West End IN THE HEIGHTS Celebrates 1st Birthday, Sam Mackay Talks HAMILTON

On Friday 30 September, In the Heights celebrated its first birthday at King's Cross Theatre, and it certainly marked the occasion in style. Setting the London theatre scene on fire when it premiered at the Southwark Playhouse in 2014, it has continued to thrill audiences in its new central London home, recently announcing an extension until January 2017.

The Tony Award-winning musical written by Lin-Manuel Miranda - whose Hamilton is the hottest ticket on Broadway, with a London transfer taking place next autumn - originally premiered Off-Broadway in 2007, but has gone from strength to strength. Set in New York City's Washington Heights, it focuses on a tightly-knit community of people, many of whom are desperate to escape the neighbourhood.

Usnavi (Sam Mackay) has dreams of winning the lottery and leaving for the Dominican Republic with his adopted abuela Claudia, while Nina (Gabriela Garcia) returns from her first year at Stanford University in California. She struggles when everyone continues to tell her how proud they are of her, only for her to reveal she lost her scholarship and dropped out, much to her parents' dismay.

The story's focus on calling somewhere 'home' is something that Sam, who has been with the show since its Southwark run, believes encourages audiences to keep coming back. Speaking to BroadwayWorld, he said: "I think it has universal values that people connect with; it's a loving piece, full of heart, and the general themes of home and community are things that people are crying out for. The community spirit, which is so central to In the Heights, really appeals to people who are feeling a little lost with everything that's going on in the world right now."

Drew McOnie's Olivier Award-winning choreography is brilliantly performed by every member of the cast, who embrace the small space they have to work with. The enclosed space also means the audience feels right at the heart of everything taking place on stage, connecting with each character and their individual story. Jocasta Almgill was fantastic as assertive salon owner Daniela, and although I was sad to miss David Bedella as Nina's father Kevin, Vas Constanti brought a lot of heart to the role.

Lin-Manuel Miranda certainly knows the secret to a smash-hit musical, and with Hamilton set to come over to the West End next year, Sam, who admits he's a huge fan, would feel honoured to be considered for a role. "The hype around Hamilton is well deserved, because it is genuinely a piece of musical theatre genius and it's definitely a project that interests me. There are roles that I feel I would like to take a crack at, and if there's an opportunity for me to be a part of it, then I'll do everything I can to justify it!"

In the Heights is currently booking at King's Cross Theatre until 8 January, 2017

Photo credit: Johan Persson

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