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* LampshadedDoubleEntendre: The chance to exaggerate the line "Cause no one wants a fella with a social disease!" in Gee, Officer Krupke is passed over in the movie, but in stage productions, actors will sometimes do a suggestive shuffle on the floor, cover their crotches, or whatever other creativity the choreographer comes up with. Especially common in high schools, of course.
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* LampshadedDoubleEntendre: The chance to exaggerate the line "Cause no one wants a fella with a social disease!" in Gee, 'Gee, Officer Krupke Krupke' is passed over in the movie, but in stage productions, actors will sometimes do a suggestive shuffle on the floor, cover their crotches, or whatever other creativity the choreographer comes up with. Especially common in high schools, of course.
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* MeddlesomePatrolman: Officer Krupke
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* ThoseTwoGuys: Lieutenant Schrank and Officer Krupke.
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actual line.
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** And in "Gee, Officer Krupke", the line "My father is a bastard / My ma's an SOB / My grandpa's always plastered / My grandma pushes tea" is changed to "My daddy bashes mommy / My mommy clobbers me / [[DirtyCommunist My grandpa is a Commie]] / My grandma pushes tea."
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** And in "Gee, Officer Krupke", the line "My father is a bastard / My ma's an SOB / My grandpa's always plastered / My grandma pushes tea" is changed to "My daddy bashes beats my mommy / My mommy clobbers me / [[DirtyCommunist My grandpa is a Commie]] / My grandma pushes tea."
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* TheHeroDies: Tony himself at the end.
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* AttemptedRape: Anita is attacked and nearly raped by the Jets when she heads to Doc's to tell Tony to wait for Maria. This angers her and drives her to hate them badly enough that when Doc returns and stops it, Anita tells them that Chino shot Maria, which sets up the final tragedy.
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* AttemptedRape: Anita is attacked and nearly raped by the Jets when she heads to Doc's to tell Tony to wait for Maria. This angers her and drives her to hate them badly enough that when Doc returns and stops it, Anita tells them that Chino shot Maria, which sets up the final tragedy.DownerEnding.
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* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: In particular, Tony's murder of Bernardo.
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* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: The entirely of the CycleOfRevenge is this. In particular, Tony's murder of Bernardo.
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* AmbiguouslyGay: Anybodys. Although some of her lines could imply she is attracted to men she can be played as a tomboyish young women, a ButchLesbian, or a transboy depending on the production.
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Changed line(s) 17 (click to see context) from:
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. In addition, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. Only three movies have won more (''BenHur'', ''{{Film/Titanic}}'' and ''Film/TheReturnOfTheKing'' each won 11). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. In addition, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. Only three movies have won more (''BenHur'', (''Film/BenHur'', ''{{Film/Titanic}}'' and ''Film/TheReturnOfTheKing'' each won 11). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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Changed line(s) 17 (click to see context) from:
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. In addition, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. This made it the second-biggest winner of its time (''BenHur'' won 11 Oscars two years earlier). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. In addition, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. This made it the second-biggest winner of its time (''BenHur'' Only three movies have won 11 Oscars two years earlier).more (''BenHur'', ''{{Film/Titanic}}'' and ''Film/TheReturnOfTheKing'' each won 11). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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* FreudianCouch: During "Gee, Officer Krupke".
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Changed line(s) 17 (click to see context) from:
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. Also, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. This made it the second-biggest winner of its time (''BenHur'' won 11 Oscars two years earlier). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. Also, In addition, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. This made it the second-biggest winner of its time (''BenHur'' won 11 Oscars two years earlier). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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*** Then again, perhaps not, because the Spanish lyrics also completely ruin the melodic lines of most of the songs that they're in and therefor make die-hards angry anyway. This is particularly prevalent in the Tonight quintet, where the Sharks and Jets are meant to have echoing lines in order to portray the similarity of the groups and drive home the senselessness of the violence, but the Sharks are singing in Spanish and so instead it just sounds wrong.
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** In the stage production this may be played as harrasment without obvious intention of sexual assault, and Anita gets offended by catcalls rather than an actual attemped rape.
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* {{Expy}}: Every single character corresponds to one in "Romeo & Juliet", as do many of the scenes and sequences. The most obvious being that Tony=Romeo while Maria=Juliet, while the Jets=Montagues and the Sharks=Capulets, but there are others:
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* {{Expy}}: Every single character corresponds to one in "Romeo & Juliet", as do many of the scenes and sequences. The most obvious being that Tony=Romeo Tony is Romeo while Maria=Juliet, while Maria is Juliet. The Jets are the Jets=Montagues Montagues, the Sharks the Capulets, and the Sharks=Capulets, but there are others:so on:
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* HaveAGayOldTime: "I feel pretty and witty and gay" - only in the movie. In the stage play that number takes place at night ("bright").
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* HaveAGayOldTime: "I feel pretty and witty and gay" - only in the movie. In
**In the stage play that number takes place atnight ("bright").night; "I feel pretty and witty and bright/And I pity any girl who isn't me tonight".
**In the stage play that number takes place at
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Changed line(s) 17 (click to see context) from:
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by Creator/StephenSondheim. Also, the movie won 10 {{Academy Award}}s, including Best Picture. This made it the second-biggest winner of its time (''BenHur'' won 11 Oscars two years earlier). The awarding of Best Director to RobertWise and Jerome Robbins also marked the only time thus far that the award went to a duo of co-directors.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by StephenSondheim.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by StephenSondheim.Creator/StephenSondheim.
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Changed line(s) 17 (click to see context) from:
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by StephenSondheim.
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Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Leonard Bernstein Music/LeonardBernstein and lyrics by StephenSondheim.
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Changed line(s) 35 (click to see context) from:
** Furthermore, Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to end the song "Gee, Officer Krupke, fuck you!" but it was changed to "Krup you!" (In his book of the lyrics, he comments that he thought the "Krupp" change was for the better).
