Cats arrived to widespread derision last month, but hopes remain high for several splashy, stage-derived musicals in 2020. While the world waits for a Hamilton movie, Lin-Manuel Miranda fans will be tided over with the film of his earlier Broadway smash In the Heights, a vibrant ensemble piece set within New York’s Latin American community, with a score encompassing salsa and hip-hop.
It’ll make for an interesting contrast to Steven Spielberg’s Ansel Elgort-starring remake of the beloved West Side Story, adapted by Pulitzer-winning playwright Tony Kushner. In Britain, meanwhile, surprise West End hit Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is coming to the screen with a cast of bright young things and stalwarts including Richard E Grant; this feelgood story of a teenage drag queen could be the next Billy Elliot.
The Heights (2020)
In the Heights centers on a variety of characters living in the neighborhood of Washington Heights, on the northern tip of Manhattan. At the center of the show is Usnavi, a bodega owner who looks after the aging Cuban lady next door, pines for the gorgeous girl working in the neighboring beauty salon and dreams of winning the lottery and escaping to the shores of his native Dominican Republic.
Meanwhile, Nina, a childhood friend of Usnavi’s, has returned to the neighborhood from her first year at college with surprising news for her parents, who have spent their life savings on building a better life for their daughter. Ultimately, Usnavi and the residents of the close-knit neighborhood get a dose of what it means to be home.
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