subject: In The Heights Tickets - Lin-manual Miranda Soars High [print this page] Anyone who follows Broadway knows that "In the Heights" is a musical that has defined the decade. One of the first to ever incorporate hip-hop, R&B and Latin influences onto the stage, the show picked up Best Musical at the 2008 Tony Awards for its overwhelming critical response and energy. For audiences everywhere, no one deserved the recognition more than musical director and lead actor Lin-Manual Miranda. The 30-year-old Washington Heights native developed the concept of his show about the barrio family while riding the subway in New York City.
While he keeps busy, Miranda most recently joined the touring cast at Los Angeles' Pantages Theatre, reprising the role he helped make famous. "My adult life has been spent writing this show," Miranda said to the Los Angeles Times. "So it'll be a joy to perform it in L.A. without any pressure." As the Broadway show continues to move across the country spreading the infectious raps and heartwarming ballads, In the Heights tickets should not be missed on StubHub.
Much like Miranda's character Usnavi, he has gone on to win the lottery of fame with the story about a group of friends searching for a dream. In just two years Miranda, who wrote the show while attending Wesleyan University, has garnered a Tony Award, earned a guest role on "House," secured a movie deal and begun writing a new Broadway play.
Yet the anxiety hasn't dispersed even after his show earned a place on Broadway. His college play first began as a workshop in 2000 but he didn't finalize the script for eight years, when the show premiered on Broadway. Only one song from the original workshop premiered at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, the Broadway stage where "In the Heights" remains today.
Though Miranda has left his post as Usnavi, the Puerto Rican shop owner who serves up the barrio's coffee and longs to return to his parents' homeland, the actor stays busy. After his run at the legendary Pantages concludes, he'll begin working on the Universal Pictures release with director Kenny Ortega. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Hollywood version will begin shooting in 2011. In addition he's penning a new script for Broadway, "Bring it On!" and will premiere his moves with the a New York Special "Freestyle Love Supreme."
The "In the Heights" tour most recently visited San Diego's Civic Theater, where the Southern California venue offered a new service to audiences. During the Sunday, Aug. 1 matinee the show welcomed an open-captioned performance by way of text and video images. Ideal for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing, this feature is also ideal for those who speak English as a second language or have trouble understanding the raps. The show concludes Aug. 1 and will move to Costa Mesa through the 15th.
"In the Heights" tells a universal tale of immigrants searching for prosperity and dreams in America. "When people come up to me after a show, they don't say, 'You were great,'" said Miranda. "They say, 'My grandmother came from Cuba.' Or Poland. Or Mexico. It's a universal story, parents sacrificing so their children can have a better life." See this show today.
