In the Heights Brings Heart, Heritage and Comunidad to Landis Auditorium

In the Heights, directed by Professor Jodi Julian in Landis Auditorium:

• Thursday, Oct. 30, 10 a.m. – Faculty Equity Flex performance

• Thursday, Oct. 30, 7 p.m.

• Friday, Oct. 31, 7 p.m.

• Saturday, Nov. 1, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

• Sunday, Nov. 2, 2 p.m.

Reserve your tickets today.

Enjoy an art installation curated by RCC’s Art Department visiting artist Cosme Cordova and students in Bryan C. Keene, Ph.D.’s, Introduction to Exhibitions course. Let’s celebrate Hispanic Heritage year-round.

“Since the beginning of the great unfinished symphony that is our American experiment, time and time again, immigrants get the job done!”
– Lin-Manuel Miranda, University of Pennsylvania Commencement address, 2016

Immigrants have always helped make America great.

In the Heights is a story of sueños, comunidad y amor—dreams that lift us, a community that grounds us, and love that carries us along. It is a story of those who hustle, those who sacrifice, those who thrive. They fall in love, chase a college degree, scrape together savings to open a small business. They swap gossip at the beauty salon and share **recuerdos—memories—**of homelands near and far. We see the kids who dance in the street, the parents who hold everything together, and the **abuelas—grandmothers and matriarchs—**who remind us of our roots. The barrio beats with rhythm and resilience: even in the face of injustice, they carry paciencia y fe—patience and faith—lifting alabanzas, or praises, to their ancestors. Each character wants más—belonging, security, home, a chance to shine—and in reaching for it, they show a full picture of immigrant and working-class life.

The creative team behind In the Heights brings a lineage of música, storytelling and corazón—heart. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who conceived the show and wrote its music and lyrics, also gave us _Hamilton_ and songs for Disney’s Moana and Encanto. Quiara Alegría Hudes, Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright of Water by the Spoonful, wrote the book for the musical and its film adaptation, shaping it with her signature insight into Latinx life and language. The show opened on Broadway in 2008 and was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, winning four—including Best Musical. When Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians, Wicked) directed the film version, he brought Washington Heights to the screen with vibrancy, humor and an even more pressing sense of activism.

To stage this story in Riverside in 2025 is to echo our own streets and our own moment. In the Heights speaks loudly in a time when, as the show reminds us, “racism has gone from latent to blatant,” and when undocumented lives remain vulnerable. In a moment when raising the banderas of our homelands with orgullo—pride—is an act of resistance, Miranda takes us beyond the familiar New York neighborhoods of _West Side Story_ and RENT, insisting that In the Heights is a celebration of a barrio that refuses to be invisible. As he reminds us, every staging brings its own community to the stage, letting each city raise its voice in celebration of Latinidad and Hispanidad.

Our students feel this deeply.

“My family are immigrants—my dad came from Perú at age 8 and worked any job to survive. I see that same passion in Usnavi,” shares Emilio.

Bella finds Nina’s story close to her own: “It means acknowledging my family and how they paved the way for me. I don’t need to feel bad about succeeding.”

For Sebastian, the show is lleno de corazón: “This musical always reminds me of my household, my childhood city. With immigration today, it feels like a huge ‘¡ya basta!’ to the government.”

Victoria hears her Lola in Abuela Claudia’s words: “The idea of choosing a community as a family will always be something I identify with.”

Lupito and Alexis hold onto themes of familia: “Letting go and letting your family ease your burdens,” wrote the former; “Love for family is the number one motivation—my character puts aside her own dream,” said the latter.

Andy sees it as “a colorful reflection of the immigrant experience… an invitation to raw beauty in the cracks of unprivileged life.”

Nathan connects with feeling like an outsider: “My character’s stereotyped as up to no good, but really has huge heart—and I know what it’s like to grow up under that same stereotype.”

Bianca C., who once longed for a place that reflected her own heritage, explains: “I couldn’t wait to find a space where I’d feel seen and appreciated for who I am and where I come from.”

Matt, reflecting on the piragüero, shares: “Piragua guy is joy. He’s a reminder of home for immigrants, a sign they belong here and aren’t alone. This show is a love letter to Latinos and people who look like me.”

And playing the matriarch, Bianca G. notes that seeing all the flags of the Latine/Chicane experience raised high in the show lifts all of us higher and fills us with tears of deep pride. She adds, “I’m excited to be in the musical because of the loud and proud celebration of our culture. Especially because of the climate of the world we are living in now—it doesn’t just feel powerful, it feels necessary.”

The cast brings ancestries that cross oceans and generations: the Caribeñes—Puerto Rico, Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic—flowing through Mexico and Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica), down to Perú and Argentina; stretching to the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia; alongside Apache and Cherokee Native American ancestry, African Americans and others from the African diaspora; and reaching across Europe through Ireland, Italy, France, Germany, Portugal and Ukraine. Over 20 nationalities, woven together into one community.

And in rehearsal, they live that comunidad. They share stories of abuelas, primos, and tías, laugh about piraguas—snow cones—or raspados—shaved ice with syrup that cool a summer block. They bring snacks, exchange recipes, reminisce about family, history and heritage. Story by story, bite by bite, they build **confianza—**trust—until the rehearsal hall feels like a home.

In the Heights is a gathering. A celebration of cultura—our culture. A reminder that **nuestras voces—our voices—**carry legacies of resilience, joy and belonging.