Everything I Know: Mandy Gonzalez Sings Lin-Manuel Miranda, accompanied by the Fort Collins Symphony

Sunday, September 26 at 7:00 p.m.

Featured Artists:

• Mandy Gonzalez, Featured Artist
• Dan Lipton, Piano and Music Director for Mandy Gonzalez
• Zachary Chiero, Special Guest
• The Fort Collins Symphony
  • Wes Kenney, Music Director and Conductor
• 9th Avenue Voices - University of Northern Colorado Youth Choir
  • Rosie O'Connor, Director

When developing musicals in New York City, you may find yourself in the room where it happens with just about anybody in show business. That’s how I met Mandy Gonzalez, on a 2005 workshop of some show that never happened. We hit it off quickly (she hits it off quickly with everyone) and one day after rehearsal, she was off to see her friend’s rap comedy improv group. That sounded very weird yet potentially amazing to me, so I tagged along and Freestyle Love Supreme was intimidatingly fantastic. One rapper had an encyclopedic knowledge of all pop culture—including Broadway, a genre not exactly known for its proximity to hip-hop.

It’s that sense of Lin-Manuel Miranda as a cultural omnivore that we aimed to capture in this concert program, so I took it to heart in arranging our overture, which proceeds mostly chronologically through his life and times. 

“Everything I Know-verture” begins at Hunter College High School in 1995, with Lin’s final project for ninth grade music class. Why, you ask? Because the roots of any major artist run deep, and when I dug through old YouTube and SoundCloud pages to find some, there was Lin leading a scrappy band of teenage jazz musicians with a toy laser gun.

“Sound Laser!” is as engaging as anything he’s written. And really, is there a better metaphor for Lin’s work than a sound laser? He’s been zapping our brains with ear candy for decades now! Strains of more Hunter-era songs (“Fetal Pig” and “Say Goodbye”) bubble up and swoosh us forward to 2003, when Freestyle Love Supreme emerged, with “We Are Freestyle Love Supreme” closing out every show: a rap with Shockwave beatboxing to funky chords from Arthur the Geniuses and King Sherman. This version of their theme nods to the last time an orchestra played it, as entrance music for Anthony “Two-Touch” Veneziale at the 2021 Tony Awards.

Musicals are not written, they’re re-written. The final version of a show might contain completely different songs than its first draft did. When In the Heights reached Broadway in 2008, only one phrase of music had survived from its initial production at Wesleyan University in 2000. It’s “En Washington Heights,” the last lyric of the opening number, and I see it as a kind of “life raft” that Lin clung to through close to a decade of working toward his dream. So that little motif leads us into the show’s now-classic opener. 

After the success of Heights, Lin and friends were recruited to the musical world of Sesame Street, where he spoke to Latino kids through characters like Mando. Do you remember what “Rhymes With Mando?” The Emmy Awards do! This calypso was nominated for a 2013 Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Original Song.

Another exciting opportunity that followed Heights was Bring It On: The Musical (2012), a musical adaptation of the hit cheerleading movie. Amanda Green, Tom Kitt and Lin proved that cheering chants can cut as hard and rhyme as intricately as any rap. They also gave us a pulsing slice of electropop called “What I Was Born To Do.”

Somewhere down my rabbit hole of research, I landed on a Reddit page where Gen Z was discussing how they were “today years old” when they realized the Hamilton guy has soundtracked their lives with earworms since pre-school. Beyond Sesame Street, the Freestyle Love Supreme team was hired to help reboot the classic 1970s show The Electric Company (2009). In their very first episode, Lin-Man and Shockwave throw down the sneaky alphabetical lesson “Silent ‘E’ Is A Ninja,” which might be one of the catchiest hooks I’ve ever heard. Voila! The perfect breather before we deliver two of the most streamed songs from Hamilton (2015). And what’s there to say about that juggernaut, other than we expect you to sing along!

Hamilton led to the craziest credit of Lin-Manuel’s career: the track “Jabba Flow” from Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015). He collaborated on this new cantina music with director J.J. Abrams (who is a totally legit musician!) for the intergalactic band Shag Kava, rocking steady in Maz Kanata’s castle.