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** Furthermore, Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to end the song "Gee, Officer Krupke, fuck you!" but it was changed to "Krup you!" (In his book of the lyrics, he comments that he thought the "Krupp" change was [[RuleOfFunny for the better).better]]).
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** The writers of the movie took the line, "Trusting with our hearts open! With our arms open!" - "You came with your legs open!" and replaced "legs" with, "mouth."
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** The writers of the movie took the line, "Trusting with our hearts open! With our arms open!" - "You came with your legs open!" and replaced "legs" with, with "mouth."
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* ChekhovsGunman: Chino
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* ChekhovsGunman: ChinoChino.
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* DistantDuet: "Tonight"
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* DistantDuet: "Tonight""Tonight".
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** Characters: Bernado=Tybalt, Anita=Nurse/Lady Capulet, Riff=Mercutio, Chino=Paris, etc.
** Scenes/Storylines: the opening fight, Juliet/Maria's betrothal to Paris/Chino, Juliet's debut party=Maria's first dance, the balcony scene=the fire escape scene, Romeo & Juliet's elopement (The Friar corresponds to Doc)= Tony and Maria acting out a wedding, Tybalt/Bernado killing Mercutio/Riff, Romeo/Tony killing Tybalt/Bernado, the Nurse being taunted and insulted by the Montagues and thus unable to tell Romeo that Juliet's death is faked=Anita being assaulted by the Jets and thus lying about Maria's death, leading to Romeo/Tony's suicidal response.
** Scenes/Storylines: the opening fight, Juliet/Maria's betrothal to Paris/Chino, Juliet's debut party=Maria's first dance, the balcony scene=the fire escape scene, Romeo & Juliet's elopement (The Friar corresponds to Doc)= Tony and Maria acting out a wedding, Tybalt/Bernado killing Mercutio/Riff, Romeo/Tony killing Tybalt/Bernado, the Nurse being taunted and insulted by the Montagues and thus unable to tell Romeo that Juliet's death is faked=Anita being assaulted by the Jets and thus lying about Maria's death, leading to Romeo/Tony's suicidal response.
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** Characters: Bernado=Tybalt, Bernardo=Tybalt, Anita=Nurse/Lady Capulet, Riff=Mercutio, Chino=Paris, etc.
** Scenes/Storylines: the opening fight, Juliet/Maria's betrothal to Paris/Chino, Juliet's debut party=Maria's first dance, the balcony scene=the fire escape scene, Romeo & Juliet's elopement (The Friar corresponds to Doc)= Tony and Maria acting out a wedding,Tybalt/Bernado Tybalt/Bernardo killing Mercutio/Riff, Romeo/Tony killing Tybalt/Bernado, Tybalt/Bernardo, the Nurse being taunted and insulted by the Montagues and thus unable to tell Romeo that Juliet's death is faked=Anita being assaulted by the Jets and thus lying about Maria's death, leading to Romeo/Tony's Romeo's/Tony's suicidal response.
** Scenes/Storylines: the opening fight, Juliet/Maria's betrothal to Paris/Chino, Juliet's debut party=Maria's first dance, the balcony scene=the fire escape scene, Romeo & Juliet's elopement (The Friar corresponds to Doc)= Tony and Maria acting out a wedding,
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* [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Getting Krup Past The Radar]]: "Gee, Officer Krupke; ''Krup you!"''
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* [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Getting Krup Past The the Radar]]: "Gee, Officer Krupke; ''Krup you!"''
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* ShaveAndAHaircut: "Gee Of-fi-cer Krup-ke, ''[[ParentheticalSwearing Krup You!]]''"
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* ShaveAndAHaircut: ShaveAndAHairCut: "Gee Of-fi-cer Krup-ke, ''[[ParentheticalSwearing Krup You!]]''"
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** Amazingly averted in "Anita's Rape Scene." In that scene, the actress playing Anita, Rita Moreno, was reduced to tears as a result of shooting that scene, as it brought back memories of when she was raped as a child. When she started crying, the actors playing the Jets immediately stopped what they were doing and began comforting her, while pointing out that the viewers were going to hate them for what they were doing.
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** Amazingly averted Averted in "Anita's Rape Scene." In that scene, the actress playing Anita, Rita Moreno, was reduced to tears as a result of shooting that scene, as it brought back memories of when she was raped as a child. When she started crying, the actors playing the Jets immediately stopped what they were doing and began comforting her, while pointing out that the viewers were going to hate them for what they were doing.
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* AttemptedRape: Anita is attacked and nearly raped by the Jets when she heads to Doc's to tell Tony to wait for Maria. This angers her and drives her to hate them badly enough that when Doc returns and stops it, Anita lies to them about how Chino shot Maria, which sets up the final tragedy.
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* AttemptedRape: Anita is attacked and nearly raped by the Jets when she heads to Doc's to tell Tony to wait for Maria. This angers her and drives her to hate them badly enough that when Doc returns and stops it, Anita lies to tells them about how that Chino shot Maria, which sets up the final tragedy.
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* DarkReprise: "America" and "Somewhere"
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* DarkReprise: "America" and "Somewhere""Somewhere".
* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: From the opening number: "…'til your last dyin' day." [[FridgeLogic You mean people have more than one dying days?]]
* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: From the opening number: "…'til your last dyin' day." [[FridgeLogic You mean people have more than one dying days?]]
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* [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Getting Krup Past The Radar]]: "Gee, Officer Krupke; ''Krup you!''"
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* [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Getting Krup Past The Radar]]: "Gee, Officer Krupke; ''Krup you!''"you!"''
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Adding needed trope.
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* [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Getting Krup Past The Radar]]: "Gee, Officer Krupke; ''Krup you!''"
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* {{Intermission}}: The play ends Act I after the rumble, while Act I of the movie ends after the war council. Plus, the movie prints most commonly seen outside of the 1961 premiere, until the 2003 DVD re-release, don't have an intermission at all.
