If she can make it in Hell’s Kitchen, she can make it anywhere

The North American tour of Hell’s Kitchen brought themes of teenage angst, dreams and heartbreak to the Landmark Theatre in downtown Syracuse.

The two-time Tony-winning musical tells the story of Grammy Award-winning artist Alicia Keys’ coming of age in New York City, her introduction to piano and the relationship with her mother. 

Keys has built a legacy in pop and R&B music, selling more than 65 million records and becoming a household name known for her soulful vocals. The show features some of Keys’ most acclaimed songs, such as “Girl on Fire,” “Fallin’,” “If I Ain’t Got You” and original pieces.

The relationship between Ali, a character inspired by a teenage Keys, and her mother, Jersey, explores not only the dynamics between an angsty adolescent and a strict mother but also the disconnect between different lived experiences through the musical. 

Seventeen-year-old Ali, played by Myia Ann Butler, starts the show with a monologue that introduces her apartment building, giving the audience a glimpse into the personalities of each floor’s residents. Colorful lights illuminated the stage as Ali switches from floor to floor. The set was primarily made up of industrial bar designs representing architectural scenes of buildings. Behind the performers, a screen displayed changing backgrounds, from a bedroom to outside the red brick building.

Ali shows obvious signs of having a crush on Knuck, a drummer and painter, played by Jon Avery Worrell. The audience is introduced to that relationship with Key’s famous song “You Don’t Know My Name,” from her iconic album The Diary of Alicia Keys.

Knuck has no initial interest in Ali, but she continues to pursue him, occasionally breaking the fourth wall to update the audience on her inner thoughts.

The dance number paired with “You Don’t Know My Name” involved several of Ali’s friends who play music outside of her building. 

Keys is known for many talents, especially her piano skills. One of her most renowned piano performances was at the 61st Grammy Awards where she played two pianos at once. Hell’s Kitchen gives an inside look at Keys’ introduction to the instrument, as the audience watches Ali learn piano from one of the apartment’s tenants, Miss Liza Jane, played by Roz White. 

Ali first notices her in the Ellington Room, where Miss Liza Jane shows up at the same time every week. The two develop a close bond, with Miss Liza Jane as a strict teacher who wants to help Ali be her best. Ali quickly progresses her skills through consistency by following all of Miss Liza Jane’s instructions.

Perhaps the most intimate relationship throughout the entire musical is between Ali and her mother Jersey, played by Emily Kristen Morris. Her parents are separated and Jersey essentially raises Ali all on her own. Jersey is protective of Ali and the pair navigate through trials and tribulations together, such as her father re-entering their lives, the death of a close friend and her crush deciding to move away.

Ali is persistent on seeing Knuck even against her mother’s wishes. Her mother repeatedly refers to the love interest as a “thug,” even though she doesn’t know him. An apparent romance begins brewing between Ali and Knuck, and when Jersey finds out, she calls the cops on him.

Jersey doesn’t initially understand the lasting impact that calling the police would have on the young man. Despite the intense situation, Ali is upset because of her mother’s interference in her love life — it takes her a while to even consider the impact of the arrest on Knuck himself.

This specific scene represents Ali’s youthful lack of awareness and the selfishness of a 17-year-old immersed in their own world.

The final duet between Jersey and Ali, featuring Keys’ Grammy Award-winning “No One,” represents the growth and resolution after weeks of fighting and misunderstanding between the two.

As Ali sits back down at the piano, where she had all of her lessons, the musical transitions to the final number of the show with one of Keys’ most popular tunes, “Empire State of Mind.”

As the iconic melody began, the audience gasped and whispered cheers of excitement as they immediately recognized the intimate studio version of the song. Characters gathered around the grand piano and broke out in dance to the chorus while a wide view of New York City played across the backdrop. In the end, the show is as much a tribute to the city as it is to the artist, described by creators and critics as a “love letter” to the city that never sleeps.

Hell’s Kitchen will continue to show at the Landmark Theatre until Sunday.