Before he created the theatrical and cultural sensation that was his 2015 Broadway smash “Hamilton,” Lin-Manuel Miranda conceived and composed the comparatively modest 2008 hit “In the Heights.”
Where the later one is widely heralded as a kind of glorified spectacle of revisionist historical pageantry, the earlier one is an affectionate and nostalgic little slice of contemporary Latin American life, situated in the Washington Heights community of Upper Manhattan. But both of the musicals effectively pulsate to the beats and rhythms of song scores that are heavily influenced by hip-hop and rap, among other more conventional styles of show tunes.
Credit: Mason Wood
Credit: Mason Wood
There is much to appreciate about City Springs Theatre’s current staging of “In the Heights,” just in terms of its opulent production values. It’s directed by the New York-based Natalie Caruncho, whose regional credits as a choreographer and actress include covering a couple of roles in the show’s first national tour. Judging by their bios in the program, most of her design team is based out of Florida: music director Bert Rodriguez (leading the company’s 12-piece orchestra on keyboards); choreographer Leo Lam; costume designer Angel Warren; and sound designer Anthony Narciso.
The imposing scenic design, meanwhile — featuring a row of several storefronts and apartment landings, set against the projected backdrop of the George Washington Bridge — is credited to Anna Louizos, who did the original Broadway version. So let’s hear it for City Springs’ own resident designer Mike Wood, who does a customarily consummate job of lighting the show, most memorably in one sequence depicting a fireworks display that seems to be discharging and illuminating the air, not above the actors on stage, but above the audience seated out in the auditorium.
Credit: Mason Wood
Credit: Mason Wood
Several principal members of the cast may be new to town, as well, although they’re no strangers to the material or the characters they’re portraying again here. Nicole Paloma Sarro, fine as the wise and caring grandmother figure on the block, has appeared in the role more than a half-dozen other times before. So have Paul Aguirre and Celina Polanco, as the protective parents of a daughter who’s contemplating dropping out of college and who might be falling for a guy they don’t approve of.
She’s played by Amanda Lopez (whose resume includes different roles in two previous “Heights” elsewhere), and the boyfriend is played by Kyle Robert Carter (reprising his part from one of the national tours). Even local performers Lilliangina Quinones (as a beauty salon operator) and Bryan Montemayor (as a pushcart vendor) are both veterans of Aurora’s 2017 rendition of the show.
Credit: Mason Wood
Credit: Mason Wood
To be sure, in many respects, the engaging actor and talented vocalist Marcello Audino (hot off his turn as Nathan Detroit in Atlanta Lyric’s “Guys and Dolls”) often feels like a breath of fresh air in the leading role of Usnavi, the owner of the neighborhood bodega and the show’s primary guiding force.
But the plain fact is that the music itself can be a rather problematic issue, or, at the very least, not for all tastes. For starters, although some scenes in the script (by Quiara Alegria Hudes) contain regular spoken dialogue to bridge the musical numbers and to reveal the back stories or thought processes of certain characters, other scenes awkwardly utilize a monotonous sing-song-y sung-through approach to conversational chit-chat that’s sort of akin to an opera.
Plus, unless you’re already familiar with the lyrics, a lot of the rapping starts to sound the same, which is to say not particularly melodic or distinctive — and simply making out all of the words is a near-impossible challenge, especially when the volume gets louder, or whenever a chorus of people is going at it simultaneously.
A few of the more traditional solos express a character’s struggle to balance a respect for and an obligation to familial heritage and legacy, while also embracing one’s personal freedom and independence: Sarro’s “Patience and Faith,” Aguirre’s “Useless” and “Attention,” Lopez’s “Breathe,” or her romantic duets with Carter, “Sunrise” and “When the Sun Goes Down.” Most of the songs in the show are belted out presentationally, directly to the audience from the front and center of the stage.
Although the energy level of City Springs’ “In the Heights” is undeniably vibrant, connecting with the characters in any emotionally meaningful way is decidedly less resounding, no matter how enthusiastically the show often tries to force itself on us.
THEATER REVIEW
“In the Heights”
Through Nov. 6. 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. $45-$128. Byers Theatre (at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center), 1 Galambos Way, Sandy Springs. 404-477-4365. www.cityspringstheatre.com.
Bottom line: Exuberantly delivered, above all else.
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