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* {{Intermission}}: The play ends Act I after the rumble, while Act I of the movie ends after the war council. Plus, However, some prints of the movie prints most commonly seen outside (including all of the 1961 premiere, until the 2003 DVD re-release, VHS tapes, laserdiscs, and pre-2003 [=DVDs=]), don't have an intermission at all.all, since director RobertWise felt that it broke the tension.
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* {{Intermission}}: The play ends Act I after the rumble, while Act I of the movie ends after the war council. Plus, the movie prints most commonly seen outside of the 1961 premiere, until the 2003 DVD re-release, don't have an intermission at all.
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* OneSceneWonder: The unnamed girl in the song "Somewhere".
** Also John Astin as the MC at the dance.
** Also John Astin as the MC at the dance.
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* EnemyMine: For all their hatred of each other, the Jets and the Sharks seem pretty unified in their hatred of Shrank--when Bernardo mouths off to him, Riff and the other Jets are visibly amused/impressed by this. Later, when Shrank insults Bernardo, it's Riff who holds Bernardo back from attacking him.
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* FriendlyEnemy: Despite the hatred between the two gangs, this trope is displayed in two noteworthy scenes. One, in which Bernardo mouths off to Shrank. Riff and the other Jets are visibly amused by this. Later, after Shrank has insulted Bernardo, it's Riff who restrains Bernardo from attacking him.
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Changed line(s) 35 (click to see context) from:
** Furthermore, Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to end the song "Gee, Officer Krupke, fuck you!" but it was changed to "Krup you!" (He comments in his book of the lyrics, that he thought the "Krupp" change was for the better).
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** Furthermore, Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to end the song "Gee, Officer Krupke, fuck you!" but it was changed to "Krup you!" (He comments in (In his book of the lyrics, he comments that he thought the "Krupp" change was for the better).
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Two gangs, one Polish-American (Jets) and the other Puerto Rican (Sharks), are fighting over territory on Manhattan's West Side when Tony, a member of the Jets, falls in love with Maria, the younger sister of the Sharks' leader Bernardo. Unfortunately for the young couple, they happen to fall in love on the very night the two gangs decide to end their feud in one final battle. Tony manages to persuade the two gangs to reduce it to a one-on-one "fair fight" but when Maria tells Tony to stop the fight altogether his attempt to intervene results in the leader of the Jets, his best friend Riff, getting knifed to death by Bernardo. In a fit of rage, Tony then kills Bernardo in return.
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Two gangs, one Polish-American (Jets) and the other Puerto Rican (Sharks), are fighting over territory on Manhattan's West Side when Tony, a member of the Jets, falls in love with Maria, the younger sister of the Sharks' leader Bernardo. Unfortunately for the young couple, they happen to fall in love on the very night the two gangs decide to end their feud in one final battle. Tony manages to persuade the two gangs to reduce it to a one-on-one "fair fight" fight", but when Maria tells Tony to stop the fight altogether altogether, his attempt to intervene results in the leader of the Jets, his best friend Riff, getting knifed to death by Bernardo. In a fit of rage, Tony then kills Bernardo in return.
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[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/west_side_story_title_6062.jpg]]
->''There's a place for us,\\
A time and place for us.\\
Hold my hand and we're halfway there.\\
Hold my hand and I'll take you there\\
Somehow, someday, somewhere!''
A 1957 Broadway [[TheMusical musical]], composed by LeonardBernstein, and its 1961 [[TheMovie film adaptation]].
It may seem OlderThanSteam, with more than a [[StarCrossedLovers few elements]] that you may recognize from [[Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet other works]]. It is also a great example of SeinfeldIsUnfunny, with many modern audiences not understanding why it was such a groundbreaking musical in its time. It is recognized as the leader in using [[NewerThanTheyThink dance to further the plot]], thanks to Jerome Robbins' choreography, and is also recognized for portraying minority characters (relatively) positively, using vulgar language and slang, and [[DarkerAndEdgier not being a particularly feel-good musical]].
Two gangs, one Polish-American (Jets) and the other Puerto Rican (Sharks), are fighting over territory on Manhattan's West Side when Tony, a member of the Jets, falls in love with Maria, the younger sister of the Sharks' leader Bernardo. Unfortunately for the young couple, they happen to fall in love on the very night the two gangs decide to end their feud in one final battle. Tony manages to persuade the two gangs to reduce it to a one-on-one "fair fight" but when Maria tells Tony to stop the fight altogether his attempt to intervene results in the leader of the Jets, his best friend Riff, getting knifed to death by Bernardo. In a fit of rage, Tony then kills Bernardo in return.
Act Two begins with Maria finding out about Bernardo's death from her arranged fiance, Chino, who then vows to kill Tony. Tony turns up and they spend the night together. After we find out what happened to the Jets, we meet up with the lovers. Bernardo's girlfriend Anita shows up, and Tony escapes, with a plan to escape to the country. Anita, despite hating Tony for killing Bernardo, agrees to tell Tony to stay at the drugstore he works at until Maria arrives. When she gets there however, she is nearly raped by the Jets that have gathered there. In a fit of rage, she says that Maria is dead, killed by Chino. Tony's boss tells Tony this, and he runs out into the street, calling for Chino to 'kill him, too.' Maria and Tony meet each other in the street, but before they can embrace, Chino steps from the shadows and kills Tony. Maria denounces both sides of the conflict for their part in Tony's death, and for how "[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone we all killed him]]," not with guns, not with knives, but with hate. Thoroughly heartbroken, the Jets and Sharks together carry out Tony's body. [[DownerEnding The End]].
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by StephenSondheim.
----
!!This production contains examples of:
* AccidentalMurder: In the fistfight-that-wasn't.
* ActuallyPrettyFunny: Riff laughs at Bernardo's request for Lieutenant Shrank to translate his dressing-down into Spanish.
