Show Synopsis:
Two teenage gangs on the West Side of New York  -- the Puerto Rican Sharks and the white Jets -- plan a rumble for dominance on the streets. Riff, the leader of the Jets, convinces his friend Tony to come to the school dance where the rumble will be challenged, although Tony left the Jets awhile ago. At the dance, Tony meets and begins to fall for Maria, a Puerto Rican girl whose family wants her to marry Chino, a member of the Sharks. Maria's brother Bernardo pushes them away from each other, but Tony romances Maria from outside her apartment. Maria asks Tony to stop the rumble, and though Tony tries, Bernardo kills Riff and Tony kills Bernardo in retaliation. Chino relays this to Maria, who plans on running away with Tony. Maria tells her sister Anita how much she loves Tony, and Anita agrees to tell Tony to wait for Maria to run away with him. When Anita is berated by the Jets, she tells them that Chino has shot Maria out of spite. Tony asks Chino to shoot him so that he does not have to live without Maria and he dies in Maria's arms. The gangs end the feud and assemble together to take away Tony's body.	

Character:
Maria, a naïve teenage Puerto Rican girl; excited at the prospect of her first love; tries to ignore the reality of the gangs and cultural warfare around her.

Song Context:
Maria and Tony have already discussed their wedding and they believe they are going to be together for the rest of their lives. Maria daydreams with her friends at the bridal shop her family owns about how she will see Tony tonight, and he will have stopped the rumble between the gangs.	

Fun Facts:
1. This musical was loosely based on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. 
2. Carol Lawrence originated the role of Maria on Broadway and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. 
3. Natalie Wood starred as Maria in the film adaptation of West Side Story, though her singing was dubbed by Marni Nixon, who also dubbed singing voices for leads in the film adaptations of Kiss Me Kate and The Sound of Music.