University of Pittsburgh Stages Presents In the Heights March 27-April 6

PITTSBURGH—Washington Heights is a tight-knit community where the coffee from the corner bodega is light and sweet, the windows are always open, and the breeze carries the rhythm of three generations of music.

In the Heights—which runs March 27 through April 6 at the University of Pittsburgh—explores what it takes to make a living, what it costs to have a dream, and what it means to be at home in the Heights.

Performances of this Tony Award-winning play will be held in Pitt’s Charity Randall Theatre, located in the Stephen Foster Memorial, Forbes Ave. and Bigelow Blvd., Oakland. Shows will be performed at 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays. To purchase tickets, visit www.play.pitt.edu or call 412-624-PLAY (7529).

In the Heights is based on a book by Quiara Alegría Hudes and its characters, who identify primarily as Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican, or African American. Its musical score comprises hip-hop, Latin jazz, merengue, and salsa.

“The characters, story, music, and dance communicate the rich and complex interplay of African, Hispanic, American, and Caribbean histories,” says director and Pitt Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts Lisa Jackson-Schebetta. “The show poses the question: How does a person belong … to a city, to a nation, to a family, and to a history?”

University of Pittsburgh Stages is collaborating with a number of professional artists and musicians, including the STAYCEE PEARL dance project, which will provide dancers for one number and choreography for the other numbers. In the Heights ran on Broadway from January 2008 to January 2011 and won two Tony Awards.

During the show’s run, two related symposiums will be held. On April 4 at 3 p.m. and again on April 5 at 10:30 a.m., University of Pittsburgh Stages will present “Public Praxis: Performing, Race, History,” a free public interdisciplinary symposium featuring a variety of presentations and lectures, some done as performance. Artists, scholars, and members of the general public are invited to gather at Pitt’s Humanities Center, 602 Cathedral of Learning, 4200 Fifth Ave., Oakland, to discuss how race issues are portrayed in live performances and what that means in the larger context of our daily lives.

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