Facts of West Side StoryFilmed in 1961, West Side Story is a modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet. Two young people struggle with their forbidden love as two gangs, the Jets and the Sharks, clash. At the end of the film, Maria says, “You all killed him […] with hatred!” It is a universally acknowledged theme that hate can kill. West Side Story is considered a "morality play about 'our' everyday problems: racism, poverty and the destructive nature of violence." Shortly after the start of 1949, Leonard Bernstein and Jerome Robbins were already at work. Robbins had called with the idea of ​​a “modern version of Romeo and Juliet set in slums […]”. The original idea called for dissension between Jews and Catholics during Easter and Passover celebrations. The Capulets, that is to say Juliet, are Jewish; the Montagues, that is to say Romeo, are Catholic. Brother Lawrence will become the neighborhood pharmacist. The general idea was to create a hit musical that tells a tragic story in a musical. With the suggestion of Arthur Laurents writing Robbins' book, the idea became more of a reality. The New York Times published an article later that month with the headline "Romeo to Receive Musical Style." One of the obstacles they faced was the story they were creating, which focused on family and religion – which would stray from the original theme of Romeo and Juliet. The musical was put on the back burner, except in Robbins' mind. New York in the 1950s to 1960s, when the film was set to take place, was full of gang violence and juvenile delinquents. Arthur Laurents and Leonard Bernstein had met to try to collaborate on a work that would ultimately fail. Spying a Los Angeles Times headline about gang violence in 1955 middle of paper ......r, Chino takes it upon himself to kill Tony. Bibliography Bernstein, Leonard and Arthur Laurents. West Side Story: A Musical. New York: Random House, 1958. Berson, Misha. Something's Coming, Something Good: West Side Story and the American Imagination. Milwaukee, WI: Applause Theater & Cinema, 2011. Print. Negron-Muntaner, F. “Feeling pretty: WEST SIDE STORY AND DISCOURSE ON PUERTO RICAN IDENTITY.” Social Text 18.2 63 (2000): 83-106. Print.Sandoval Sanchez, Alberto. "'West Side Story' by Alberto Sandoval Sanchez." JUMP CUT: A REVIEW OF CONTEMPORARY MEDIA. Jump Cut and Web. April 10, 2014. Simeone, Nigel. Leonard Berstein, West Side Story. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate, 2009. Print. Wells, Elizabeth Anne. West Side Story: cultural perspectives on an American musical. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow, 2011. Print.West Side Story. Movie. : Golden Mayer Metro, 1961.