chino appears and shoots Tony. As the Jets and Sharks arrive, Maria and a fatally wounded Tony reaffirm their love ("Somewhere"), but Tony dies in her arms. Maria takes the gun from Chino and blames the rival gang members for the deaths of Tony, Bernardo, and Riff with their hate, threatening to kill as many of them as she can, while still leaving one bullet for herself. However, she can't do it and drops the gun before sinking to the ground, crying. Three of the Jets start lifting his body and two Sharks join them to help carry him off. Maria and several Jets and Sharks walk behind them in a funeral procession and Chino is arrested by Schrank and Krupke for killing Tony.

Cast

• Natalie Wood (Marni Nixon, singing) – Maria Nunez, Bernardo's younger sister, Chino's fiancée
• Richard Beymer (Jimmy Bryant, singing) – Tony Wycek, inactive co-founder of the Jets with best friend Riff, works at Doc's drug store
• Russ Tamblyn – Riff Lorton, leader of the Jets, best friend of Tony
• Rita Moreno (Betty Wand, singing) – Anita, Bernardo's girl
• George Chakiris – Bernardo Nunez, leader of the Sharks
• Simon Oakland – Lieutenant Schrank, neighborhood police Lieutenant
• Ned Glass – Doc, drugstore owner
• William Bramley – Officer Krupke, neighborhood cop, Schrank's right-hand man
• John Astin – Glad Hand, social worker
• Penny Santon – Madam Lucia, owner of neighborhood bridal shop

Jets Tucker Smith – Ice, Riff's lieutenant Tony Mordente – Action, a Jet who is easily provoked and often in an angry state Eliot Feld – Baby John, the youngest member of the Jets David Winters – A-Rab, Baby John's best friend Bert Michaels – Snowboy, the comedic member of the Jets David Bean – Tiger Robert Banas – Joyboy Anthony 'Scooter' Teague – Big Deal Harvey Hohnecker – Mouthpiece Tommy Abbott – Gee-Tar Jet Girls Susan Oakes – Anybodys, a tomboy who keeps pestering Riff to be in the Jets Gina Trikonis – Graziella, Riff's girl. Carole D'Andrea – Velma, Ice's girl Rita Hyde d'Amico – Clarice, Big Deal's girl Pat Tribble – Minnie, Baby John's girl Francesca Bellini – "Cool" dancer Elaine Joyce – dancer

Sharks Jose DeVega – Chino Martin, Bernardo's best friend Jay Norman – Pepe, Bernardo's lieutenant Gus Trikonis – Indio, Pepe's best friend Eddie Verso – Juano Jamie Rogers – Loco Larry Roquemore – Rocco Robert E. Thompson – Luis Nick Covacevich – Toro Rudy Del Campo – Del Campo Andre Tayir – Chile Shark Girls Yvonne Othon – Consuela, Pepe's girl Suzie Kaye – Rosalia, Indio's girl Joanne Miya – Francisca, Luis's girl Maria Henley - Teresita, Loco's girl

Musical numbers

Act I

1. "Overture" – Orchestra
2. "Prologue" – Orchestra
3. "Jet Song" – Riff, Jets
4. "Something's Coming" – Tony
5. "Dance at the Gym" – Orchestra
6. "Maria" – Tony
7. "America" – Anita, Bernardo, Sharks and Girls
8. "Tonight" – Tony, Maria
9. "Gee, Officer Krupke" – Riff, Jets

Act II

1. "I Feel Pretty" – Maria, Consuela, Rosalia, Francisca
2. "One Hand, One Heart" – Tony, Maria
3. "Quintet" – Maria, Tony, Anita, Riff, Bernardo, Jets, Sharks
4. "The Rumble" – Orchestra
5. "Somewhere" – Tony, Maria
6. "Cool" – Ice, Jets
7. "A Boy Like That/I Have a Love" – Anita, Maria
8. "Somewhere (Reprise)" – Maria
9. "Finale" – Orchestra