* AdultsAreUseless: It's {{lampshaded}} by the stage directions at the end:
---> ''The adults - DOC, SHRANK, KRUPKE, and GLAD HAND - stand alone, useless.''
* AngryMobSong: "Tonight" and the latter half of the "Jet Song"
* AttemptedRape: Anita is attacked and nearly raped by the Jets when she heads to Doc's to tell Tony to wait for Maria. This angers her and drives her to hate them badly enough that when Doc returns and stops it, Anita lies to them about how Chino shot Maria, which sets up the final tragedy.
* BadCopIncompetentCop: Shrank's the bad cop, a racist who wants the Sharks run out of town but isn't exactly crazy about the Jets either, and who cares most of all about getting a promotion. Krupke's the incompetent cop, never once doing anything successfully.
* BallroomBlitz: Very nearly happens, but the cops break it up.
* BetaCouple: Bernardo and Anita.
* BlondBrunetteRedhead: The three Jets girlfriends who dance in "Cool".
* {{Bowdlerise}}: Anita's lines in "Tonight" are changed from "He'll walk in hot and tired, so what / No matter if he's tired, as long as he's hot" to "He'll walk in hot and tired, poor dear / No matter if he's tired, as long as he's here."
** And in "Gee, Officer Krupke", the line "My father is a bastard / My ma's an SOB / My grandpa's always plastered / My grandma pushes tea" is changed to "My daddy bashes mommy / My mommy clobbers me / [[DirtyCommunist My grandpa is a Commie]] / My grandma pushes tea."
** And in the "Jet Song" the lines "When you're a Jet / And the spit hits the fan / You got brothers around / You're a family man" are changed to "When you're a Jet / Let them do what they can / You got brothers around / You're a family man." Particularly funny given that "spit" in the original was probably changed from...
** The writers of the movie took the line, "Trusting with our hearts open! With our arms open!" - "You came with your legs open!" and replaced "legs" with, "mouth."
** Furthermore, Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to end the song "Gee, Officer Krupke, fuck you!" but it was changed to "Krup you!" (He comments in his book of the lyrics, that he thought the "Krupp" change was for the better).
* BreakTheCutie: Maria and Anita. Chino arguably counts as well.
* ButchLesbian: While some of Anybodys' lines imply she's heterosexual or bi, she fits the look, and acts in a comparatively "masculine" manner for her time and place.
** The character could very likely be a trans boy rather than an actual woman, too. It's something that can vary from production to production.
* CallAndResponseSong: "America." In the stage version, Rosalia sings about how great Puerto Rico was and the other women sing about how America is better. In the film, the women sing about America's positive qualities and the men sing about its xenophobia.
* {{Camp}}
* CategoryTraitor: Maria is pressured to marry Chino simply because they are from the same ethnic group. When she falls in love with an outsider, all hell breaks lose. Interestingly, Chino never get any EntitledToHaveYou lines, but that's probably because he's such a minor role in the first place.
* ChekhovsGunman: Chino
* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: Purple and red for the Sharks, Yellow and blue for the Jets. Most obvious at the dance, but still subtly present in other scenes.
* CombatByChampion: How the climactic rumble at the end of Act I was "supposed" to go.
* CrapsackWorld:
-->'''Doc:''' When do you kids stop?! You make this world lousy!\\
'''Action:''' We didn't make it, Doc.
* CycleOfVengeance: As best as can be determined from each side's self-serving account, the conflict began when the Jets attacked Bernardo the day he moved to the West Side (though the Jets would say Bernardo began it by moving there.) Bernardo created the Sharks to oppose them, but by the time the movie begins both sides have become [[NotSoDifferent virtually indistinguishable]], and each is concerned only with vengeance on the other for whatever the other's last act of vengeance on ''them'' was. In the reprise of "Tonight," each side sings the line "They began it."
** They also sing the exact same ''music'' on that line, suggesting that the genesis of each gang's hatred is basically identical.
* DanceOfRomance: Tony and Maria, though it is a cha-cha and not the more standard waltz.
* DarkReprise: "America" and "Somewhere"
* DiedInYourArmsTonight: In the movie, at least, [[spoiler:Tony dies as Maria holds him.]]
* DigitalDestruction: To put it bluntly, ''every'' DVD and Blu-Ray Disc has at least one flaw. Most infamously, the Special Edition DVD plays "Tonight" out of sync, and the 50th Anniversary Blu-Ray has the screen turn black during a few seconds of the overture.
* DirtyCop: Lt. Schrank only barely holds the Jets in higher esteem than the Sharks. To him, they're ''all'' immigrant scum.
* DistantDuet: "Tonight"
* DoubleEntendre: "Hey! I got a social disease!", referring of course, to juvenile delinquency, but the term Social Disease can also mean something very different...
* DownerEnding: Sure, the fighting's over, but three people are dead. WordOfGod has it that Maria kills herself as well.
* DreamBallet: "Somewhere"
* EnforcedMethodActing: While filming the movie, the actors playing the Jets and the Sharks were roomed separately in order to heighten the tension between the two groups.
** Amazingly averted in "Anita's Rape Scene." In that scene, the actress playing Anita, Rita Moreno, was reduced to tears as a result of shooting that scene, as it brought back memories of when she was raped as a child. When she started crying, the actors playing the Jets immediately stopped what they were doing and began comforting her, while pointing out that the viewers were going to hate them for what they were doing.
* EnterStageWindow: Naturally, considering it's based on the UrExample.
