West Side Story

WEST SIDE STORY


WEST SIDE STORY was first presented by Robert E. Griffith and
Harold S. Prince, by arrangement with Roger L. Stevens, at the
Winter Garden, New York City, September 26, 1957, with the
following cast:

THE JETS
RIFF, the leader-Mickey Calin
TONY, his friend-Larry Kert
ACTION-Eddie Roll
A-RAB-Tony Mordente
BABY JOHN-David Winters
SNOWBOY-Grover Dale
BIGDEAL-Martin Charnin
DIESEL-Hank Brunjes
GEE-TAR-Tommy Abbott
MOUTHPIECE-Frank Green
TIGER-Lowell Harris

THEIR GIRLS
GRAZIELLA-Wilma Curley
VELMA-Carole D'Andrea
MINNIE-Nanette Rosen
CLARICE-Marilyn D'Honau
PAULINE-Julie Oser
ANYBODYS-Lee Becker

THE SHARKS
BERNARDO, the leader-Ken Le Roy
MARIA, his sister-Carol Lawrence
ANITA, his girl-Chita Rivera
CHINO, his friend-Jamie SanchezPEPE-George Marcy
INDIO-Noel Schwartz
LUIS-Al De Sio
ANXOIUS-Gene Gavin
NIBBLES-Ronnie Lee
JUANO-Jay Norman
TORO-Erne Castaldo
MOOSE-Jack Murray

THEIR GIRLS
ROSALIA-Marilyn Cooper
CONSUELO-Reri Grist
TERESITA-Carmen Guiterrez
FRANCISCA-Elizabeth Taylor
ESTELLA-Lynn Ross
MARGARITA-Liane Plane


THE ADULTS
DOC-Art Smith
SCHRANK-Arch Johnson
KRUPKE-William Bramley
GLAD HAND-JohnHarkins

ACT ONE

PROLOGUE: THE MONTHS BEFORE

5:00 P.M., The Street
5:30 P.M., A Back Yard
6:00 P.M., A Bridal Shop
10:00 P.M., The Gym
11:00 P.M., A Back Alley
MIDNIGHT, The Drugstore

THE NEXT DAY
9:15 P.M., The Bridal Shop
6:00 to 9:00 P.M., The Neighborhood
9:00 P.M., Under the Highway

ACT TWO

9:15 P.M., A Bedroom
10:00 P.M., Another Alley
11:30 P.M., The Bedroom11:40 P.M., The Drugstore
11:50 P.M., The Cellar
MIDNIGHT, The Street

MUSICAL NUMBERS

ACT ONE
PROLOGUE, Danced by the Jets and Shark
JET SONG, Riff and Jets
SOMEHING'S COMING, Tony
THE DANCE AT THE GYM
MARIA, Tony
TONIGHT, Tony and Maria
AMERICA, Anita, Rosalia, and Shark Girls
COOL, Riff and the Jets
ONE HAND, ONE HEART, Tony and Maria
TONIGHT (Quintet and Chorus), Company
THERUMBLE, Riff, Bernardo, Jets and Sharks

ACT TWO

I FEEL PRETTY, Maria, Rosalia, Teresita, Francisca
SOMEWHERE, Danced by Company; Sung by Consuelo
GEE, OFFICER KRUPKE, Action, Snowboy, and Jets
A BOY LIKE THAT, Anita and Maria
I HAVE A LOVE, Anita and Maria
TAUNTING, Anita and the Jets
FINALE, Company


ACT I
SCENE ONE

5:00 P.M. The Street.
A suggestion of city streets andalleyways: a brick wall.

The opening is musical: half-danced, half-mimed, with
occasional phrases of dialogue. It is primarily a condensation of
the growing rivalry between two teen-age games, the Jets and the
Sharks, each of which has its own prideful uniform. The boys -
sideburned, long-haired- are vital, restless, sardonic; the
Sharks are Puerto Ricans, the Jets an anthology of whatis called
"American."

The action begins with the Jets in possession of the are:
owning, enjoying, loving their "home." Their leader is Riff:
glowing, driving, intelligent, slightly wacky. His lieutenant is
Deisel: big, slow, steady, nice. The youngest member of the gang
is Baby John: awed at everything including that he is a Jet,
trying to act the big man. His buddy is A-rab: anexplosive
little ferret who enjoys everything and understands the
seriousness of nothing. The most aggressive is Action: a catlike
ball of fury. We will get to know these boys better later, as
well as Snowboy: a bespectacled self-styled expert.

The first interruption of the Jets' sunny mood is the
sharply punctuated entrance of the leader of the Sharks,
Bernardo: handsome proud,fluid, a chip on his sardonic shoulder.
The Jets, by far in the majority, flick him off. He returns with
other Sharks: they, too, are flicked off. But the numerical
supremacy, the strength of the Jets, is gradually being
threatened. The beginnings of warfare are mild at first: a boy
being tripped up, or being sandbagged with a flour sack or even
being spit on -all with overly elaborate...