Performances in NYC homage musical ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ strike unexpected chord
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There are plenty of classic musicals that pay homage to New York City: “West Side Story,” “Funny Girl” and “Rent” among others. But few shows are so blatant in its tribute to New York’s culture as “Hell’s Kitchen.”
“It’s one of the best shows I’ve ever seen,” Lynne Lush said.
Lush attended “Hell’s Kitchen” last night at the Landmark Theatre. Set in — as the name suggests — the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood in Manhattan, the national tour of the Broadway musical brought the spirit of New York to Syracuse Tuesday night.
“Hell’s Kitchen” originally premiered on Broadway in April 2024 and closed its run in February after nearly 800 performances. The national tour has put on shows across the country since October 2025 and will be performing in Syracuse through Sunday.
Lush, who used to live a short train ride away from New York, said the show brought back memories of seeing Broadway plays when she was younger.
“The ability of the people on stage was incredible,” Lush said. “It compares totally with Broadway.”
The music and lyrics of the show were written by singer-songwriter Alicia Keys. While classified as a jukebox musical — meaning the songs existed before the show — the show incorporates original music as well as some of Keys’ hit songs, like “Girl on Fire,” “If I Ain’t Got You” and “Empire State of Mind.”
Jasmine Montgomery, a frequent attendee of Syracuse theater productions, saw “Hell’s Kitchen” in Syracuse with her mom. She said the integration of old Keys songs with new music like “Kaleidescope” and “The River” was something she’d never seen before.
“I think it’s refreshing,” Montgomery said. “It seems like they wrote the story around (Key’s music).”
Loosely based on Keys’ earlier years as a young artist living in Hell’s Kitchen, the show follows Ali, a 17-year-old biracial girl, and her white mom, Jersey. While Ali wants to explore her city, Jersey is overprotective and doesn’t let her. Throughout the show, Ali finds her love of music and figures out the importance of the community around her.
Madison Bennett, who also regularly attends theater performances in Syracuse, said she didn’t know what to expect with “Hell’s Kitchen” but was “pleasantly surprised.”
The show contains various musical events, including staged numbers, piano-playing and bucket drumming. As someone who’s visited New York before, Bennett said the show’s “music of the city” always brings her back to her memories of it.
Throughout the musical, Ali, her overbearing mom and her absent father navigate tough times. But Ali bonds with an older piano player in her apartment building, who she leans on and learns from.
Bennett said the show’s plot allowed her to see the similarities between life in New York and Syracuse.
“The same way that there’s a strong sense of community in New York City, there’s a pretty strong sense in Syracuse,” Bennett said. “All around New York, we’re very tight-knit communities.”
The show includes dance numbers in various styles, including hip-hop, tap, jazz, ballet and African dance. For Bennett, the ensemble numbers, many of which included the entire cast, were her favorite part of the show. She said it was interesting to see the integration of so many different styles.
The choreography was also Montgomery’s favorite part of the performance.
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Montgomery was excited when she first heard the tour of “Hell’s Kitchen” was coming to Syracuse. She was in the city earlier this year during the Broadway production’s last week, but she couldn’t catch the show.
Montgomery was disappointed about being unable to get tickets, so she seized the opportunity to see the show locally.
Though uncharacteristic for Lush, she got emotional watching the singing, acting and dancing come together throughout the story.
“I don’t cry,” Lush said. “I was in tears at one point.”
