In The Heights  | Theater | Advocate.com

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In The Heights
The toast of Broadway attempts to show a grittier side of New York City, but fails to deliver.
By Mike Diamond
An Advocate.com exclusive posted April 14, 2008
In The Heights

Washington Heights is a mainly Latino neighborhood in the upper reaches of Manhattan, so far up along the island’s West Side that it seems to exist in another borough altogether.

In the Heights, which takes place one hot and steamy July 4th, attempts to bring to life the stories of El Barrio’s residents, their struggles, and their triumphs. What it mainly succeeds in bringing to life is a throbbing headache.

IN THE HEIGHTS CAST X395 (GETTY) | ADVOCATE.COM

Set on a single street corner, the George Washington Bridge looming stoically in the background, Heights trots out an assortment of types: the mom-and-pop business owners (Carlos Gomez and Priscilla Lopez), the sweet old lady Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz, who has an excellent singing voice, but every one of her overwrought line readings made me cringe). The main figure in the story is bodega owner Usnavy, portrayed by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who conceived of In the Heights and also wrote the music and lyrics. Usnavy is likeable, if a bit of a cipher. He seems, in the midst of all the passions and mild angst swirling around him, to exist on an entirely different plane.

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