In the Heights @ Grand Prairie Arts Council
—Jill Sweeney
In the Heights—Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first musical, before Hamilton propelled him into the stratosphere—is a slice-of-life look at one corner in New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood as its residents deal with the day-to-day grind of trying to make it in the city, the weight of parental expectations, and the cracks between the American dream and the immigrant experience. Grand Prairie Arts Council (GPAC)’s bouncy, enthusiastic production manages to capture some of the original production’s magic.
For a few days in Washington Heights,at the far north end of Manhattan Island, we follow the fortunes of three businesses and the extended families who run them. First, the corner bodega, run by Usnavi (Efren Paredes, with a Miranda-esque talent for spitting rhymes) and his cocky young cousin Sonny (Landry Beckley). They, under the watchful eye of Abuela Claudia (Ana Coca) keep the neighborhood running on good vibes and café con leche. Next, Rosario’s Cab Company, whose owners Kevin and Camila Rosario (John Anthony Sanchez and Rachale Ramos Roach) have sacrificed everything to help their high-achieving daughter Nina (Jordana Garcia) graduate from Stanford U. And last but lively, the local hair salon where Usnavi’s longtime crush Vanessa (Leslie Elizabeth Navarro) works until she can break free and move out of the neighborhood to design her dream fashion line. In a whirl of Latin-inflected beats and hip-hop, the characters hustle, and grind, and dream of more.
Co-directed by Lon Barrera and Jacob Rivera-Sanchez, GPAC’s cast is quite the embarrassment of riches. Paredes has a real flair for Miranda’s rhymes but brings a bashfulness to his portrayal of the character that makes for a nice contrast with his rapped swagger. Both of the show’s leading ladies have lovely voices and great belts; I particularly enjoyed Garcia’s Nina, who really brought out the character’s sweetness. She has great chemistry not only with love interest Benny (a wonderful Alfredo Tamayo, with a smooth voice that channeled Chris Jackson from the original Broadway production) but with Sanchez and Roach as Nina’s loving but overbearing parents. Sanchez—a member of the famed Turtle Creek Chorale—has a fantastic voice, naturally, and is particularly affecting in the first Act’s “Inutil (Useless)” after Nina admits she’s dropped out of college. Coca’s Abuela Claudia, the soul and memory-keeper for the neighborhood, has some lovely moments, especially with Paredes, and tackles the challenging “Paciencia y Fe” with gusto.
Even the more secondary characters have their chance to shine, most notably Samantha Padilla’s salon owner Daniela; Padilla is not only a comic powerhouse and scene stealer, but also boasts a voice that hit the back wall and then some. Her partner-in-crime Carla (Kierstin Hanifan) has some funny moments as well, and a lovely clear voice that pairs well with Navarro and Garcia in the second Act’s touching “Everything I Know.” Beckley does well portraying not only Sonny’s bravado but his youth. Even neighborhood “characters” like Graffiti Pete (Chris Medina) and the Piragua Guy (Trey Cardona) make the most of their small parts, while the rest of the ensemble (Breanna Cox, Angel Cruz, Breana Deanda, Cassandra Juarez, Melania Macdonald, Megan Mock, and Steven Rios) fill the stage with life and dance.
If I had to point to a weak spot in the production, it may be the show’s choreography. It’s nigh-unto impossible to live up to the legendary Andy Blankenbuehler’s original work, which is incredibly intricate and fast-paced to the point of frenetic. Though the dance in GPAC’s production (from Christian Houston) captures some of the original’s flair, it felt a bit bunched and cramped on the smaller stage, and needed more crispness and energy at times. There’s also a bit of a tendency for the characters to “park and bark”—to stand and sing without having much other business to do, which can make some numbers feel inert. But the show is buoyed by a fantastic live orchestra, led by music director and Conductor Kristin Spires; they never miss a beat, and achieve the apparently difficult task of not overpowering the actors onstage.
All told, it’s a fun, funny, and heartfelt production with an impeccable cast. Grab a box of popcorn from GPAC’s concession stand, and get ready to enjoy the heck out of yourself.
WHEN: Through June 26th
WHERE: Uptown Theater, 120 E. Main Street, Grand Prairie, TX 75050
