In the Heights

All that singing and dancing might help the characters in this musical reach their dreams quicker

Comments (0) By Lee Williams Thursday, Apr 1 2010

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New York Times theater critic Charles Isherwood called Lin-Manuel Miranda's 2008 In the Heights a "scrappy little musical about chasing your dreams and finding your true home." The winner of four Tony Awards, the play is set in Manhattan's mostly Hispanic neighborhood of Washington Heights and tells the story of a group of big-hearted dreamers, who quite regularly break out into song and dance. Miranda's sizzling score is punctuated with brassy trumpets and steel drums, and the dancers wear brightly colored sneakers as they strut their stuff to a score beating with salsa, rap and Latin pop. At the center of the tale is Usnavi, the bodega owner who was named after the first boat his parents saw after coming to America - a U.S. Navy vessel. Usnavi dreams of going to the Dominican Republic, his parents' homeland. Other characters include Nina Rosario, who's come home for the summer from Stanford, and Abuela Claudia, the matriarch of the neighborhood. The play's characters struggle to make their American Dream come true, singing and dancing with New York City as their backdrop. The show is filled with some of the best tunes Broadway has produced in decades. 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 2:30 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Through April 18. Hobby Center, 800 Bagby. For information, call 800-982-2787 or visit www.broadwayacrossamerica.com. $26 to $75.
Tuesdays-Sundays. Starts: April 6. Continues through April 18, 2010