By this point, you’re probably quite aware whether you’re someone who would roll eyes at the concept of dancing gangs snapping their fingers on the street, or someone whose heart soars when subjected to the lush, romantic melodies of Leonard Bernstein. For those of us in the latter category, Wolf Trap has just what we need as summer comes to an end – a traditional take on the musical theater classic, West Side Story.

Alan Johnson has brought back Jerome Robbins’ original direction and choreography for the production, and it still delivers – the fight scenes are still surprisingly beautiful, the mambo infectious, and then breathtaking when the dancers part to reveal Maria and Tony, in love at first sight. A few moments might lend themselves to a fresh vision (the chorus’ ballet during “Somewhere” proves distracting from the main characters’ central conflict, for example), but for purists, this is a production to savor.

The leads are wonderful – Sarah Darling as Maria has a crystalline voice more than able to handle Maria’s impossible high notes, while Nathan Scherich’s tenor invokes tenderness with each note Tony sings. Natascia Diaz is appropriately tempestuous as Anita, and Michael Balderraman lends an undercurrent of danger to Bernardo. Though, seriously, the Jets (led by Leo Ash Evens as Riff) could use some testosterone – easy money’s on the Sharks to win this fight.

There are plenty of visual delights in this West Side Story – the symphony of color that is the school dance, the shadowy set that provides the scene for the rumble. But it is the music which makes West Side Story so timeless – the breathless optimism of the eager “Something’s Coming,” the anguish fueled duet between Maria and Anita, “A Boy Like That/I Have A Love.” Even if you’ve known half the lyrics since grade school, it’s a show that’s always worth a listen.

West Side Story runs through Sept. 2 at Wolf Trap. Tickets are available online.