Hamilton (2020)

Hamilton has been on my radar since my summer as an acting apprentice at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. It quickly became something I added to my watch list. Unfortunately, it became a show that only certain people could watch as the prices were exorbitantly high. Now it’s streaming on Disney +. 

Getting to see a show I’ve been wanting to watch for years from home was cool. It was also a grim reminder that there’s nothing like live theatre and at this point it’s not clear when we’ll be able to enjoy it again. There is also aspects of the show that are problematic and should be acknowledged.

The show is centered around the founding fathers, though they’re much cooler than they ever were in real life. The fact that they were slave owners is also glossed over. Still, I believe it’s worth a watch.

Hamilton had been a work in progress for six years. It opened at New York’s Public Theatre before transferring to Broadway in 2015. Alexander Hamilton and hip hop is an odd combination, but it works incredibly well. The show was recorded while the original cast was still performing.

The first act of Hamilton takes place during the revolutionary war. The entire cast is dynamic. The big show stopping songs are impressive to watch and it’s apparent that the cast, led by creator Lin Manuel Miranda, is having a blast. It’s also beautiful to see all the color on the stage. Hamilton proved that actors of color are more than capable of playing roles they otherwise wouldn’t be cast as. 

The resurgence of Hamilton fever has brought up criticisms about the show’s ability to gloss over the ugly aspects of the country’s origins. Hamilton himself wasn’t as anti slavery as the show makes him out to be.

Miranda also portrays Hamilton as an immigrant. Hamilton was born in the Caribbean, but again Miranda’s portrayal isn’t an accurate representation of Hamilton. It is very clear why Miranda took this creative liberty. It’s beautiful to hear a founding father say “Immigrants get sh!t done” as he’s portrayed by someone who would not have been able to do so even just a few years back.

It’s marvelous to get to watch this show, but I’m sure it doesn’t compare to getting to see it live. Still, there are perks to the filmed version, mainly getting to see certain details up close that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to see in a theatre especially if you’re sitting far from the stage. The second act takes place after the revolutionary war and it’s much quieter than the first act and it truly benefits from the close ups. Still, even in the faster, louder moments, the camera work doesn’t leave you wanting for anything other than the energy you can only get from a live audience.

I’m glad that I finally got to watch this show even if it was on the small screen. The show isn’t perfect. That being said, I believe it should continue to be celebrated for what it was able to accomplish. We can critique it and grow from it as performers, producers, etc. and hopefully use it as a spring board to make Broadway the equitable, equal, diverse place we deserve and yearn for.