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Review: In The Heights

  • 103997752
  • Aug 9
  • 3 min read

Updated: Aug 10

In The Heights takes Melbournians on a powerful journey abroad, Genevieve Spiteri and Louie Cina review. 

 

A little slice of New York is on display in Melbourne’s Comedy Theatre with In The Heights, the Tony Award-winning musical, which last showed in Melbourne in 2015.

 

In The Heights is touring Australia with its first stop in Melbourne, showing until the 6th of September before it heads to the Gold Coast. Until then, prepare to exit Melbourne’s bitter winter and step into the scorching heat of New York in July.  


Get ready for a fun but powerful journey through the Washington Heights Barrio. (Image: Supplied)
Get ready for a fun but powerful journey through the Washington Heights Barrio. (Image: Supplied)

 

If there’s one thing In The Heights strives to accomplish, it’s immersion; the snack bar has been transformed into the “Piragua Bar”, serving flavoured shaved ice, nachos and themed cocktails; If you settle into your seat early, you can watch Graffiti Pete tag the stage and set the mood. When the show begins, the opening number, the titular In The Heights, introduces our ensemble and their problems and flaws.  You’ll feel like you’re peeping through a window into Washington Heights. 

 

It’s clear from the get-go that In The Heights is energetic, intense and fun. There are moments of intensely choreographed prop work – cups, boxes and towels fly across the stage and are caught perfectly – and this chaos integrates perfectly with the rest of the choreography, highlighting the bustling nature of the Barrio and the eccentricities of its inhabitants. 

 

While the set is relatively small and simplistic, the use of traditional lighting structures and digital screens helps make the set feel much bigger. There’s a strong sense of character in the set design, which helps to shoulder the massive weight of importing New York and all its cultures to Aussie shores. You’ll be hearing English, Spanish and Spanglish riffing off the walls of Washington Heights, all from your seat on Exhibition Street. It feels, from the start, like a genuinely authentic love letter to the city and its neighbourhood. 


Ryan Gonzalelz (Centre) delivers an inspiring performance as Usnavi. (Image: Supplied).
Ryan Gonzalelz (Centre) delivers an inspiring performance as Usnavi. (Image: Supplied).

 

The cast is strong. There are many extremely talented performers who give a lot of energy into their musical numbers, especially so during 96,000, The Club and Carnival Del Barrio. The choreography is cut clean and executed seamlessly, none more so than during The Club, where salsa dancing meets run-of-the-mill club beats without a hint of awkwardness or confusion. 

 

Ryan González (Usnavi) and Olivia Vásquez (Vanessa) absolutely steal the show, with their unmatched skills and impeccable talents in both singing and acting. González shows off their incredible timing and flow in the rap numbers and Vásquez captivates the audience with her excellent movement and dancing, elevating the source material into an incredibly emotional and captivating performance, while still paying homage. 

 

González portrays Usnavi with an unwavering sense of pride in their character’s Puerto Rican heritage, coupled with an intense sense of care and compassion for his community in the Washington Heights Barrio. Musicals are built on community, and González’s performance drives this home. 


The choreography in In The Heights delivers spectacular moments. (Image: Supplied)
The choreography in In The Heights delivers spectacular moments. (Image: Supplied)

 

In wake of the recent crackdown on so-called “illegal immigrants”, many of whom belong to the Latin American community, the Carnaval Del Barrio felt especially poignant. The audience erupted as Latin American flags unfurled at one moment, and then fell into stunned silence and tears the next, particularly during Mariah Gonzalez’s performance of Nina Rosario in Everything I Know.

 

There were, however, a couple of growing pains during opening night. Some of the microphones were not turned on at the right time, leaving some actors without mic coverage, alongside mic pops and band mis-timings – you would hope this would have been sorted during previews, but these minor issues are just that--minor, meaning this does not ruin the performance or the enjoyment of the show.  

 

The music is amazing, the acting is profound, and the dancing is exciting. This production of In The Heights is an absolutely excellent experience, so make sure you get to it before it leaves in September.  


Ngali Shaw (Centre left) and Mariah Gonzalez (Centre right) ensure there's never a dull moment. (Image: Supplied)
Ngali Shaw (Centre left) and Mariah Gonzalez (Centre right) ensure there's never a dull moment. (Image: Supplied)

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