Review: 'In The Heights' US National Tour - Denver

For those who have seen the show in New York with the original cast, I am sure comparisons will be made. For theatre lovers, Lin-Manuel Miranda became a "star" and is the driving force behind this show having conceived, written the music for and starred in the show on Broadway. He along with other cast members created characters that, from what I can tell, some felt were possibly hard to replicate by other actors. But then again, that happens with a lot of performances in a lot of big shows. I did not have the chance to see the show in New York. I walked in having only seen video clips, the performance on the Tony Awards and having heard the Original Cast Recording. I will honestly say that I was not crazy about the score. (Which won a Grammy for Best Original Cast Recording.) But that was no reason to judge this production going in.

I am happy to say that It is easy to see why "In The Heights" is still going strong on Broadway after its opening two years ago and winning a slew of awards including the 2008 Tony Award for Best Musical. Especially if its cast is as good as the one that opened the 1st National Tour's Denver run on Wednesday evening. It is evident that replacements on Broadway are doing just fine. And it is obvious that along with the Broadway production, the creative team has taken great care in making the touring production a very good one.

What I found wonderful about the cast is that there really was no "star". Yes, Usnavi (And wait until you hear the origin of his name) played by Kyle Beltran, is kind of our guide through the show, but Mr. Beltran at no time takes the spotlight off of his fellow cast mates. The entire cast interacts as if they aren't even on stage but are going through their daily lives in Washington Heights outside and around Usnavi's bodega. And that's what draws you in and makes you love and care for each of the characters as their separate stories unfold. Although each character has his or her own storyline, the central theme is moving up and moving on. Moving out is also a part of moving on. Acceptance and a winning lottery ticket is the catalyst for a lot of the storyline in Act 2. It is very hard for me to single out certain performances but there is one that stuck out for me. I have to say, at first, I was a little out to lunch with Natalie Toro as Camila. I just didn't feel as if she was "connecting" with her fellow cast mates until near the end of the first act and then during her second act number "Enough". I realized, for me at least, that she was subtly taking her character to the point of that song. Camila having dreams of her own had been "pushed" to the point where she had to let her family know what she was feeling. As a whole, you could feel the connection this cast had and when they danced it looked more as if they were having a blast just dancing with each other and feeling the rhythm as opposed to doing choreographed moves.

And that score that I wasn't too crazy about? Well in context, it is very good and oh so well sung by this extremely vocally talented cast. Even when overpowered by the, very good, "In The Heights Band", they still soar. I would suspect that the sound "quality" may vary from venue to venue, but I hope it can be adjusted here to allow one to catch more of Mr. Beltran's lyrics which are rapped, especially in the opening number and the finale. But during the quieter times, you can bask in the wonderful vocal abilities of this cast. I was left a bit breathless by Nina and Benny's "Sunrise". (Played respectively by Ariella Jacobs ad Rogelio Douglas, Jr.)

Rounding out this wonderful production is the one piece set that takes on a life of its own during the show. The three businesses ( Usnavi's bodega, Rosario's Car Service and Daniela's Salon) look as if they were lifted right out of a New York neighborhood. Above are apartments with small balconies whose walls become transparent at times with the George Washington Bridge in the background. Howell Binkley' lighting design is absolutely wonderful. Andy Blankenbuehler's choreography, while at times seems a bit repetitive, keeps the cast moving and is the most impressive during the club scene at the end of act one. But as mentioned earlier, the cast executes it wonderfully.

So to those members of the cast whose performances I did not single out, please know that as a whole you left me loving these characters, laughing and crying with them and most of all caring about them by the time you danced offstage and I was making my way out of the theatre. And that's a feeling I love to have at the end of a good night at the theatre. A friend of mine told me he likes to go into a theater and be told a good story. You all told it well.

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