She was cast in a musical but couldn’t sing
Image credit: West Side Story
From the get-go, Natalie Wood was starring in major productions. Her first starring role was in the 1947 Christmas classic Miracle on 34th Street. Couple that with a James Dean flick and she had it made. That doesn’t mean she was up to the task all of the time.
In the ’60s, Wood was a seasoned star. She landed a role in the iconic musical West Side Story and played a woman falling in love with a boy from the wrong side of town. It was a modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet. Unfortunately, Wood didn’t have the pipes to handle the musical numbers. Though she did the dancing and acting, her singing was overdubbed by Broadway performer Marni Nixon.