Moana (2016) was the first Disney animated film with songs by Lin-Manuel. And in a flash of synergy that could only happen in the Miranda-verse, this lifelong WWE fan got to write “You’re Welcome,” a swingin’ showstopper for wrestling legend The Rock! “The Family Madrigal” from Encanto (2021) gallops ahead, and a baroque snatch of “Esperando Pelitos” from the animated TV show Big Mouth (2023) bridges us to “I Always Wanted A Brother” from Mufasa: The Lion King (2024), a total banger. Even Nicholas Britell, composer of the Succession theme, is now a Lin collaborator.

Having covered three decades of Miranda music, there’s only one place to end: En Washington Heights! That aforementioned “life raft” motif sends us back uptown, where the reggaeton lottery anthem “96,000” is blasting. Show business is a lottery, all luck and timing. Lin’s may be impeccable, but how lucky are we to be alive right now, while pop culture’s number-one fan (the greatest artists are also the biggest fans) consistently gifts us perfectly crafted pop culture? 

Tonight, we get to experience the whole scope of this body of work through the iconic voice of Mandy Gonzalez. You’ll hear Puerto Rico and New York, rhyme and reason, humor and humanity, beloved modern classics and surprising deep cuts.

We’re so grateful to Lin-Manuel Miranda for the musical embarrassment of riches, and for trusting us to take you on this rollercoaster ride through his songbook. Ladies and gentlemen, the show is right this way… presenting Everything I Know!

Mandy Gonzalez is an accomplished film, TV, stage actor and author. She possesses one of the most powerful and versatile contemporary voices of our time. Mandy has starred on Broadway in the megahit Hamilton as Angelica Schuyler. She also originated Nina Rosario in the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, In The Heights, for which Mandy received a Drama Desk Award. Mandy also starred as Elphaba in the Broadway production of Wicked, blowing the roof off of New York’s Gershwin Theatre each night as she belted out the signature song, Defying Gravity. Mandy has just performed a solo concert at Carnegie Hall with the NY Pops, bringing Lin-Manuel Miranda’s catalogue to a symphony stage in Everything I Know: Mandy Gonzalez sings Lin-Manuel Miranda. It is a symphonic celebration of the songwriter whose works and melodies have shaped a generation Mandy received an OBIE Award and overwhelming critical praise for her performance in the Off-Broadway production of Eli’s Comin’. Television viewers have had the pleasure of seeing Mandy in her recurring roles in the hit series Madam Secretary, BULL, Quantico, and alongside Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez in Only Murders in the Building. Equally at home on the big and small screen, she has appeared in Across the Universe directed by Julie Taymor, After starring opposite Pablo Schreiber, and Man on a Ledge with Sam Worthington. Mandy can also be heard as the voice of Mei in Disney’s Mulan 2, and as the voice of Mother Rose on the Disney Plus and Disney Jr. series Alice’s Wonderland Bakery. 

A frequent concert soloist, Mandy has performed with symphony orchestras around the world. Highlights include: Carnegie Hall with The New York Pops, Boston Pops, Philly Pops, The National Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony, and Atlanta Pops to name a few. 

She released her debut album FEARLESS, as a Warner Music East/West artist. 

Mandy is also an accomplished author who recently published her Young Adult series, FEARLESS, with Simon and Schuster. 

Mandy is deeply committed to advocating for underserved communities and schools. She serves on the boards of BCRF (Breast Cancer Research Foundation) and BCEFA (Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS), where she actively promotes awareness and fundraising efforts. Her dedication to giving back is evident in her fearless work for these organizations. 

In her quest to create positive change, Mandy is the proud founder of #FearlessSquad, a social media movement for inclusiveness and positivity. 

DAN LIPTON conducted The Band’s Visit and Sting’s musical The Last Ship on Broadway. He’s arranged music and led bands for Kelli O’Hara, Audra McDonald, Brian d’Arcy James and Judy Kuhn, performing at The White House, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center and on Live with Kelly Ripa, PBS Great Performances, Today and Late Show with David Letterman. Music supervision and orchestrations: An Officer and a Gentleman (2021-22 US tour), The Other Josh Cohen (off-Broadway), The Drama Desk Awards. Onstage musician: The Coast of Utopia by Tom Stoppard (Broadway), The Bridge Project (BAM, Old Vic) directed by Sam Mendes. He scored the film All These Small Moments (Orion Classics 2019) starring Molly Ringwald and can be heard on piano in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Rebecca Hall’s film Passing (Netflix 2021) and three Grammy-nominated albums. His latest collection of jazz-pop covers with singer Colby Beserra, Jukebox Saloon Vol. 2, is streaming everywhere.