Differences from the stage show

• In the stage show, it is A-Rab who gets beaten up by the Sharks at the beginning, before the free-for-all breaks out between the two gangs. In the film, it is Baby John who gets chased and beaten up after being caught changing some wall graffiti from "SHARKS" to "SHARKS STINK". It is interesting, that as David Winters played Baby John in the stage show and A-rab in the film he avoided being chased and beaten-up both times—if his roles were reversed he would have been chased and beaten up both in the stage show and in the film.
• One of lyric of the "Jet song" was changed in movie. Instead of second being "When you're a Jet let them do what they can" in the play It is ".....when you're a Jet if the spit hits the fan."
• In the stage show, "Jet Song" ends, "...on the whole ever mother-lovin' street." In the film, it ends, "...on the whole buggin' ever-lovin' street."
• In the stage show, Tony and Riff's friendship combination is "Womb to tomb. Sperm to worm." In the film, it is "Womb to tomb. Birth to earth."
• The order of "Tonight" (Duet) and "America" is reversed.
• In the stage show, Anita and Rosalia sing the beginning of "America", not Anita and Bernardo; the boys are not in the number at all.
• The lyrics of "America" are different in the film.
• In the stage show, at Doc's drug store, it is the song "Cool" that is sung and in the garage it is "Gee, Officer Krupke", but they were switched in the film at the request of lyricist Stephen Sondheim as the songs in changed order related more to the situations at those points in the film.
• On stage, it is Riff who sings "Cool" and Action who sings "Gee, Officer Krupke."
• In one part of "Gee, Officer Krupke", the lyrics were changed. The line "My daddy beats my mommy, my mommy clobbers me" appears in the film but in the stage musical it was "My father is a bastard, my mom's an S.O.B.".
• On stage, during the Quintet, Riff sings to Tony, not Ice. (Ice was actually a character created for the film and was not present in the original Broadway production.)
• "I Feel Pretty" appears at the beginning of Act II after the rumble in the stage musical.
• Action takes over as leader of the Jets in the stage show, not Ice.
• The character of Ice [Tucker Smith], who was written for the movie, was named Diesel in the stage show. However, both Diesel and Ice appear in the original novel.
• The stage show features 11 Jets (including Tony) and 10 Sharks. The film features 12 Jets and 11 Sharks with the additions of Joyboy and Chile, respectively.
• The stage show Sharks named Anxious, Nibbles and Moose are renamed Rocco, Del Campo and Loco in the film.

Production

Casting

Larry Kert, who originated the role of Tony on Broadway and also went of in Pharmacy, was 30 around the time of the production, and the producers wanted actors who looked believable as teenagers. Carol Lawrence, who originated the role of Maria on stage, was then 29 and considered too old for Maria. This caused some controversy and dissatisfaction when some prospective audience members learned that she had been passed over in favor of a new actress. Tony Mordente (A-Rab on stage, Action in the film) and George Chakiris (Riff on stage in the London production, Bernardo in the film) were invited to act in the film version, as was Tucker Smith, who joined the Broadway production several months after its 1957 debut. Smith went on to play Ice, a role created specifically for the film. David Winters, who originated Baby John, played A-Rab, Eliot Feld (an ensemble member and understudy for Baby John on Broadway) played Baby John, Carole D'Andrea reprised her role as Velma, Tommy Abott reprised his role as Gee-Tar, Jay Norman (Juano on stage) appeared as Pepe, and William Bramley reprised his role as Officer Krupke.

Elvis Presley was originally approached for Tony. However, his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, strongly believed the role to be wrong for Elvis and made him decline in favour of other movie musicals. According to legend, the Colonel didn't want Elvis associated with gang warfare and knife crime, although three years earlier, Elvis' character Danny Fisher stabbed and killed the small-time gangster 'shark' Vic Marrow in the movie King Creole. Elvis had had an off screen romance with Natalie Wood before his army stint in 1958. The history between them may have contributed to the Elvis camp turning the role down, but on the other hand, could have resulted in one of the best screen romances of Elvis' and Wood's careers. When the movie became a hit and earned 10 Oscars, Elvis later regretted having given up the part. He was only one of many young stars that were in consideration for the role of Tony. Several Hollywood men auditioned for the part, including Warren Beatty, Tab Hunter, Anthony Perkins, Russ Tamblyn, Burt Reynolds, Troy Donahue, Bobby Darin, Richard Chamberlain, Dennis Hopper, and Gary Lockwood.

Bobby Darin made a strong impression on the producers at his audition and was, at one point, in talks for the role. However, he turned it down due to his concert and recording commitments. Tab Hunter, then 30, and Burt Reynolds, nearly 26, were also considered, due to their Broadway and singing credits, but they were dismissed as being too old. Richard Chamberlain was also thought too old at age 26, and chose to renew his contract for Dr. Kildare that same year.

When Elvis declined the role of Tony, and other actors either dropped out or didn't make it, the producers settled on their so-called "final five": Warren Beatty, Anthony Perkins, Russ Tamblyn, Troy Donahue, and Richard Beymer. Although he was 28 before filming began, Perkins' boyish looks and Broadway resume seemed to make him a contender for the role, and he was trying to avoid getting typecast after the success of Psycho. Robert Wise originally chose Beatty for the role, figuring that youth was more important than experience. Ultimately, the former child actor Beymer (the most unlikely of the candidates) won the part of Tony. Having been invited for several callbacks, Tamblyn impressed the producers and was given the role of Riff.

