By Tatiana Craine

Call it the little musical that could. Since hitting the Broadway stage, “In the Heights” has been an exciting and inspiring production about a group of people in New York’s Washington Heights neighborhood. With music, lyrics and an original concept by Tony winner Lin-Manuel Miranda, “In the Heights” shows that while places and traditions change, friends and family will always be there.The musical follows Usnavi, a bodega owner and the narrator of “In the Heights,” as his neighborhood starts radically transforming before his eyes. Usnavi and a group of tight-knit Washington Heights neighbors grow and change just as quickly as their city, but they wonder at what cost those alterations come.

“In the Heights” breaks through the Broadway mold and exudes the spirit of the Heights with Latin-immersed beats and rhythms that float off the stage, leaving audiences begging for an opportunity to show off their own dancing skills. About the show, Lin-Manuel Miranda said, “I grew up in Northern Manhattan, and if you’ve ever even driven through the neighborhood, you know that music comes out of every corner. Salsa horn lines wail from fire escape windows; bachata guitar lines blare from pimped-out car stereos.”

The show swept the Tony Awards in 2008 with four wins, including Best Musical. Additionally, “In the Heights” won a Grammy Award in 2008 for Best Musical Show Album. The production shies away from the gritty and coarse subject matter like drug-abuse and gang-violence in favor of focusing on the positive issues in the characters’ lives. “In the Heights” makes its Minneapolis debut at the Orpheum Theatre Dec. 1-6.

For ticket information, visit www.hennepintheatretrust.org or call the box office at 1-800-982-2787. Ticket prices range from $28-$78.