ACT ONE 

EVERYTHING I KNOW-VERTURE 
music by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Various
arranged by Dan Lipton
orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

ONE OF A KIND (from Vivo)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement by Alex Lacamoire
original orchestration by Jeff Kryka
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan concert orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

SPANISH ME, ENGLISH ME (from Sesame Street) music by Lin-Manuel Miranda
lyrics by Luis Santeiro
original arrangement by Bill Sherman 
original orchestration by Joe Fiedler
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan concert orchestration by Kim Scharnberg 

KEEP THE BEAT (from Vivo)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement by Alex Lacamoire
original orchestration by Jeff Kryka
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan concert orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

PART OF YOUR WORLD / FOR THE FIRST TIME (from The Little Mermaid) music by Alan Menken
lyrics by Howard Ashman & Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangements by Robby Merkin & Alan Menken 
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan orchestration by Jim Abbott 

BREATHE (from In the Heights)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement and orchestration by Alex Lacamoire & Bill Sherman concert orchestration by Ryan Shirar 

PRECIOSA / ALMOST LIKE PRAYING 
words and music by Rafael Hernández Marín / words by Lin-Manuel Miranda & Stephen Sondheim, music by Leonard Bernstein & Lin-Manuel Miranda
arranged by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan
orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

THE HAMILTON SUITE (from Hamilton)
words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangements by Alex Lacamoire & Lin-Manuel Miranda original orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire 

PART 1: HISTORY HAS ITS EYES ON YOU / MY SHOT 
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan concert orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

PART 2: SATISFIED 
concert orchestration by Ryan Shirar 

PART 3: THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS 
concert orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

PART 4: STATS 
Cabinet Battle 3 Demo (from The Hamilton Mixtape) words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda arrangement by Dan Lipton
orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

PART 5: WAIT FOR IT 
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan concert orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

ACT TWO 

ENTR'ACTE: THE CLUB (from In the Heights)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement and orchestration by Alex Lacamoire & Bill Sherman 
concert arrangement and orchestration by Jaime Lozano & Jesús Altamira 

WE DON'T TALK ABOUT BRUNO (from Encanto) 
words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda 
arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan 
orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

DOS ORUGUITAS (from Encanto)
words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan 
orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

NINA'S FIRE ESCAPE (cut from In the Heights) music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement by Alex Lacamoire
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton 
orchestration by Kim Scharnberg 

HOW FAR I'LL GO (from Moana) 
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 
orchestration by Kim Scharnberg 

LIN-MAN AND THE BEAST: A MIXTAPE 
curated by Lin-Manuel Miranda 
arranged by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan 
orchestrations by Lynne Shankel 

Alone (Heart) / The Story (Brandi Carlile) / Under Pressure (Queen & David Bowie) / 
Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper) / Save Me (Nicki Minaj) / What You Know (Ali Dineen) 

EVERYTHING I KNOW (from In the Heights)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement and orchestration by Alex Lacamoire & Bill Sherman concert orchestration by Peter L. Mansfield 

ONE MORE SONG (from Vivo)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 
original arrangement by Alex Lacamoire
original orchestration by Jeff Kryka
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan concert orchestration by Julio César Barreto 

BUT THE WORLD GOES 'ROUND (from New York, New York) music by John Kander
lyrics by Fred Ebb
orchestration by Kim Scharnberg 

CHEERING FOR ME NOW / NEW YORK, NEW YORK (from New York, New York) music by John Kander
lyrics by Fred Ebb & Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangements by Sam Davis & Alex Lacamoire 
concert arrangement by Dan Lipton & Dick Scanlan orchestration by Larry Hochman 

FEARLESS 
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 
orchestration by Bill Elliott 

ADDITIONAL MUSIC CREDITS 

EVERYTHING I KNOW-VERTURE 
contains elements of: 

