It’s a Friday when you walk out of 4th period, you think about how boring your weekend will be, sitting and scrolling on your phone in bed all day doesn’t sound amusing.
You walk towards the buses until you see on the bulletin board, “In the Heights”. A musical about a man named Usnavi, a bodega owner who wants to pursue his dreams of going back to the Dominican Republic.
You continue to read and find out it plays today in the auditorium, for only ten bucks. You can see the thrill of love, hardships and community.
The musical “In the Heights” explores the life of Usnavi and his dreams of going to the Dominican Republic. The musical is based on a book by Quiara Alegria Hudes with music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Hamilton”).
The musical also explores other characters like Nina Rosario due to the burden of expectation, loses her scholarship and drops out of Stanford.
“Being a first generation Latina to go to college comes with its own struggles and she’s overcoming these feelings of inadequacies but more than anything the message I want to convey with this message is to never lose sight of your identity.” said Nayeli Lemus, EHS 2026, and actress playing Nina Rosario.
The musical also has characters like Benny, an ambitious, hardworking young man who has his dreams of opening his own business. As a non latino character he’s deeply integrated into the community. He often quarrels with Nina’s father, Kevin Rosario due to him not being enough for his daughter.
“Benny is not really liked by Nina’s family and that’s because of his heritage so I would like to convey that no matter who you are, what you do, no matter what you believe in is to always be yourself. Don’t let the weight of this world, in society dictate how you do things.” said Shane Wilson Gibson, class of EHS 2026, and actor portraying Benny.
If you are into Latin music, fun close loving community, and happy feel-good moments then “In the Heights” is definitely a show that you should come see at Ewing High. Tickets are available for purchase at all lunches, and online at: https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/ewing-high-school/694951b1fe89f0104c12c10f/tickets#/productions-view