* {{Expy}}: Every single character corresponds to one in "Romeo & Juliet", as do many of the scenes and sequences. The most obvious being that Tony=Romeo while Maria=Juliet, while the Jets=Montagues and the Sharks=Capulets, but there are others:
** Characters: Bernado=Tybalt, Anita=Nurse/Lady Capulet, Riff=Mercutio, Chino=Paris, etc.
** Scenes/Storylines: the opening fight, Juliet/Maria's betrothal to Paris/Chino, Juliet's debut party=Maria's first dance, the balcony scene=the fire escape scene, Romeo & Juliet's elopement (The Friar corresponds to Doc)= Tony and Maria acting out a wedding, Tybalt/Bernado killing Mercutio/Riff, Romeo/Tony killing Tybalt/Bernado, the Nurse being taunted and insulted by the Montagues and thus unable to tell Romeo that Juliet's death is faked=Anita being assaulted by the Jets and thus lying about Maria's death, leading to Romeo/Tony's suicidal response.
* FakeNationality: In the film, Maria is played by NatalieWood, who was a Russian-American. And then there's the Greco-American George Chakiris as Bernardo.
* FinalLoveDuet: "Somewhere" reprise.
* FreudianExcuse: "Gee, Officer Krupke" begins with this, but eventually subverts it with an admission that the Jets really just aren't interested in honest work.
* FriendlyEnemy: Despite the hatred between the two gangs, this trope is displayed in two noteworthy scenes. One, in which Bernardo mouths off to Shrank. Riff and the other Jets are visibly amused by this. Later, after Shrank has insulted Bernardo, it's Riff who restrains Bernardo from attacking him.
* GangOfHats: Both gangs have their own dance style.
* HaveAGayOldTime: "I feel pretty and witty and gay" - only in the movie. In the stage play that number takes place at night ("bright").
* HeWentThatWay
* IAmSong: "Jet Song"
* TheIngenue: Maria, initially. When Tony asks her if she's "making a joke" in their LoveAtFirstSight moment, she replies, "I have not yet learned how to joke that way." (i.e. she is too inexperienced to be anything but sincere). Her family is very concerned with protecting her, especially from 'a boy like that' who only 'wants one thing.' Her naive expectation that love-struck Tony can stop the rumble has tragic consequences for everyone.
* IWantSong: "Something's Coming" and "Somewhere"
* LampshadedDoubleEntendre: The chance to exaggerate the line "Cause no one wants a fella with a social disease!" in Gee, Officer Krupke is passed over in the movie, but in stage productions, actors will sometimes do a suggestive shuffle on the floor, cover their crotches, or whatever other creativity the choreographer comes up with. Especially common in high schools, of course.
* LipstickAndLoadMontage: In the reprise of "Tonight" in TheMovie, Anita has a L&LM song while the gangs prepare for the rumble.
* LoveAtFirstSight: Just in case you didn't get it, the filmmakers made the rest of the dancers hazy, only making sure that Tony and Maria were in focus.
* MaltShop: Doc's Drugstore.
* MassiveMultiplayerEnsembleNumber: "Tonight"
* MobWar
* MoodWhiplash: in the original stage play, "I Feel Pretty" takes place RIGHT after the rumble and just before Maria learns Tony killed Bernardo. "Gee, Officer Krupke" also takes place after the rumble. These were moved to before the rumble in the film.
** That being said, the movie still has a little bit of mood whiplash after the rumble. It cuts from Riff and Bernardo lying dead, to Maria dancing wistfully on a rooftop. Since this dance only lasts a minute at most, until Chino appears to deliver some tragic news, the amount of mood whiplash still feels significantly smaller than it did in the play.
* MoralMyopia: Tony and Maria are respectively the only members of the Jets and the Sharks who show any sympathy for the other side.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Tony, after killing Bernardo.
* MySisterIsOffLimits
* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistFight: Averted. They do. And two main characters get killed off.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Tony successfully stops an all-out war with knives and guns, by suggesting that they merely have the strongest of the two sides fistfight. It seems like nothing worse could happen than a broken nose or two. But then ''Maria'' objects even to this, saying that ''any'' fighting is bad, and although Tony can see it leading nowhere nice to stop them, he does it because he loves her. Fast-forward. Rather than a simple fistfight, three people are dead, one is arrested and will most likely be hanged for murder, the two gangs hate each other even more (until they reconcile) and ''Maria'' survives the movie.
* OneOfTheBoys: Anybodys tries to be this, with limited success.
* OneSceneWonder: The unnamed girl in the song "Somewhere".
** Also John Astin as the MC at the dance.
* OnlySaneMan: Doc sees that events are spiraling into mayhem, and is increasingly frustrated by his inability to affect anything.
* OpeningBallet: Used to communicate the relationship between the Jets and the Sharks.
* ParentalAbandonment: Heavily implied with Riff.
* PoirotSpeak: The Puerto Ricans litter their English with. For examples, "por favor?", "una poca" and "si".
** Averted in the current revival, in which both the songs "I Feel Pretty" and "A Boy Like That/I Have A Love" are both sung entirely in Spanish, in addition to most scenes featuring only the Sharks being spoken in Spanish.
** Due to negative feedback the songs were changed back into English in August 2009, but the spoken scenes remain in Spanish. This reaction could possibly have been avoided if they had displayed ''subtitles'' for the audience.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Lieutenant Shrank.
* PoorCommunicationKills: Boy did it ever here.
* ThePowerOfHate: Anita, after her near-gang rape.
-->"Bernardo was right. If one of you was lying in the street bleeding, [[KickTheSonOfABitch I'd walk by and spit on you]]."
** Maria reveals she finally understands this when she raises her gun.
* RabidCop: Shrank can run into this trope at times, especially when he shows himself willing to beat up the kids.
-->''Let him go, buddy boy. Let him go. One of these days, Action, there ain't gonna be nobody to hold you back.''
* SayMyName: "Maria," of course.
* ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem: "Yeah, yeah, 'It's a free country, you got no right.' Well, [[DirtyCop I got a badge]]. What do ''you'' got?"
* SettingUpdate: ''Romeo And Juliet'' [[AC:IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY NEW YORK CITY! AS A MUSICAL!]]