Sound Laser! (9th grade music project, 1995) 
Fetal Pig (from Nightmare in D Major, 1997) 
Say Goodbye (1998)
words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

We Are Freestyle Love Supreme (from Freestyle Love Supreme) 
words and music by Freestyle Love Supreme
arranged by Ian Weinberger
original orchestration by Jamie Lawrence 

In the Heights (from In the Heights)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement and orchestration by Alex Lacamoire & Bill Sherman 

Rhymes With Mando? (from Sesame Street)
music by Lin-Manuel Miranda 
lyrics by Luis Santeiro
original arrangement by Bill Sherman 
original orchestration by Joe Fiedler 

What I Was Born To Do (from Bring It On: The Musical) 
music by Tom Kitt & Lin-Manuel Miranda 
lyrics by Amanda Green & Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement and orchestration by Tom Kitt & Alex Lacamoire 

Silent 'E' Is A Ninja (from The Electric Company) 
words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

The Room Where It Happens (from Hamilton)
You'll Be Back (from Hamilton)
words and music by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangements by Alex Lacamoire & Lin-Manuel Miranda 
original orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire 

Jabba Flow by Shag Kava
(from Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens)
words and music by Jeffrey J. Abrams and Lin-Manuel Miranda 

You're Welcome (from Moana)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

The Family Madrigal (from Encanto) music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

Esperando Pelitos (from Big Mouth) music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

I Always Wanted a Brother (from Mufasa: The Lion King) 
music by Nicholas Jonathan Britell and Lin-Manuel Miranda 
lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

96,000 (from In the Heights)
music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
original arrangement and orchestration by Alex Lacamoire & Bill Sherman

SPANISH ME, ENGLISH ME 
concert arrangement contains elements of:
Sunrise (from In the Heights)
Give My Regards to Broadway (from Little Johnny Jones by George M. Cohan) 

PHANTOM OF THE VAMPIRES - incidental music 
The Phantom of the Opera (from The Phantom of the Opera) 
music by Andrew Lloyd Webber 
orchestration by Kim Scharnberg 

PRECIOSA / ALMOST LIKE PRAYING 
concert arrangement contains elements of: Hurricane (from Hamilton)
Maria (from West Side Story) 

ANOTHER SHOW - incidental music 
Another Day (from RENT)
music by Jonathan Larson
original arrangement and orchestration by Steve Skinner & Tim Weil concert arrangement and orchestration by Dan Lipton 

WHAT I DID FOR NPR - incidental music 
What I Did for Love (from A Chorus Line) music by Marvin Hamlisch
orchestration by Kim Scharnberg 

THE HAMILTON SUITE
concert arrangement contains elements of: 

PART 1 
History Has Its Eyes On You My Shot
Yorktown - underscore
Dear Theodosia - underscore Helpless - underscore 
One Last Time - underscore 

PART 2 
Satisfied 

PART 3 
The Room Where It Happens 

PART 4 
Cabinet Battle 3 Demo (from The Hamilton Mixtape) - underscore which contains elements of:
Hail Mary (2Pac as Makaveli ft. Outlawz) 

PART 5 
Wait For It
My Shot
It’s Quiet Uptown - underscore 

BIENVENIDO A LA FAMILIA (from Vivo) - underscore 
composed by Alex Lacamoire 
orchestration by Jeff Kryka 

LIN-MAN AND THE BEAST: A MIXTAPE 
contains elements of: 

Alone (Heart) 
words and music by Billy Steinberg & Tom Kelly 

The Story (Brandi Carlile) 
words and music by Tim Hanseroth 

Under Pressure (Queen & David Bowie) 
words and music by David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, Roger Taylor, John Deacon & Brian May 

Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper) 
words and music by Cyndi Lauper & Robert Hyman 

Save Me (Nicki Minaj) 
by Warren Felder, Onika Maraj & Andrew Wansel 

What You Know (Ali Dineen) 
by Ali Dineen 

ONE MORE SONG 
concert arrangement contains elements of: 
Cabaret (music by John Kander, from Cabaret) 

CHEERING FOR ME NOW / NEW YORK, NEW YORK 
concert arrangement contains elements of: 

