In The Heights Director Teases a Showstopping Musical Number

In The Heights has a sneaky showstopping musical number according to director Jon Chu. He talked to the Associated Press about the upcoming HBO Max/theater release. The movie has had a couple of trailers and the television spots are picking up steam. For Chu, this story has the potential to be one of those films that get the audience to stand up and cheer. ‘Paciencia y Fe’ is the big number that the director feels will connect with the people out there watching. According to Chu, this song was a major moment at a table read for the script. Olga Merediz knocked it out of the park and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house by the time the song was over. So, if there are a bunch of moments like that, the movie is going to do just fine.

“‘Paciencia y Fe’ is a showstopper in my mind. When (actor Olga Merediz) sang it at our table read, everyone was in tears. And yet at the same time that’s just the easiest number to cut in a studio meeting. It costs a lot of money to show the struggle of this woman. Like, oh that’s ‘Feed the Birds,’ that’s when everybody goes to the bathroom.,” Chu explained.

“When you talk about how your parents came over from another country, it’s like oh (no big deal) but that’s like the most rock star (expletive) ever. That deserves a giant musical number! That deserves the biggest painting,” he added. “And yet we’re a few inches from her face the whole time. We rarely back away. We purposely did not make it about the dancers. It’s about her and the dancers all around her. Everybody understood: Don’t take it away from her, give it to her. We had to fight for that every inch of the way.”

Speaking with The A.V. Club, Lin-Manuel Miranda had to give the filmmaker a lot of credit for leaving his stamp on the narrative.

“Jon, I think, dreamed bigger than any of us in terms of the size and scope of this,” the Hamilton star said. “I think we’re so used to asking for less — just to ask to occupy space, as Latinos. Like, let us make our little movie. And Jon, every step of the way, was like, ‘No. This is a big movie. These guys have big dreams. We’re allowed to go that big.”

Will you be catching In The Heights on opening night? Let us know in the comments!