Being vintage lovers, we study movies to gain insights into the past. When we look at West Side Story, it’s the 1950s-era-appropriate costumes that leap out. Legendary costume designer Irene Scharaff designed the costumes for both the stage and original movie versions. And she kept it real. The jeans were by Levis. The shirts were custom-dyed Van Heusen. The shoes were Keds and Capezios.
About the movie: West Side Story has a serious vintage pedigree. The film version came out in 1961. It was
adapted from the original 1957 Broadway play, which was based upon Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare’s original love story from 1595. It’s not just vintage, it’s historic!
A classic musical, if there ever was one, West Side Story gives Romeo and Juliet a modern-day twist, switching up feuding families to rival teenage gangs.
The movie is set in 1957 on Manhattan’s West Side, with rival gangs, the Jets and Sharks, taking center stage alongside the New York Police. The Jets and Sharks brawl is interrupted by the police. They agree to meet and rumble at an upcoming dance. Instead of brawling, Tony, a former member of the Jets, and Maria, the sister of the Sharks leader, fall in love.
The rumble later happens under a highway and members of both gangs are left dead as the police arrive. Meanwhile Tony and Maria are planning to elope. Just like in Shakespeare’s original, there is a misunderstanding that turns fatal. In this case, Tony is shot dead by Maria’s fiancé, Chino, and Maria is left to mourn her love. Thus ending the movie with a funeral procession and the arrest of Chino.
The street fashions of the late 1950s that Irene Scharaff brought to the stage and screen were both authentic yet designed to enhance the production. The Jets wore Baracuta jackets, dungarees, and t-shirts in shades of blue and yellow, while the Sharks wore similar attire in bolder colors of deep red and purple.
The girls from both gangs wore colorful dresses in shades of pink, red, blue, and yellow. Maria’s white eyelet dress with a bright red belt is an eye-catching piece in its simplicity, while Anita’s (Rita Moreno) fabulous pink silk dress is a real stunner.
Any of Irene Scharaff ‘s wardrobe choices would easily fit into our current culture. The Baracuta jacket is still made today, and the classic look of jeans and T-shirts has held up over time. Natalie Wood and Rita Moreno’s simple dresses, with a fitted bodice and full skirt, are timeless. If you are looking to recreate these styles, here are some vintage clothing items to get you started.
Vintage Baracuta Jacket available on eBay
Vintage 1950s White Eyelet Ballerina Dress available from Sarah & Ludo
1950’s Gigi Young Silk Party Dress available on 1st Dibs
For trivia buffs
It was originally titled East Side Story, and was about an ill-fated romance between a Catholic boy and a Jewish girl.
Natalie Wood only got the part of Maria after Audrey Hepburn turned it down due to pregnancy.
Leonard Bernstein, the show’s composer, and Jerome Robbins, choreographer, and director of the Broadway play and co-director of the movie, both had a history of confronting racism in their work.
For those who can’t get enough of this timeless story, there was a remake done by Steven Spielberg in 2021.
Extra Credit
Read more about Irene Sharaff’s costume designs here.
Read a piece from The Atlantic about the short-lived March 2020 Broadway revival here.