New York, New York (from On the Town) 
music by Leonard Bernstein 

Welcome to New York (Taylor Swift) 
music by Taylor Swift & Ryan Tedder 

N.Y.C. (from Annie) 
music by Charles Strouse 

In the Heights (from In the Heights) 
music by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

The Schuyler Sisters (from Hamilton) 
music by Lin-Manuel Miranda 

Rhapsody in Blue 
music by George Gershwin 

No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn (Beastie Boys) 
by Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz, Rick Rubin & Adam Yauch 

Welcome to New York City (Cam'ron ft. JAY-Z & Juelz Santana) 
by Cameron Giles, Shawn C. Carter & Justin Gregory Smith 

Empire State of Mind (JAY-Z ft. Alicia Keys) 
words and music by Alicia J. Augello-Cook, Shawn Carter, Angela Ann Hunte, 
Bert Keyes, Sylvia Robinson, Janet Andrew Sewll & Alexander 
William Shuckburgh 

New York Minute (Don Henley) 
words and music by Donald Hugh Henley, Daniel Kortchmar & Jai L. Winding 

Arthur's Theme “Best That You Can Do” (Christopher Cross) 
words and music by Peter Woolnough Allen, Burt F. Bacharach, Christopher C. Cross & Carole Bayer Sager 

New York State of Mind (Billy Joel) 
music by William M. Joel 

On Broadway (The Drifters) 
words and music by Jerry Leiber, Barry Mann Mike Stoller & Cynthia Weil

Music Director and Conductor
Wes Kenney

About Fort Collins Symphony 
For more than a century, the Fort Collins Symphony has been bringing people together through the power of live orchestral  music. As the oldest arts organization and the only professional symphony orchestra in Larimer County, we are proud to serve Northern Colorado through inspiring performances, meaningful educational experiences, and community partnerships that extend well beyond the concert hall. Our musicians are more than performers - they are educators, mentors, collaborators, and neighbors. Whether performing on stage, visiting local schools, partnering with community organizations, or creating interactive programs for audiences of all ages, we believe music has the power to connect people and strengthen our community.

This fall, Wes Kenney begins his 24th season as Music Director of the Fort Collins (Colorado) Symphony. He thoroughly enjoys conducting for artists such as Mandy Gonzalez, Michael Cavanaugh, Stewart Copeland, Amy Grant, Classical Mystery Tour (Beatles cover) and many others. In May 2023 he retired after 20 years as Director of Orchestras and chair of conducting studies at Colorado State University. The previous year he was named a University Distinguished Professor, the highest honor the university can award and has also been given the title of Professor Emeritus. Mr. Kenney was also the Music Director of the Denver Young Artist Orchestra from 2013-2023, a group he took on two international tours and performances in Carnegie Hall in NYC and Disney Hall in Los Angeles. His awards include the 2007 Grand Prize Winner of the Varna (Bulgaria) International Conducting Competition, a 2020 Honored Artist from the American Prize, a winner of the American Prize for programming in 2020, a winner of the Ernst Bacon Memorial Prize for excellence in performance of American Music, and the 2020 American Prize Winner for best orchestral performance in the Professional Orchestra Division. He was previously the Associate Conductor of the Virginia Symphony and has guest conducted around the globe including the Buffalo Philharmonic, Lviv (Ukraine) Philharmonic, Alabama Symphony, Vidin (Bulgaria) Philharmonic, Vietnam National Orchestra and the Changwon Philharmonic. 

Zachary Chiero is thrilled to be joining Mandy Gonzalez and the Fort Collins Symphony for this beautiful evening of music. Zachary is a performer, director and choreographer in the Denver area having moved recently from Philadelphia. In Philly, he works as the Artistic Director of Enchantment Theatre Company, where he has helped create ten world premiere works, including Peer Gynt, which he choreographed and starred in with the Philadelphia Orchestra in 2023. His recent performances in Denver include Hans in Frozen (Arvada Center), Sam in Fully Committed (Theatre SilCo), Chip in Spelling Bee and Watson in Moriarty (Creede Rep). Up next, you can see him in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and later in Doubt, both at the Arvada Center. Many thanks to my family and friends, and to his dear husband, Dallas. zacharyjchiero.com