How Did Romeo And Juliet Influence West Side Story

Over the years, Shakespeare's famous book Romeo and Juliet has become very influential. It has became the base for many novels and movies. For example, the movie West Side Story is a great example of how books and movies are impacted by Romeo and Juliet. There are many parts from West Side Story that were exactly alike or almost the same from the famous Shakespearean book, especially the balcony scene.

The first way Romeo and Juliet influenced West Side Story was by the characters. The two main characters were Romeo and Juliet in one story, a boy and a girl who fell in love at first sight. From the other, it was Tony and Maria who also fell in love at first sight. Tony was like Romeo, while Maria was like Juliet. From both stories they were two people from different sides as well. Romeo, from the montague household and Juliet, from the capulet. That's like how Tony was from the Jets and Maria was from the Sharks. Both were the main characters and from rival families/ sides.

The language that was spoken throughout the balcony scene was sort of the same as Romeo and Juliet in West Side Story. In both stories they spoke english, but in …show more content…
From West Side Story, Tony appeared in the night after the dance looking for the girl whom he had just meet hours before. He saw her outside her window and shouted to her. He climbed the stairs and rushed to see her. They talked and talked and you could see it in there actress eyes how in love they were. In Romeo and Juliet the balcony scene also took place at night. It also happened right after a dance and it Romeo, like Tony, also appeared at Juliet's, Maria, balcony of where she lived. Then they professed their love for each other almost like how it happened in the West Side Story. Although there were some parts that differed from the original Romeo and Juliet, most of the settings were the