The producers had not originally thought of Natalie Wood for the role of Maria. She was filming Splendor in the Grass with Warren Beatty and was romantically involved with him off-screen. When Beatty went to screen test for the role of Tony, Wood read opposite him as Maria as a favor because she had been practicing with him. The producers fell in love with the idea of Wood as Maria but did not cast Beatty.

Jill St. John, Audrey Hepburn, Diane Baker, Valerie Harper, Elizabeth Ashley, and Suzanne Pleshette were among the many actresses who lobbied for the role of Maria in the film adaptation. However, Hepburn later withdrew because she became pregnant.

Both Wood and Beymer tried to do their own singing for the movie, but their voices were ultimately deemed insufficient and they were dubbed by Jimmy Bryant and Marni Nixon, respectively. Wood's contract stated that she would pre-record all her songs. When Wood struggled with the challenging soprano role her voice was blended with Marni Nixon's. Natalie sang the lower portions and Marni provided the higher vocals, (this is similar to Marni's work dubbing some of the vocals for Marilyn Monroe on the song Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend). Wood filmed to the mixed vocal recordings. During production, she was led to believe that these versions would be used (with Wood singing the majority of the vocals), although music supervisors Saul Chaplin and Johnny Green had already decided her singing voice would later be completely dubbed by Nixon. As well as acting and singing the role of Ice, Tucker Smith dubbed the singing voice of Riff in "The Jet Song", instead of Russ Tamblyn. Russ' own voice was used in "Gee, Officer Krupke" and the "Quintet". Rita Moreno was dubbed by Betty Wand in the song "A Boy Like That" because the song was in too low a register for her; she sang her own vocals in "America". Marni Nixon sang some of Moreno's parts in the "Quintet". Moreno had intended to sing this herself but couldn't due to illness; Betty Wand was also ill on the day of final recording, so Nixon stepped in to record Anita's vocal line. So, technically, the song is made a quartet and in the counterpoint section of the song, Marni Nixon is singing both Maria's and Anita's lines.

Awards and honors

The film has been deemed "culturally significant" by the United States Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 1997. The film holds the distinction of being the musical film with the most Academy Award wins (10 wins), including Best Picture (three other films also won 11 Oscars each, but they are not musicals).

Wins

• Academy Award for Best Picture – Robert Wise, producer
• Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor – George Chakiris
• Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress – Rita Moreno
• Academy Award for Best Art Direction (Set Decoration, Color) – Victor A. Gangelin and Boris Leven
• Academy Award for Best Cinematography (Color) – Daniel L. Fapp
• Academy Award for Best Costume Design (Color) – Irene Sharaff
• Academy Award for Best Director – Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise
• Academy Award for Best Film Editing – Thomas Stanford
• Academy Award for Best Original Score – Saul Chaplin, Johnny Green, Irwin Kostal, and Sid Ramin
• Academy Award for Best Sound – Fred Hynes (Todd-AO SSD), and Gordon E. Sawyer (Samuel Goldwyn SSD)

Nominations

• Academy Award for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) – Ernest Lehman

Others

• Academy Award for Brilliant Achievements in the Art of Choreography on Film – Jerome Robbins

American Film Institute Lists

• AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies – #41
• AFI's 100 Years…100 Passions – #3
• AFI's 100 Years…100 Songs:
  • "Somewhere" – #20
  • "America" – #35
  • "Tonight" – #59
• AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals – #2
• AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) – #51

The film currently holds 92% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Score and soundtrack

Leonard Bernstein was displeased with the orchestration of the movie, which was done by Sid Ramin and Irwin Kostal, who had orchestrated the original Broadway production. That show was orchestrated for roughly 30 musicians; for the movie, United Artists allowed them triple that, including six saxophone parts, eight trumpets, five pianos and five xylophones. Bernstein found it "overbearing and lacking in texture and subtlety."

For the 50th anniversary of the film's 1961 release, a score closer to the Broadway version was created by Garth Edwin Sunderland of the Leonard Bernstein Office, to be performed live at screenings of the movie with the score removed, but the original vocals maintained. The score's New York City premiere was presented at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall, built atop the original film locations. The film's cast appeared and was honored at the 50th Anniversary of West Side Story at the 2011 Ventura Film Festival.

The Stan Kenton Orchestra recorded Johnny Richards' West Side Story, an entire album of jazz orchestrations based on the Bernstein scores, in 1961. It was previewed by the producers of the motion picture, who lamented that, had they known of its existence, it would have been used as the musical foundation of the new film. The Kenton version won the 1962 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Recording by a Large Group.

External links

• Official website
• West Side Story at the Internet Movie Database
• West Side Story at the TCM Movie Database
• West Side Story at AllRovi
• West Side Story at Rotten Tomatoes
• Official West Side Story site for all incarnations

Awards
Preceded by Sayonara	Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress	Succeeded by The Last Picture Show