* SexyDiscretionShot: At the end of "Somewhere", Tony and Maria embrace passionately and sink from view. By the time the scene fades back in, it's pretty obvious what's happened.
* ShaveAndAHaircut: "Gee Of-fi-cer Krup-ke, ''[[ParentheticalSwearing Krup You!]]''"
* SocietyIsToBlame: "Gee, Officer Krupke".
* TheSongBeforeTheStorm: Again, "Tonight".
* SpicyLatina: Anita.
* TakeItToTheBridge: The rumble at the underpass.
* TheTeamWannabe: Anybodys.
* ThemeTuneCameo: When Anita arrives at the drugstore, the jukebox is playing the "Mambo" music. Also, as Doc comes downstairs, Tony whistles "Maria" to himself.
* TenorBoy: Tony.
* {{Tomboy}}: Anybodys.
* TotallyRadical: The Jets sing and speak in a mixture of real 50s slang and some the writer made up. It still sounds silly.
** The made up slang was employed to {{avert|edTrope}} this trope, since slang that was never actually popular slang can't become dated slang.
* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: In particular, Tony's murder of Bernardo.
* TruceZone: The school gym is neutral territory for both gangs.
* UnusualEuphemism
* WhenIWasYourAge
-->'''Doc''': Why, when I was your age--\\
'''Action''': When you was my age; when my old man was my age; when my brother was my age! ''You was never my age, none of you!'' The sooner you creeps get hip to that, the sooner you'll dig us.
* WhiteGangBangers
* WideEyedIdealist: Glad Hand, who tries and fails to get the gangs to befriend each other.
----
->''There's a place for us,\\
A time and place for us.\\
Hold my hand and we're halfway there.\\
Hold my hand and I'll take you there\\
Somehow, someday, somewhere!''
A 1957 Broadway [[TheMusical musical]], composed by LeonardBernstein, and its 1961 [[TheMovie film adaptation]].
It may seem OlderThanSteam, with more than a [[StarCrossedLovers few elements]] that you may recognize from [[Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet other works]]. It is also a great example of SeinfeldIsUnfunny, with many modern audiences not understanding why it was such a groundbreaking musical in its time. It is recognized as the leader in using [[NewerThanTheyThink dance to further the plot]], thanks to Jerome Robbins' choreography, and is also recognized for portraying minority characters (relatively) positively, using vulgar language and slang, and [[DarkerAndEdgier not being a particularly feel-good musical]].
Two gangs, one Polish-American (Jets) and the other Puerto Rican (Sharks), are fighting over territory on Manhattan's West Side when Tony, a member of the Jets, falls in love with Maria, the younger sister of the Sharks' leader Bernardo. Unfortunately for the young couple, they happen to fall in love on the very night the two gangs decide to end their feud in one final battle. Tony manages to persuade the two gangs to reduce it to a one-on-one "fair fight" but when Maria tells Tony to stop the fight altogether his attempt to intervene results in the leader of the Jets, his best friend Riff, getting knifed to death by Bernardo. In a fit of rage, Tony then kills Bernardo in return.
Act Two begins with Maria finding out about Bernardo's death from her arranged fiance, Chino, who then vows to kill Tony. Tony turns up and they spend the night together. After we find out what happened to the Jets, we meet up with the lovers. Bernardo's girlfriend Anita shows up, and Tony escapes, with a plan to escape to the country. Anita, despite hating Tony for killing Bernardo, agrees to tell Tony to stay at the drugstore he works at until Maria arrives. When she gets there however, she is nearly raped by the Jets that have gathered there. In a fit of rage, she says that Maria is dead, killed by Chino. Tony's boss tells Tony this, and he runs out into the street, calling for Chino to 'kill him, too.' Maria and Tony meet each other in the street, but before they can embrace, Chino steps from the shadows and kills Tony. Maria denounces both sides of the conflict for their part in Tony's death, and for how "[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone we all killed him]]," not with guns, not with knives, but with hate. Thoroughly heartbroken, the Jets and Sharks together carry out Tony's body. [[DownerEnding The End]].
Notable for some of the most famous songs in musical theater, such as "Tonight," "America" and "I Feel Pretty", with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by StephenSondheim.
----
!!This production contains examples of:
* AccidentalMurder: In the fistfight-that-wasn't.
* ActuallyPrettyFunny: Riff laughs at Bernardo's request for Lieutenant Shrank to translate his dressing-down into Spanish.
* AdultsAreUseless: It's {{lampshaded}} by the stage directions at the end:
---> ''The adults - DOC, SHRANK, KRUPKE, and GLAD HAND - stand alone, useless.''
* AngryMobSong: "Tonight" and the latter half of the "Jet Song"
* AttemptedRape: Anita is attacked and nearly raped by the Jets when she heads to Doc's to tell Tony to wait for Maria. This angers her and drives her to hate them badly enough that when Doc returns and stops it, Anita lies to them about how Chino shot Maria, which sets up the final tragedy.
* BadCopIncompetentCop: Shrank's the bad cop, a racist who wants the Sharks run out of town but isn't exactly crazy about the Jets either, and who cares most of all about getting a promotion. Krupke's the incompetent cop, never once doing anything successfully.
* BallroomBlitz: Very nearly happens, but the cops break it up.
* BetaCouple: Bernardo and Anita.
* BlondBrunetteRedhead: The three Jets girlfriends who dance in "Cool".
* {{Bowdlerise}}: Anita's lines in "Tonight" are changed from "He'll walk in hot and tired, so what / No matter if he's tired, as long as he's hot" to "He'll walk in hot and tired, poor dear / No matter if he's tired, as long as he's here."
** And in "Gee, Officer Krupke", the line "My father is a bastard / My ma's an SOB / My grandpa's always plastered / My grandma pushes tea" is changed to "My daddy bashes mommy / My mommy clobbers me / [[DirtyCommunist My grandpa is a Commie]] / My grandma pushes tea."
