April Ortiz News

In The Heights, now playing at the Durham Performing Arts Center through February 27, may very well be one of the most charming, deliriously feel-good musicals ever written. The story is universal. A community must come together to find the true meaning of family or be torn apart. The music is fresh and dynamic, while reflecting the rhythms of past generations. The fascinating choreography is an eclectic mix of modern, hip-hop, and salsa. In The Heights is so full of love and joy that even the hardest hearts will melt by the final number. This is a musical masterpiece that must be seen!

In The Heights, now playing at the Durham Performing Arts Center through February 27, may very well be one of the most charming, deliriously feel-good musicals ever written. The story is universal. A community must come together to find the true meaning of family or be torn apart. The music is fresh and dynamic, while reflecting the rhythms of past generations. The fascinating choreography is an eclectic mix of modern, hip-hop, and salsa. In The Heights is so full of love and joy that even the hardest hearts will melt by the final number. This is a musical masterpiece that must be seen!

Once in a while, one of the most fortunate things about west coast debuts of touring shows is when a Broadway hit finally transfers here, bringing with it some of the original stars that helped launch it. For those able to catch the Los Angeles premiere of the 2008 Tony® Award-winner for Best Musical IN THE HEIGHTS (now playing at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood through July 25), the pleasant surprise is the presence of the show's original lead actor, who also happens to be the man who conceived the hit musical, as well as write the show's music and lyrics. Not to disparage those that have (and will) take on the same role, but at the very second Lin-Manuel Miranda appears on stage as Usnavi-the show's central hero and de facto narrator-the electric energy is palpable. In Miranda, we see the show's very heart and soul, filled with the hopes and dreams of the characters he helped personally craft. With his lead, the show literally comes to effervescent life.

On Tuesday, Kyle Beltran, Rogelio Douglas Jr., Natalie Toro and Shaun Taylor-Corbett kicked off the National Tour of IN THE HEIGHTS in Tampa, Floria at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center with a bang. Though most shows try desperately to keep the critics out during the first preview performances to work out any kinks, IN THE HEIGHTS was an exception, according to Tampa Bay Online. And boy, were they pleased.

As previously reported, Kyle Beltran, Rogelio Douglas Jr., Natalie Toro and Shaun Taylor-Corbett are set to star in the upcoming National Tour of IN THE HEIGHTS, which will launch October 27 at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. Complete casting has been announced today.

As previously reported, Kyle Beltran, Rogelio Douglas Jr., Natalie Toro and Shaun Taylor-Corbett are set to star in the upcoming National Tour of IN THE HEIGHTS, which will launch October 27 at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

As previously reported, Kyle Beltran, Rogelio Douglas Jr., Natalie Toro and Shaun Taylor-Corbett are set to star in the upcoming National Tour of IN THE HEIGHTS, which will launch October 27 at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. Complete casting has been announced today.

The cast has been announced for the upcoming reading of Garbo and Me at the York Theatre on September 17, 2009. The new musical, with book and lyrics by Joanne Sydney Lessner (Fermat?s Last Tango) and music and lyrics by Joshua Rosenblum (Bush Is Bad), is directed by Andy Sandberg (Tony Award winning Producer of Hair).

This spring, the Denver Center Theatre Company will complete an extraordinary journey through the decades of the Twentieth Century with director Israel Hicks and August Wilson's Radio Golf, remember the story of faith in a stage adaptation of John Irving's sweeping novel in A Prayer for Owen Meany, and laugh with the Serrano family in the world premiere of Sunsets and Margaritas.

CASTRONAUTS, or How I Killed Fidel, a revolutionary new musical by Bobby Houston, Patricio Bisso and Randy Courts, will receive its world premiere as part of this year's 5th annual New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF). Directed and choreographed by Will Pomerantz, Castronauts runs September 16 through 28 at the Zipper Factory.

CASTRONAUTS, or How I Killed Fidel, a revolutionary new musical by Bobby Houston, Patricio Bisso and Randy Courts, will receive its world premiere as part of this year's 5th annual New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF). Directed and choreographed by Will Pomerantz, Castronauts runs September 16 through 28 at the Zipper Factory.

The Summer Play Festival announces casting for the eagerly anticipated Summer Play Festival (SPF) now celebrating its fifth season in New York. Casts include Annie Golden, former lead singer for 'The Shirts' who has appeared in the movie HAIR; Marin Hinkle from CBS' TWO AND A HALF MEN; Annie Parisse from NBC's LAW & ORDER; Jenny Ikeda from MTC's acclaimed production of TOP GIRLS; and Dan Lauria from the long running series THE WONDER YEARS. Singer, songwriter and Tony Award winning Stew from the musical PASSING STRANGE will also be writing new music for one of the plays.