INTERNATIONAL hit show West Side Story will visit The Bristol Hippodrome next year as part of a national tour.

It will take to the stage there from January 28 to February 8, 2014 and tickets are now on sale.

West Side Story changed the course of musical theatre when it opened on Broadway in 1957 and it still remains one of the most successful stage shows of all time.

The 1961 film version won 10 Academy Awards.

Based on Romeo and Juliet, the tale is set on Manhattan’s Upper West Side and explores the rivalry between two teenage gangs; one white, the other Puerto Rican.

When Tony falls in love with Maria, the sister of the rival gang’s leader, the feud takes on a new dimension, and as their love blossoms so begins a fatal journey overshadowed by violence and hatred.

The score includes the unforgettable songs Maria, Tonight, Somewhere, America and I Feel Pretty.

West Side Story is directed and choreographed afresh this time by Joey McKneely - former assistant to Jerome Robbins.

Joey has worked extensively on Broadway where his choreography credits include Smokey Joe’s Café (Tony Award nomination) and The Boy From Oz starring Hugh Jackman.

His other credits include Hal Prince’s production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Whistle Down the Wind and Nicholas Hytner’s production of Twelfth Night.

Tickets for the show in Bristol, priced £15-49, are available via www.bristolhippodrome.org.uk