Hamilton, the musical phenomenon, is the biggest show on Broadway, and is sold out until January of 2017. This is not normal for a Broadway show; Hamilton is the exception. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also stars in the show as the titular character, provides a score and lyrics that are absolute genius. The show is based on Alexander Hamilton, the “ten-dollar founding father,” and shows the ups and downs of his amazing life. Lin-Manuel Miranda demonstrates his lyrical skills in every single song, whether rap, hip-hop, or classic musical theatre. A song that is one of my favorites is entitled, “It’s Quiet Uptown,” which takes place after a tragedy in the family. At first, I thought the lyrics were simple and dull, such as “it’s unimaginable.” But, I realized that since words are Alexander Hamilton’s greatest tools and since he is amazing at describing things, the word unimaginable is showing the hardship and lack of understanding in his life. All of the characters in the show are extremely well-developed, and all perform beautiful songs. Aaron Burr narrates the entire show, and right off the bat, we know he killed Hamilton. Because it is so easy to relate to Burr, it begins to seem like there is no clear villain, which shows the moral complexity of the musical.
As someone who is lucky enough to have seen the performance on Broadway, I have gotten to watch the amazing Jonathan Groff, performing as King George III. Groff’s facial expressions and attitude in the role fit perfectly, and was one of the strongest performances in the show. His love songs to America with lines such as “I will send a fully armed battalion to remind you of my love” are real crowd-pleasers and make everyone in the audience hysterical. If you aren’t lucky enough to see it on Broadway, the show will be coming to Hollywood at the Pantages Theatre in August, 2017, after a run in San Francisco. I don’t know much about the tour, but I do know that it will “blow you all away”. Make sure you get tickets fast as the show’s popularity will make it a hot ticket.
