Today, most people know of the Tony winning musical, Hamilton. Hamilton exploded onto the stage and won a Grammy, set a record of 16 nominations at the Tony Awards and ultimately went home with 11 of them. The show is completely sold out, even in Chicago where it won’t be opening until September.
So what makes a musical about one of the least known Founding Fathers work right now?
The music.
Hamilton was not an overnight miracle as many might think. Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator and star, worked on the project for years, starting back during his previous work, In The Heights.
The first time anyone heard of his work on Hamilton was at the 2009 White House Evening of Poetry, Music and the Spoken Word, where Miranda was invited to perform music from In The Heights. Instead, he chose to perform what would eventually become the opening number of Hamilton. When he explained that it was a song from an upcoming musical about Alexander Hamilton, who he believed embodied hip-hop, he was laughed at. The Obamas even admitted that Miranda had the last laugh as they introduced the cast performance at this year’s Tony Awards.
And indeed, there are a lot more cheers and applause these days than there is laughter at the very idea of a hip-hop musical about the American Revolution.
But the contemporary style of music isn’t the only reason why people are eager to see this show. It has a lot to do with the lyrics and the life of Hamilton.
Most of us only know Alexander Hamilton as the man on the ten-dollar bill. Maybe some can tell you that he was the first Secretary of the Treasury. And the most significant fact that a lot of people may remember is that Aaron Burr shot and killed him in a duel. But Hamilton was much more involved with the creation of America and his story is finally being told.
What makes his story work right now is the timing. Many of the lyrics resonate strongly with today’s society, as strange as that may seem. Right from the beginning, Hamilton informs the audience, “there’s a million things I haven’t done. But just you wait.” How unsurprising that people, especially younger people, who have been told that they can accomplish anything they want connect to that idea.
The fact that the cast predominately features actors of color adds another level to the lyrics and struggles the characters face and connects them to the modern day without removing the characters from their era. The actors don’t wear modern clothes just because the music is contemporary. The repeated “Rise up” throughout the show proves that calling for action, no matter what the time period is, has always been something that Americans have prided themselves on. And this past year has seen a lot of people rising up, whether it’s through the Black Lives Matter movement or the support of candidates for the upcoming election. People that want change in America hold protests, they “rise” to whatever the challenge is, and we invoke change. Sometimes that change takes a lot longer than we would like, but it’s necessary to act if we want anything to change.
Which is the essence of Hamilton and the characters. We know how many of the characters – George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, for example – will change the course of our country and the world. But we also get to see how the driving force of Alexander Hamilton and the wait-and-see attitude of his rival, Aaron Burr, also shaped and influenced how America became what it is today and how it led to their fatal duel.
And for those who haven’t had the chance to see the show but still want to know what the hype is about, check out the soundtrack or wait and see – there is a plan to record the show before Miranda leaves the role of Hamilton on July 9th.
