In The Heights Character Question

[kel62286]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 2:05pm

How old is the character of Sonny supposed to be? I thought he was closer to Usnavi in age, but after listening to the recording I thought that maybe he was a teenager still in high school? I also don't remember him being at the club from seeing it on Broadway. Thanks!

[playbills]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 2:10pm

He's 16 :)

[Boq101]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 2:20pm

so if I audition... :P

ha, as if, I'm the whitest hispanic I know.

[fanadu1996]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 3:58pm

well, no one really knows. bc the script is so underdeveloped and bad. :)
music (minus like 4 songs) and dancing is pretty good tho.

[TooDarnHot]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 4:09pm

you joined the board just to bash the IN THE HEIGHTS book?

fair enough. it's a good reason.

[jaystarr]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 4:11pm

at least..he is a fANADu! I think I know who he is?~ lol...

J*

[jaystarr]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 4:12pm

To answer your question: I think he is under 21. Yes.. he is not in THE CLUB..that's a clue!

J*

[MyLife]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 7:06pm

Also, if Vanessa was his babysitter, she would have to be somewhat significantly older than him. Usnavi and Vanessa are probably around the same age - mid twenties? - so I'd agree with saying Sonny is 16 or 17

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 7:14pm

Vanessa didn't babysit him. Nina did. So that would place him even younger, seeing as how she's 19 or so.

In "El Carnaval del Barrio," he says that Benny stole the girl that he was in love with, and that she was his babysitter first.

Updated On: 6/14/08 at 07:14 PM

[MyLife]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 7:36pm

Right, right, my bad. I knew that... guess this means I haven't seen the show enough

[itwontbelongnowx]

Posted: 6/14/08 at 8:03pm

He was younger than 16 when the show was Off-Broadway. There was a line before No Me Diga where Daniela said, "Sonny's dating an older woman, she's 16 and she has the ugliest hair extensions I have ever seen."

I've always thought Sonny to be 14-15 years old, from that.

[alfgiotir]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 12:03am

he must be if nina is 19 and she was his babysitter. i would say at most 15.

[Anakela]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 12:14am

Usnavi and Vanessa are probably around the same age - mid twenties?

fun fact: the StageNOTES Teacher's Guide to In the Heights spells out that Nina and Vanessa are both 19 years old (I think it is actually kinda inferred in the show that they were the same year in school, myself), but which raises the question: so if she's 19 then how does Vanessa buy the champagne? :) So I've just decided that she has a fake id, like any good 19 year old should, lol.

and for those who are interested, the teacher's guide says that Sonny is 15 years old.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 2:25am

Usnavi's probably early 20s, actually. Nina says that he was a baby in 1987.

Urgh, Vanessa's 19? I feel ooold.

Updated On: 6/15/08 at 02:25 AM

[verynewyorkcurious]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 4:12am

If Vanessa and Nina are 19, then how did they get into the club? I don't remember, was Sonny there too?

[verynewyorkcurious]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 4:15am

and how does she buy champagne?

[blaxx]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 4:24am

Wow, theater really is magic, how much older than the characters are the performers?

[BroadwayChica]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 4:51am

verynewyorkcurious. obviously you've never heard of fake ids

[thetheatrekook]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 8:28am

plus, a lot of clubs are 18 to enter, 21 to drink :)

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 12:07pm

Benny gets drunk, doesn't he? I thought that he was Nina's age.

[Boq101]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 1:03pm

Kids my age get drunk and eat hash brownies in school, im only 16.This is a suburb I'm talking about.

I wouldn't put it past Benny to have gotten durnk several times in his life by 19.

I don't anything, I'm too much of a fruit to want to ruin my voice...
Updated On: 6/15/08 at 01:03 PM

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 2:02pm

Kids my age get drunk and eat hash brownies in school, im only 16.This is a suburb I'm talking about.



About 10 7th graders got caught in school with hash brownies. It was funny, I don't like them. But Benny is Nina's age or older.
Updated On: 6/15/08 at 02:02 PM

[jordangirl]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 2:28pm

well, no one really knows. bc the script is so underdeveloped and bad. :)

Exactly how many shows DO tell the ages of their characters? I can think of a lot of very good shows that don't mention the character's ages at all. When did that become a requirement for a 'good book'?

I'm not saying ITH has a perfect book or even implying it. But to imply as you do that not having the characters' ages in the dialogue it's a bad book...that doesn't make sense to me.

Updated On: 6/15/08 at 02:28 PM

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 3:34pm

Boq101: But he was drinking in the club. So he must have a fake ID if he isn't 21+.

[Anakela]

Posted: 6/15/08 at 3:50pm

Benny and Usnavi are 24. Nina and Vanessa are 19.

This thread is fascinating because the only character age I ever questioned was Daniela's-

"In this album, there's a picture, of the ladies at Daniela's.
You can tell it's from the 80s, by the volume of their hair."

(Going with the assumption that Heights is set relatively present day), there's supposed to have been a Daniela's as far back as the 80s, and yet Daniela's in her 30s?

StageNotes link below, age info is on page 6
http://www.campbroadway.com/stagenotes/InTheHeights_StageNotes.pdf Updated On: 6/15/08 at 03:50 PM