** And in the "Jet Song" the lines "When you're a Jet / And the spit hits the fan / You got brothers around / You're a family man" are changed to "When you're a Jet / Let them do what they can / You got brothers around / You're a family man." Particularly funny given that "spit" in the original was probably changed from...
** The writers of the movie took the line, "Trusting with our hearts open! With our arms open!" - "You came with your legs open!" and replaced "legs" with, "mouth."
** Furthermore, Stephen Sondheim originally wanted to end the song "Gee, Officer Krupke, fuck you!" but it was changed to "Krup you!" (He comments in his book of the lyrics, that he thought the "Krupp" change was for the better).
* BreakTheCutie: Maria and Anita. Chino arguably counts as well.
* ButchLesbian: While some of Anybodys' lines imply she's heterosexual or bi, she fits the look, and acts in a comparatively "masculine" manner for her time and place.
** The character could very likely be a trans boy rather than an actual woman, too. It's something that can vary from production to production.
* CallAndResponseSong: "America." In the stage version, Rosalia sings about how great Puerto Rico was and the other women sing about how America is better. In the film, the women sing about America's positive qualities and the men sing about its xenophobia.
* {{Camp}}
* CategoryTraitor: Maria is pressured to marry Chino simply because they are from the same ethnic group. When she falls in love with an outsider, all hell breaks lose. Interestingly, Chino never get any EntitledToHaveYou lines, but that's probably because he's such a minor role in the first place.
* ChekhovsGunman: Chino
* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: Purple and red for the Sharks, Yellow and blue for the Jets. Most obvious at the dance, but still subtly present in other scenes.
* CombatByChampion: How the climactic rumble at the end of Act I was "supposed" to go.
* CrapsackWorld:
-->'''Doc:''' When do you kids stop?! You make this world lousy!\\
'''Action:''' We didn't make it, Doc.
* CycleOfVengeance: As best as can be determined from each side's self-serving account, the conflict began when the Jets attacked Bernardo the day he moved to the West Side (though the Jets would say Bernardo began it by moving there.) Bernardo created the Sharks to oppose them, but by the time the movie begins both sides have become [[NotSoDifferent virtually indistinguishable]], and each is concerned only with vengeance on the other for whatever the other's last act of vengeance on ''them'' was. In the reprise of "Tonight," each side sings the line "They began it."
** They also sing the exact same ''music'' on that line, suggesting that the genesis of each gang's hatred is basically identical.
* DanceOfRomance: Tony and Maria, though it is a cha-cha and not the more standard waltz.
* DarkReprise: "America" and "Somewhere"
* DiedInYourArmsTonight: In the movie, at least, [[spoiler:Tony dies as Maria holds him.]]
* DigitalDestruction: To put it bluntly, ''every'' DVD and Blu-Ray Disc has at least one flaw. Most infamously, the Special Edition DVD plays "Tonight" out of sync, and the 50th Anniversary Blu-Ray has the screen turn black during a few seconds of the overture.
* DirtyCop: Lt. Schrank only barely holds the Jets in higher esteem than the Sharks. To him, they're ''all'' immigrant scum.
* DistantDuet: "Tonight"
* DoubleEntendre: "Hey! I got a social disease!", referring of course, to juvenile delinquency, but the term Social Disease can also mean something very different...
* DownerEnding: Sure, the fighting's over, but three people are dead. WordOfGod has it that Maria kills herself as well.
* DreamBallet: "Somewhere"
* EnforcedMethodActing: While filming the movie, the actors playing the Jets and the Sharks were roomed separately in order to heighten the tension between the two groups.
** Amazingly averted in "Anita's Rape Scene." In that scene, the actress playing Anita, Rita Moreno, was reduced to tears as a result of shooting that scene, as it brought back memories of when she was raped as a child. When she started crying, the actors playing the Jets immediately stopped what they were doing and began comforting her, while pointing out that the viewers were going to hate them for what they were doing.
* EnterStageWindow: Naturally, considering it's based on the UrExample.
* {{Expy}}: Every single character corresponds to one in "Romeo & Juliet", as do many of the scenes and sequences. The most obvious being that Tony=Romeo while Maria=Juliet, while the Jets=Montagues and the Sharks=Capulets, but there are others:
** Characters: Bernado=Tybalt, Anita=Nurse/Lady Capulet, Riff=Mercutio, Chino=Paris, etc.
** Scenes/Storylines: the opening fight, Juliet/Maria's betrothal to Paris/Chino, Juliet's debut party=Maria's first dance, the balcony scene=the fire escape scene, Romeo & Juliet's elopement (The Friar corresponds to Doc)= Tony and Maria acting out a wedding, Tybalt/Bernado killing Mercutio/Riff, Romeo/Tony killing Tybalt/Bernado, the Nurse being taunted and insulted by the Montagues and thus unable to tell Romeo that Juliet's death is faked=Anita being assaulted by the Jets and thus lying about Maria's death, leading to Romeo/Tony's suicidal response.
* FakeNationality: In the film, Maria is played by NatalieWood, who was a Russian-American. And then there's the Greco-American George Chakiris as Bernardo.
* FinalLoveDuet: "Somewhere" reprise.
* FreudianExcuse: "Gee, Officer Krupke" begins with this, but eventually subverts it with an admission that the Jets really just aren't interested in honest work.
* FriendlyEnemy: Despite the hatred between the two gangs, this trope is displayed in two noteworthy scenes. One, in which Bernardo mouths off to Shrank. Riff and the other Jets are visibly amused by this. Later, after Shrank has insulted Bernardo, it's Riff who restrains Bernardo from attacking him.
* GangOfHats: Both gangs have their own dance style.
* HaveAGayOldTime: "I feel pretty and witty and gay" - only in the movie. In the stage play that number takes place at night ("bright").
