IN THE HEIGHTS caused PETE’S EYEBROWS to form a CATERPILLAR ARCH
The Dramatic Premise
It’s almost July 4th in Washington Heights, NYC.
At centre stage stands a bodega run by Usnavi de la Vega with the occasional assistance of his delinquent cousin, Sonny.
Stage right features the Rosario Cab Company, where Kevin and Camila despatch taxis to and from the neighbourhood.
Next to Rosario’s stands a small dwelling occupied by Abuela Claudia, the neighbourhood’s grandmother, who shuffles around muttering her wisdoms as she feeds the birds.
Across on stage left, Daniela and Carla run the local hair salon.
The Latin neighbourhood is dominated by the George Washington Bridge, together with heat and borderline poverty. But there’s also a palpable sense of community. And mutual dependence.
Into this halcyon scene enters the pride of the neighbourhood. The one who “made it out”.
Nina Rosario has spent a year at Stanford University and now she’s returning home for the summer break. But she’s holding a secret close to her chest which she dares not tell her parents as they struggle to keep their cab business solvent.
Two romantic subplots, a black-out which extends for days, enervating heat, a mysterious lottery win and the collective yearning for a better life; the multiple storylines swirl, cross-paths, dance in tight unison, deviate and finally coalesce around a major character’s death and the hope she held for everybody else’s future.
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Genius
About a decade or so ago, I had the opportunity to see In the Heights on Broadway. I remain uncertain why I favoured a different option on that particular night. Had I been familiar with Lin-Manuel Miranda, back in those days, I’m sure I would have chosen differently.
Since then, I’ve seenp Hamilton thrice and listened to the cast recording hundreds of times. Though initially resistant to hip-hop, I’m now an advocate for Miranda’s genius.
If you’re hoping to hear distant echoes of Hamilton in this production, you won’t be disappointed. Miranda’s signature stylings can be heard in the rhythms and in the rhymes and in the lilt and in the lyrics of In the Heights. By rights, it’s there alright in the quiet of the night.
And, like Hamilton, it’s not all hip-hop. Part of Miranda’s genius – perhaps a large slice – can be found in his unique ability to blend hip-hop with Latin beats, with traditional Broadway showtunes and with songs you might hear on contemporary radio. The result is an intoxicating whole which is worth vastly more than the sum of its disparate parts.
A Humble Suggestion
The story for In the Heights is set in the closing decades of the last millennium. A character references gifting a “calling card” to a friend. The Rosario’s use CB radio to communicate with their drivers. This is clearly a time before the existence of mobile phones. Indeed, Nina’s secret would probably not survive social media.
Yet there is a line towards the end of the first Act where a character jokes that the bottle of wine they have purchased for a celebration is the 2024 vintage – with the sub-text being that they can’t afford an aged bottle.
I assume the line was added for this production. But it doesn’t sit well with the era in which the rest of the story is set.
Perhaps a better line would have been to remark that the bottle is “brand new, fresh from the vineyard”.
Concluding Remarks
This production of In the Heights, at the Concourse Theatre, in Chatswood was a joy. I felt like I was part of the neighbourhood. The actors made me feel like I was one of them. And that makes for engaging storytelling.
This review is based on the opening night performance of “In the Heights” on 2 February 2024. For more information:
IN THE HEIGHTS – THE CONCOURSE
PACA would like to thank Peter Hunt for this wonderful review!