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- Manuel speaking with students in the Intercultural Center before the evening event
The two opening cuts from the musical, Usnavi’s opening rap introducing all the characters and Nina’s first song, were featured in my English 53/ “modern American poetry” course last year, which had a 3-week module on the lyrics and music of U.S. popular song from the 1920s through the present. If you don’t know In the Heights—the most important musical to appear on Broadway since Rent—check out the excerpts that are available on YouTube (along of lots of covers by amateurs of songs like Nina’s that have already become classics). Manuel had great collaborators but he basically was both George AND Ira Gershwin for this musical: he wrote both the music and the lyrics.