Whether Lin-Manuel Miranda is writing for kids, adults, or everybody he is always able to entertain his audience. Miranda is an American actor, singer-songwriter, playwright, and film director. He is known for creating the Broadway musicals “In the Heights” and “Hamilton,” and the soundtrack of Disney’s “Encanto” and “How Far I’ll Go” from “Moana.”

“Moana”-

An adventurous teenager sails out on a daring mission to save her people. During her journey, Moana (Auliʻi Cravalho) meets the once-mighty demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson), who guides her in her quest to become a master way-finder. Together they sail across the open ocean on an action-packed voyage, encountering enormous monsters and impossible odds. Along the way, Moana fulfills the ancient quest of her ancestors and discovers the one thing she always sought: her own identity. 

While the story line is an amazing segway for a Disney princess, the soundtrack is what really makes this movie. The iconic song “How Far I’ll Go” is the anthem of this movie and Miranda did an amazing job at composing it. It tells the story of how Moana wants to go beyond her village but it also symbolizes how she wants to find herself outside of her village. By using this song, Miranda is able to showcase Moana’s true feelings towards her village and parents and how they are holding her back from reaching her true potential. Many people considered this song the best Disney song of 2016 and that just goes to show the amount of talent that Lin-Manuel Miranda has. This song is a personal favorite of mine and I will always recommend this movie to anyone looking for a fun family friendly Disney movie.

“Encanto”-

The Madrigals are an extraordinary family who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia in a charmed place called the Encanto. The magic of the Encanto has blessed every child in the family with a unique gift — every child except Mirabel. However, she soon may be the Madrigal’s last hope when she discovers that the magic surrounding the Encanto is now in danger. Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz) goes on an adventure throughout her own home, discovering new things and attempting to find a way to save the miracle that her family was blessed with. 

One reason this Disney production has gotten so much attention is due to the catchy soundtrack and representation of Latin Americans. The first song in the movie, “Family Madrigal,” sets the tone for the whole movie with its catchy lyrics. It also does a great job of introducing the audience to all the characters that would be present throughout the movie. This song is personally my favorite because it gives great insight into what each member of the family contributes to the town that they live in. 

Miranda continues to display his amazon talents through the movie. He is able to toggle with the audience’s emotions through this movie as well as representing the Latin American community. One of the most popular songs of this movie is “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.” This song has gotten a lot of attention because of how easy the lyrics are to remember and the production of the song is just put together really well. 

This movie has been called “The Best Disney Movie of 2022” by many and this is because of the way Miranda doesn’t make it sound like the typical Disney movie. The soundtrack consists of slow and meaningful lyrics as well as fast paced, rap-type, lyrics and that is what makes this movie so exciting and thrilling to watch.

“Hamilton”-

An American Musical that is sung-and-rapped-through by Lin-Manuel Miranda. It tells the story of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton. Many critics have given this Broadway show a 5 out of 5 rating. The performers do an amazing job at portraying their characters and their stage performance is phenomenal. 

One of the main reasons that this show is so liked by many theater lovers is because of how easy the songs are to remember. Not only are they easy to remember, they can easily help people with remembering how things happened in history. The show makes it fun to learn about the history behind the Revolutionary War. Miranda does a great job once again with the songs that he wrote into this show. Most of them are rapped or sung really fast which makes this show a lot of fun to watch and listen to. 

The overall talent of each performer makes the show easy to enjoy and each person brings something unique to the show.  For example, Hercules Mulligan (Okieriete Onaodowan) was an amazing character because of his funny dialogue and snarky inputs. The opening number for this broadway production is easily my favorite. The way that it is portrayed makes it easy to understand what Alexander Hamilton, played by Miranda himself, has gone through in his life.

The background dancers and the music help guide the lyrics into a story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. A lot of people love the song ‘Schuyler Sisters’ because of the way that it portrays strong women. I personally thought this song was too much for me because there was a lot going on and it could be hard to understand what is being sung at times. 

Altogether, this Broadway hit has rightfully earned its 11 Tony Awards, Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and The Best Musical award.

“In The Heights”-

In Washington Heights, N.Y., the scent of warm coffee hangs in the air just outside of the 181st St. subway stop, where a kaleidoscope of dreams rallies a vibrant and tight-knit community. At the intersection of it all is a likable and magnetic bodega owner who hopes, imagines and sings about a better life. 

Hamilton star, Anthony Ramos, does a stunning job at portraying the main character, Usnavi De La Vega. Throughout the movie, you can clearly see the different struggles of the Latin American community and what they go through. I really like the music used in this movie. Lin Manuel Miranda did a really good job at making the music diverse. There are slow and sad songs along with upbeat and energetic songs which makes this movie a lot of fun to watch. 

My personal favorite song from the movie is “Alabanza”. This song is sung after a well-loved and cherished person in the movie passes. Everyone in the neighborhood comes together and sings in memory of her. I loved this song because it had a bigger meaning behind being sung and the harmonies present gave me the chills. A lot of people enjoy the song “In The Heights” which is the opening number of the movie. This song is very upbeat and for the most part it introduces most of the people who will be a part of it. The dance numbers present in this scene also create a broadway feel to the movie which makes sense for Lin Manuel Miranda because of his background from broadway. 

While a lot of people, me included, enjoyed this fun musical, Miranda got a lot of criticism from it as well. Many viewers thought that the film had failed to adequately depict the dark-skinned Afro-Latino population of Washington Heights, the Upper Manhattan neighborhood where it is set, Lin-Manuel Miranda has apologized for falling short in trying to represent the community.

Overall, Miranda is very experienced in play and song writing. Along with that, he is a well known actor. A lot of his music has the same sound to it which makes it easy to realize that he is the mastermind behind all of his well established works. Earning a Pulitzer prize, three Tony Awards, three Grammy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and two Oliver awards along with being nominated for two Academy Awards, Miranda is a well dressed person in the production industry. I will always recommend Manuel’s works because he never fails to amaze me with his lyrics and soundtracks that he creates.