* HeWentThatWay
* IAmSong: "Jet Song"
* TheIngenue: Maria, initially. When Tony asks her if she's "making a joke" in their LoveAtFirstSight moment, she replies, "I have not yet learned how to joke that way." (i.e. she is too inexperienced to be anything but sincere). Her family is very concerned with protecting her, especially from 'a boy like that' who only 'wants one thing.' Her naive expectation that love-struck Tony can stop the rumble has tragic consequences for everyone.
* IWantSong: "Something's Coming" and "Somewhere"
* LampshadedDoubleEntendre: The chance to exaggerate the line "Cause no one wants a fella with a social disease!" in Gee, Officer Krupke is passed over in the movie, but in stage productions, actors will sometimes do a suggestive shuffle on the floor, cover their crotches, or whatever other creativity the choreographer comes up with. Especially common in high schools, of course.
* LipstickAndLoadMontage: In the reprise of "Tonight" in TheMovie, Anita has a L&LM song while the gangs prepare for the rumble.
* LoveAtFirstSight: Just in case you didn't get it, the filmmakers made the rest of the dancers hazy, only making sure that Tony and Maria were in focus.
* MaltShop: Doc's Drugstore.
* MassiveMultiplayerEnsembleNumber: "Tonight"
* MobWar
* MoodWhiplash: in the original stage play, "I Feel Pretty" takes place RIGHT after the rumble and just before Maria learns Tony killed Bernardo. "Gee, Officer Krupke" also takes place after the rumble. These were moved to before the rumble in the film.
** That being said, the movie still has a little bit of mood whiplash after the rumble. It cuts from Riff and Bernardo lying dead, to Maria dancing wistfully on a rooftop. Since this dance only lasts a minute at most, until Chino appears to deliver some tragic news, the amount of mood whiplash still feels significantly smaller than it did in the play.
* MoralMyopia: Tony and Maria are respectively the only members of the Jets and the Sharks who show any sympathy for the other side.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Tony, after killing Bernardo.
* MySisterIsOffLimits
* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistFight: Averted. They do. And two main characters get killed off.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Tony successfully stops an all-out war with knives and guns, by suggesting that they merely have the strongest of the two sides fistfight. It seems like nothing worse could happen than a broken nose or two. But then ''Maria'' objects even to this, saying that ''any'' fighting is bad, and although Tony can see it leading nowhere nice to stop them, he does it because he loves her. Fast-forward. Rather than a simple fistfight, three people are dead, one is arrested and will most likely be hanged for murder, the two gangs hate each other even more (until they reconcile) and ''Maria'' survives the movie.
* OneOfTheBoys: Anybodys tries to be this, with limited success.
* OneSceneWonder: The unnamed girl in the song "Somewhere".
** Also John Astin as the MC at the dance.
* OnlySaneMan: Doc sees that events are spiraling into mayhem, and is increasingly frustrated by his inability to affect anything.
* OpeningBallet: Used to communicate the relationship between the Jets and the Sharks.
* ParentalAbandonment: Heavily implied with Riff.
* PoirotSpeak: The Puerto Ricans litter their English with. For examples, "por favor?", "una poca" and "si".
** Averted in the current revival, in which both the songs "I Feel Pretty" and "A Boy Like That/I Have A Love" are both sung entirely in Spanish, in addition to most scenes featuring only the Sharks being spoken in Spanish.
** Due to negative feedback the songs were changed back into English in August 2009, but the spoken scenes remain in Spanish. This reaction could possibly have been avoided if they had displayed ''subtitles'' for the audience.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Lieutenant Shrank.
* PoorCommunicationKills: Boy did it ever here.
* ThePowerOfHate: Anita, after her near-gang rape.
-->"Bernardo was right. If one of you was lying in the street bleeding, [[KickTheSonOfABitch I'd walk by and spit on you]]."
** Maria reveals she finally understands this when she raises her gun.
* RabidCop: Shrank can run into this trope at times, especially when he shows himself willing to beat up the kids.
-->''Let him go, buddy boy. Let him go. One of these days, Action, there ain't gonna be nobody to hold you back.''
* SayMyName: "Maria," of course.
* ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem: "Yeah, yeah, 'It's a free country, you got no right.' Well, [[DirtyCop I got a badge]]. What do ''you'' got?"
* SettingUpdate: ''Romeo And Juliet'' [[AC:IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY NEW YORK CITY! AS A MUSICAL!]]
* SexyDiscretionShot: At the end of "Somewhere", Tony and Maria embrace passionately and sink from view. By the time the scene fades back in, it's pretty obvious what's happened.
* ShaveAndAHaircut: "Gee Of-fi-cer Krup-ke, ''[[ParentheticalSwearing Krup You!]]''"
* SocietyIsToBlame: "Gee, Officer Krupke".
* TheSongBeforeTheStorm: Again, "Tonight".
* SpicyLatina: Anita.
* TakeItToTheBridge: The rumble at the underpass.
* TheTeamWannabe: Anybodys.
* ThemeTuneCameo: When Anita arrives at the drugstore, the jukebox is playing the "Mambo" music. Also, as Doc comes downstairs, Tony whistles "Maria" to himself.
* TenorBoy: Tony.
* {{Tomboy}}: Anybodys.
* TotallyRadical: The Jets sing and speak in a mixture of real 50s slang and some the writer made up. It still sounds silly.
** The made up slang was employed to {{avert|edTrope}} this trope, since slang that was never actually popular slang can't become dated slang.
* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: In particular, Tony's murder of Bernardo.
* TruceZone: The school gym is neutral territory for both gangs.
* UnusualEuphemism
* WhenIWasYourAge
-->'''Doc''': Why, when I was your age--\\
'''Action''': When you was my age; when my old man was my age; when my brother was my age! ''You was never my age, none of you!'' The sooner you creeps get hip to that, the sooner you'll dig us.
* WhiteGangBangers
* WideEyedIdealist: Glad Hand, who tries and fails to get the gangs to befriend each other.
----
