There are many ways in which Lin-Manuel Miranda’s debut 2008 musical, In the Heights, is able to speak to a 2016 audience in Chicago. And in saying so, there are plenty of parallels to draw within the setting of the show and the Chicago area itself. Washington Heights, the small, urban neighborhood in which In the Heights takes place, compares to many of Chicago’s smaller neighborhoods. In being similar to Washington Heights (along with holding the mutual relationship of just being a part of a large urban city in the United States of America), various neighborhoods in Chicago have a vibrant immigrant population. Just like the residents of Washington Heights (and congruently, the main characters in In the Heights), the citizens of Chicago have had to deal with similar social, financial, and political issues. Firstly, one must be able to understand the characters and the
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Although not directly indicated within the show any significance of the campaign, there was a moment where Sonny expressed his ideal use of $96,000 in the song “96,000.” This is one part of the show I found to be most relevant for today’s audience. Sonny, Usnavi’s cousin and one of his only helpers at the local bodega, touches on how “With ninety-six thousand, [he’d] finally fix housin’/ Give the barrio computers with wireless web browsin’” in order to help the future education of kids in their neighborhood (“96,000”). Additionally, he speaks of fixing the corrupt education system, the ignorance surrounding gentrification, the problems faced with the rich, and most strikingly brings up how “racism in this nation’s gone from latent to blatant” (“96,000”). This is seen today through the various social problems we are facing not only as a city, but also as a nation in general. For example, Sonny could not have been more correct in saying his line on racism due to the movements going on today. Even just less than a year ago, racism was nearly not as
Although not directly indicated within the show any significance of the campaign, there was a moment where Sonny expressed his ideal use of $96,000 in the song “96,000.” This is one part of the show I found to be most relevant for today’s audience. Sonny, Usnavi’s cousin and one of his only helpers at the local bodega, touches on how “With ninety-six thousand, [he’d] finally fix housin’/ Give the barrio computers with wireless web browsin’” in order to help the future education of kids in their neighborhood (“96,000”). Additionally, he speaks of fixing the corrupt education system, the ignorance surrounding gentrification, the problems faced with the rich, and most strikingly brings up how “racism in this nation’s gone from latent to blatant” (“96,000”). This is seen today through the various social problems we are facing not only as a city, but also as a nation in general. For example, Sonny could not have been more correct in saying his line on racism due to the movements going on today. Even just less than a year ago, racism was nearly not as