West Side Story Trivia Questions

Answer: Diesel

Diesel's name was changed to Ice for the movie version, although both names were used in the original book

Answer: Anita and Bernardo are the lead singers

Anita (Ariana DeBose) and Bernardo (David Alvarez) are the lead singers on "America" and do a fantastic job of it. Spielberg places "America" after the balcony scene between Tony and Maria, which is in keeping with the musical lineup of the 1958 Broadway play.

The 1961 version takes place at night; the 2021 version occurs during the next morning.

The 1961 version happens on a roof top, while the 2021 version takes place in a variety of venues, with Anita and Bernardo walking all around the neighborhood

Spielberg's version of "America" is much more expansive and includes members of the community towards the end of the song, including several children dancing with the adult cast.

While it is a minor cosmetic difference, Ariana DuBose wears a yellow dress in the 2021 film. while Rita Moreno wore a purple dress during the 1961 version of "America".

Answer: The Lincoln Center

The musical on which both films are based, and the films themselves, are set in the late 1950s or early 1960s at a time when much redevelopment was going on in New York, although that city was not the only one to destroy its past. The tenements were torn down to make way for new buildings of which the Lincoln Center was one. The 2021 film makes this explicit by showing a hoarding about the new building. The Jets and Sharks are fighting over an ever diminishing area, a point which is made by Lieutenant Schrank (Corey Stoll) when he breaks up an early fight between the rival gangs. The fact that the area is getting smaller means that both the American Jets and Puerto Rican Sharks are desperate to lay claim to what is left.

Answer: I Feel Pretty

This song is immediately identified with this musical. Natalie Wood who played Maria did not sing any of the songs in this movie, it was Marnie Nixon who truly sang the part. As Maria was singing this song she tried on hats and dresses.

Answer: Riff

Mercutio is killed by Tybalt, and Riff is killed by Bernardo.

Answer: Maria

Bernardo was Maria's older brother and very protective of his sister.

Answer: Baby John

Baby John is the youngest Jet, and friends with A-Rab. Lieutenant Schrank asks Baby John in the opening scene, "Which one of these Puerto Ricans bloodied you?"

Answer: Chino

Chino gives her the bad news on the roof and she accuses him of lying to her.

Answer: Rita Moreno

In the London stage version Rita Moreno played Maria, the female lead. But her performance in the movie, in particular 'America' with her stunning dance sequence is what is best remembered by movie fans.

Answer: Gimbel's

She is working at Gimbel's Department Store, which is the setting for "I Feel Pretty". By placing the upbeat song after the rumble, Spielberg makes it extra poignant, because viewers already know that their love is doomed due to the deaths of Riff and Bernardo. This is another case where Spielberg follows the lineup of the 1958 Broadway play.


Maria (Natalie Wood) worked at a bridal shop in the 1961 film.

Answer: Rachel Zegler

All of the actresses appeared in the 2021 film but Rachel was the one making her debut. Casting for the new version was particular to choose Latino/Latina actors for the Puerto Rican characters and they are shown speaking Spanish among themselves, without subtitles being used. Rachel Zegler was born in New Jersey in 2001 and has Colombian heritage from her grandmother on her mother's side of her family. The role of Maria was her first film role, although she had already established herself as a singer on a YouTube channel she set up in 2015. Other film roles are in the pipeline for her at the time of writing.

Answer: Natalie Wood

Natalie Wood was an accomplished actress from the ripe age of nine when she played Susan Walker in the movie "Miracle on 34th Street". She was beguiling in "Marjorie Morningstar", obedient to sexy in "Gypsy" and heartbreaking in "Splendor in the Grass". Married to Robert Wagner (two times), she died tragically in a boating accident in 1981 off of Catalina Island.

Answer: switchblades, 3

During the fight, Riff loses his knife, and Bernardo picks it up and uses two. One of the Jets hands Riff a switchblade he brought hidden in his pocket.

Answer: Anybodys

Anybodys actually helped the Jets quite a bit but was seen as an annoyance by the gang members.

Answer: Tybalt and Mercutio

Tybalt and Mercutio are from "Romeo and Juliet." ("West Side Story" is loosely based on the original play by William Shakespeare.)
Claudius, Horatio, and Polonius are from "Hamlet."
Hortensio and Christopher Sly are from "The Taming of the Shrew."
Puck is from "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

Answer: Maria

Yes, it's Maria! Hey, it's repeated often enough in the song!

Answer: 12

The line reflects the serious housing shortages that befell the Puerto Ricans but in true American musical fashion, the writers turned it into humour.

Answer: Murray Benowitz

Glad Hand was played, but uncredited, in the movie by John 'Gomez Addams' Astin

Answer: The Cloisters

The Cloisters is a restored French monastery which was placed in Fort Tyron Park on the upper west side of Manhattan. The museum, which is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, was created between 1935 and 1939. It has spectacular views of the Hudson River.

Plot wise, Tony reveals to Maria that he is a former convict who spend a year in prison for assaulting a rival gang member. They also hold a makeshift wedding ceremony and sing "One Hand, One Heart".

The Guggenheim Museum, one of the world's leading modern art facilities, was built on the upper east side of New York in 1937 and was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. New York's Botanic Garden is located in the Bronx and has been around since 1891. Saint Patrick's is one of the most spectacular churches in the United States architecturally, and was built between 1858 and 1879.

Answer: Vasquez

The characters are fleshed out a little more than in the original film with Bernardo being depicted as a promising boxer. There are posters showing him in the boxing ring and clearly showing his surname as Vasquez and Maria, as his sister, would have the same name. Bernardo lives with Anita in a flat, with Maria in their second bedroom. The flat is still located in a block with a rickety fire escape which Tony scales to see Maria later on the night they meet and is his way of escape when Anita sees him with Maria after Bernardo's death.

Answer: Anybodys

She got Tony to leave after the rumble.