“In the Heights” honored at Tonys

A hip-hop musical inspired by Latino life in New York City neighborhood earned four Tony Awards last night. “In the Heights” had been nominated for 13 awards and in the end was given nods as the year’s top musical along with best original score for the theater, best choreography and best orchestrations.

The musical struggled off-Broadway and took a big gamble to be produced on the Great White Way against “heavily marketed mega-musicals”. Yet the risk paid off as “In the Heights” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda accepted several honors:

Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote the music and lyrics for "In the Heights," rapped his way through his acceptance speech for best score, saying: "I know I wrote a little show about home. Mr. Sondheim, look, I made a hat. (a reference to a lyric in Sondheim's 'Sunday in the Park with George') But there never was a hat — it's a Latin hat at that!"

Also recognized at the Tonys was Brazilian opera star and Broadway newcomer Paulo Szot; he received best musical leading actor for his role in the revival of “South Pacific”.

Sources- courant.com, Los Angeles Times, Associated Press, Guardian UK, BBC News, Bloomberg,

Image-New York Times