In the Heights Reviews
Washington Post- Recommended
"...As musicals tend to tell you, though, few hardships can’t be set aside when it’s time to dance, and under Santana’s guidance, the merengue, salsa and break dancing by the ensemble, 19 strong, is of a rewarding caliber. The nine-member orchestra conducted by Christopher Youstra, with the assistance of sound designer Matt Rowe, sets a grandly infectious beat. And on several occasions, such as whenever the terrific Tobias A. Young enters with his shaved-ices cart, to sing a few joyful bars of “Piragua,” the company of this buoying revival really does manage to scale the heights."
DC Theater Arts- Recommended
"...In the Heights has been lauded as the first Broadway musical to highlight the lives and rhythms of first generation immigrants. I don't know if that's entirely accurate - there's Rags, Pins and Needles and Ragtime, which trod similar stories of previous generations of immigrants, though from Eastern Europe, not Latin America. But this is one of a very few musicals that mines the lives, struggles and dreams of our latest - and most recently embattled population of immigrants. The dreams don't change, only the countries of origin. In the Heights reminds us that their story is the same as those of generations of immigrants before them. It's our American dream."
Talkin Broadway- Highly Recommended
"...The general public learned about Lin-Manuel Miranda when his Hamilton became a major cultural phenomenon, but musical theatre lovers already knew about him from his Tony Award-winning 2008 musical about life in a Latino immigrant community in upper Manhattan. While Miranda's score is not through-sung, director-choreographer Marcos Santana has staged the production with continuous movement; even when ensemble members walk across the stage, they seem to dance."
MD Theatre Guide- Highly Recommended
"...There is an abundance of talent, technical expertise, a solid score, and humanity in the story that makes “In the Heights” a must-see experience. Thank you to the Olney Theatre Center and the Round House Theatre for putting together such an extraordinary cast and crew helmed by a terrific director."
DCTheatreScene- Highly Recommended
"...The perfect blend of storytelling, direction, casting and design works to provide an experience of the multi-ethnic mixture of humanity that is part and parcel with a little neighborhood such as the one Miranda and Hudes have invented for In the Heights. It is also a valentine to the men and women who move to the U.S. to turn their hopes into realities - a true American tale, brilliant, bright and full of dreams."
BroadwayWorld- Highly Recommended
"...What began as a project of Lyn-Manuel Miranda as a sophomore at Wesleyan University in 1999 has morphed into a smash Tony-winning Broadway musical at the Olney Theatre Center in a co-production with Bethesda's Round House Theatre. Tickets have been so hot, that they extended the production before the show even began."