'In the Heights' comes to Tilles Center

In many ways, it's far easier to bring a Broadway show to Los Angeles than it is to Long Island.

So it's a coup for Tilles Center director Elliott Sroka to land "In the Heights," the 2008 Tony winner for best musical, within the same calendar year as it closed on Broadway.

"In the Heights" is the salsa-infused story of a Washington Heights neighborhood anchored by a bodega. It's the story, too, of the bodega owner, a son of immigrants who named him after the first sight they glimpsed in their new land: Usnavi for the U.S. Navy ship they spotted. On Broadway, Usnavi was played by the show's creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda. At Tilles, he'll be played by Perry Young, self-

described on his website as a "Los Angeles-based actor and waiter."

The first national tour of "Heights" opened in 2009 and closed in April, three months after the musical's last bow on Broadway. Sunday's performance at Tilles will be the 11th stop on the second national tour, which began just three weeks ago in Clemson, S.C.

Striking a balance

"We try to balance our Broadway series with classics for the whole family and contemporary shows, such as 'Heights' and, last season, 'Spring Awakening,' " Sroka says. "We're part of a college campus, after all. And we need to cultivate new audiences. But our proximity limits us in terms of getting a show before it closes on Broadway."

For example, The Midtown Men play Tilles in March. Midtown Men, you ask? They're part of the original cast of "Jersey Boys" presenting a concert version of hits by the Four Seasons, among others. But because "Jersey Boys" is still playing Broadway, neither the words "Jersey" nor "boys" can be used to promote the show.

Hoofer in charge

For Michael Balderrama, director-choreographer of this latest incarnation of "In the Heights," the tour is a breakthrough opportunity. He's a dancer who took a step back to be part of the show. Balderrama played a principal role in "Hot Feet" on Broadway before signing up Off-Broadway with "Heights" as an offstage dance captain, swing ensemble player and understudy. He moved with the show to Broadway, then became associate choreographer for its first national tour. "I love acting, dancing and writing, but above and beyond that, I want a future in directing."

Among his predecessors in that ambition are Tommy Tune ("Nine") and the late Michael Bennett ("A Chorus Line"). Balderrama gets his chance on this second national tour.

Out of towners

At first, Balderrama worried about how the show would play far from the Heights. "But the story is so universal -- beyond ethnic, beyond neighborhood -- that out-of-town audiences have been the most receptive," he says, "even when we were on Broadway."

With a tight truck-and-bus touring schedule and little time to erect a set and knock it down, "Heights" needed to be scaled down for its second itinerary. "I was a little nervous about that," Balderrama admits. "But then I went back to my Off-Broadway notes. The cast is now the same size as back then, and I think we recover some of that intimacy."

Even in the 2,000-seat Tilles Center?

"Intimacy comes from focusing on the moment," he says, "and pinpointing the lighting. It puts you right there, 'In the Heights.' "