West Side Story:Settings-Romeo and Juliet Vs West Side Story

Having watched the film my self, I took notes about the different settings of West Side Story, and compared them to the settings of Romeo and Juliet:

Firstly, I was aware that Kenneth MacMillan's Ballet Production of Romeo and Juliet was theatre based, whereas Jerome Robbins's Film version of West Side Story was in fact Broadway, therefore I expected Jerome Robbin's settings to be more studio based with some form of actually filming on the locations as well.
 The main difference between Romeo and Juliet and West Side Story is that they are set in two different times, with West Side Story being more modern. This reflects how the setting is created and portrayed to the audience. Here is a table of comapring the settings of MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet and Robbins's West Side Story:

West Side Story	Romeo and Juliet
-Commercialised and industrialised Setting (New York) Neighbourhood setting -Urban	-Theatre Setting-set on stage
-Costumes reflects the setting: Costumes represent the different cultural backgrounds:- Jets, yellow, bold bomber jackets. Sharks, Red exotic colours which stand out from the urban backgrounds.	-Costumes act as identification : Costumes creates a divide for the different classes:- higher classes wear rich coloured clothing, the dresses are heavier and big.
-Maria’s flat/apartment is small, and compact, the washing line is out of the balcony escape. Her room is small, with red bright, bold colours, exotic reflecting her culture.	-Juliet’s house is grand, and big. Her room is large, with tall heavy curtains framing her balcony. Her bed is the centre point of the room, the colours are quite contemporary.
-Tony working has more responsibilities, a job.	-Romeo has no responsibilities, quite immature.
-Maria’s white dress signifies purity, light and flows, lower neck line, red around the waist signifies passion, more grown up, a woman	-Juliet’s dress, white signifies purity, light and flows, has some form of gold embroidery.
-Characters sing and dance their solos.	-Characters dance their solos.
-Constant meeting  place: The bar	-No meeting place
-Maria’s brothers wife, Anita looks after her.	-Juliet has a nurse.
-The gangs tag their own area with graffiti. Own territory.	-The Montagues and The Capulets stay in their own grounds.
-When Tony is alone, there is red sky, red everything, to signify passion (Solo)	-Romeo has his own spotlight, when dancing (Solo)