32. Hamilton!!!

Are you a Hamilton nerd like I am?

A few years ago, I read an article about the Hamilton phenomenon: how kids were learning history by memorizing every lyric; how this brilliant composer named Lin Manuel Miranda set the story of one of our least studied founding fathers to rap; how the show’s popularity led to astronomical ticket prices.

Wanting to see for myself what all the hype was about, I bought the sound track.

Wow. Just wow.

It pulled me in like no other musical soundtrack ever had. I listened over and over and over, each time piecing together a little bit more of the story. Even after listening hundreds of times (yes, hundreds), I’m still blown away, and often learn something new.

The soundtrack led me down a reading rabbit hole, closing a big gap in my historical education about the revolutionary period and the birth of the United States. I knew the outlines, but filled in the details by reading the Ron Chernow Hamilton on which Miranda based his musical; Chernow’s Washington: A Life; David McCullough’s John Adams, and biographies of Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin (who doesn’t even show up in Hamilton).

Every day for two and a half years I entered the Hamilton lottery, and every day for two and half years I received a message saying “Sorry, try again.” My budget can’t handle the cost of tickets, especially the most available kind: those on the re-sale market.

Then my sister called me to tell me that she, my other sister, and my mom bought us tickets as a present for my upcoming (big) birthday. My reaction? BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT EVER!!!

I worried a bit that after all the build-up, I might feel disappointed when I finally see the show. Boy, was that worry needless! I agree completely with Michelle Obama, who said that Hamilton is the best work of art she has ever seen.

By far.

The show, with costumes, choreography, the set, and actors not just singing but using facial expressions and movement to convey emotions and ideas, offers a completely different experience than simply listening to the soundtrack. It was so good that moments during the first act had me in tears.

Seeing a different cast than the original did take some getting used to. They were all brilliant (although no one could ever dream of competing with Renee Elise Goldsberry, the original Angelica, or Leslie Odom Jr.’s Burr). Luckily, we got to see Denee Benton (Eliza) on the last night of her tenure with the show. She was amazing beyond words.

Without being long-time Hamilton fanatics, my sisters and my mom liked it almost as much as I did.

So if you have the opportunity, get yourself into the room where it happens, and be prepared for the show to blow you all away. If you’re like me, you’ll never be satisfied, but you’ll be back, like before. After all, you’ll want to see it one last time.

Hamilton, Richard Rogers Theater, NYC: As this was a gift, I have no idea how much the tickets cost. My sister got herself listed as a verified fan, so she received notice when a new block of tickets went on sale directly from the box office. She had to buy them as soon as she received the notification. So while I’m sure they were expensive, they weren’t the hundreds or even thousands that tickets sometimes go for on the re-sale market.

Thanks Hope, Cindy, and Mom!!!!!