Dazzling choreography, impressive talent and a heart-warming story make ‘In The Heights’ a fantastic night at the theatre.
The community of Washington Heights is tight-knit – like one large family. They come together to celebrate the exhilarating thrills of life’s highs and surround each other with love through life’s crushing lows.
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s vibrant debut musical is filled to the brim with a joyous sense of togetherness, as we the audience traverse the neighbourhood and learn all of its stories.
The cast is made up of a smorgasbord of excellence – Ryan Gonzalez’s Usnavi, who sits at the centre of this story with big dreams, is gorgeous to watch. He leads with a passionate heart and delivers an impressive vocal range in his numbers. Vanessa Menjivar’s Daniela is simply electric at every turn, providing a hefty selection of not only exceptional comedic beats, but also impressive musical stylings: a true all-rounder here.
Lena Cruz’s Abuela Claudia reflects a figure that most folks are familiar with: that one unconditionally kind, well-worn, bad-ass older relative who will always have your back. Lena’s portrayal is all of these things and more, noticeably pulling at the heartstrings of the audience with each delicately-delivered line.
Other stand-out performances include the sporadic appearances of Piragua Guy, played by Richard Valdez – who elicits deafening cheers and applause each time he appears on stage with his cart. . . And the cheeky but totally loveable Sonny (Steve Costi) who, despite all his rogue actions, you can’t help but root for.
Musically, ‘In The Heights’ is like the groovier, more flavourful and delicious sibling of ‘Hamilton’ – understandably so, considering it is its predecessor and written by the same man. All of the satisfying lyrical beats fans of that show know are here in spade loads (Ryan Gonzalez has impeccable rhythm in his raps in particular), in a soundtrack blending contemporary beats, hip hop, salsa and Latin rhythms.
Choreography is unbelievably slick, the cast moving around each other like a well-oiled machine (this reviewer even shook his head in disbelief on more than one occasion) while lighting design is impressively immersive, especially wondrous during the fireworks scene.
Staging is static and minimal, but you’d not even think to critique it when the motion of this stunning cast creates more than enough delight for the eyes for the entire run-time of this gorgeous show.
‘In The Heights’ is a story packed with a feast of flavours – it’s hilarious, heart-warming, tear-jerking and boundlessly joyful. A truly faultless cast brings it to life and manages to keep the energy at a strong ten from start to finish, and you have no choice but to leave with a beaming smile once the party’s over.
Bravo.
★★★★★
