Ozaukee Living local
  • Home
  • Stories
  • Events
  • #LiveMusicLove
  • Wisconsin Theatre News

Once upon a time...​

You can get OLL stories delivered weekly if you subscribe here.
*​Photo by Nicole Sova

A Truly American Musical:  Hamilton in Chicago

11/8/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture

By Mary Boyle

One doesn't need to be a Musical Theatre nerd to know about Hamilton: Composer, lyricist, and performer Lin Manuel Miranda's award-winning production, based on the biography by Ron Chernow, about our Country's first Secretary of Treasury, Alexander Hamilton.  The craze over the musical  rapidly moved outside of the theatre world and into pop culture after its opening on Broadway on August 6, 2015, and has done nothing but gain in popularity since, racking up award after award along the way.  You may have wondered, "Is it worth all of the hype?"  The short answer is: yes.

Hamilton is simply revolutionary -- and not just because the Revolutionary War is a part of the musical.  As Miranda, himself, has said, "History is entirely created by the person who tells the story."  At face value, this is the story of the relationship between Alexander Hamilton, our Country's first Secretary of Treasury, and Aaron Burr, the third Vice President of the United States, and the events that led to the duel between the two that resulted in Hamilton's death.  We may even go so far as to say that it is the tale of the founding of our nation through the lens of these two key players.  Both of those descriptions would be accurate...but...Hamilton is so much more than that.  Quite simply, it is the "realest" story of our Country that has ever been told, because the person who is telling the story has — finally — included everyone and, in doing so, he has changed history.  The real revolution happens when you realize that the Revolution never ended; in fact, this is not an old tale at all, but a very current one that is still being written.

Miranda grew up in New York, the son of mostly Puerto Rican immigrants, and the very definition of "melting pot."  His influences reflect a life surrounded by true diversity, from hip-hop to musicals and Shakespeare to films, and they all come through in Hamilton in varying degrees.   He wrote his first musical, In the Heights, as a Sophomore at Wesleyan University, which made its way to Broadway in 2008, winning three Tony Awards and a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album.  The success paved the way for Hamilton, which Miranda worked on for several years, while also making film and television appearances and working on other musicals.  He seemingly has the Midas touch.  

Oskar Eustis, the Director the The Public Theater in New York where Hamilton made it's Off-Broadway debut, said, "Lin does exactly what Shakespeare does...he takes the language of the people, and heightens it by making it verse."  I couldn't agree more, but the Shakespeare comparison goes further than that:  When I first heard the opening song of Hamilton, my initial thought was that it was laid out exactly like a Shakespearean prologue.  Miranda references Shakespeare numerous times over the course of the production, as well, but you will also find his other influences, particularly through the different musical styles: jazz, blues, rock, hip-hop, and more.  The broad range of cultural diversity is part of what makes Hamilton so identifiable to so many people, but the lyrics are just brilliant.  You will laugh, and you will cry but, at the end, you will feel more a part of your Country than you have ever felt.  This is the power of theatre being used to its greatest potential: to bring people together; to change the narrative.


The success of the musical inspired a PBS documentary, Hamilton's America, as well as a book, Hamilton: The Revolution, both of which detail the creation of the musical and offer behind the scenes information, which is revolutionary in that the creation of no other musical has ever been so thoroughly documented (nor has one ever been so primarily created by one person).  In fact, Hamilton has been so successful that the US Treasury Department changed their plan to take Alexander Hamilton off of the ten dollar bill, and decided to remove Andrew Jackson, instead.   So successful that the production opened in Chicago in 2016, a US Tour is currently running in Los Angeles, and the show will open in London this December.  Recently, it was announced that a production will open in Puerto Rico in 2019, with Miranda, himself, reprising his role as Alexander Hamilton.  

There are some downsides to all this success.  One is that tickets to the shows are incredibly expensive.  The other is that fans (myself, included) have been listening to the Cast Album for a full year before Hamilton opened in downtown Chicago last year, and even longer for the other productions, so they already have a firm idea of how the characters should look and sound and, of course, the other productions are not going to be exactly the same, which sets you up for disappointment.  I'm here to tell you that even if you've listened to the Cast Album a hundred times, watched the documentary, and read the book, there is still more to be gained from seeing the show.

The stage design in Chicago is an exact replica of New York, and the cast, as a whole, does an admirable job (I especially loved Chris De'Sean Lee as the Marquis de Layfayette and Thomas Jefferson and Jose Ramos asJohn Laurens and Philip Hamilton).  The CIBC Theater, located at 18 W. Monroe Street in downtown Chicago, is quite ornate, historic, and intimate.  Beware: there are many seats with obstructed views, but even if you're in the very back row, the venue is small enough that you can still see and hear very well.  Allow plenty of time to deal with downtown traffic.  The Lottery (a chance to win $10 seats) is available for the Chicago performances, and tickets can also be had if you're willing to wait until the last moment and seats open up.  For tickets to Hamilton in Chicago, go to http://www.broadwayinchicago.com/show/hamilton-an-american-musical/ or call Ticketmaster at (800) 775-2000.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    February 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    December 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    March 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    April 2014

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Ballet
    Beer Garden
    Belgium
    Camps For Kids
    Cedarburg
    Citizen Action
    Classes
    Classes For Kids
    Coffee
    Community Events
    Concert
    Concert Series
    Dance
    Dinner
    Fall Fun
    Family Fun
    Farmers Market
    Farms
    Festival
    Fireworks
    Fish Fry
    Fundraiser
    Grafton
    Health
    History
    Holidays
    Lake Michigan
    Live Music
    Local Food
    Mequon
    Milwaukee
    Milwaukee River
    Newburg
    Night Life
    Open Mic
    Orchestra
    Outdoors
    OzEats
    Pancake Breakfast
    Parade
    People In Our Neighborhood
    Port Washington
    Reading
    Recipes
    Restaurant
    Run/Walk
    Saukville
    Sheboygan
    Shop Local
    Storytime
    Survey
    Theatre
    Thiensville
    Waukesha
    Workshop

    RSS Feed

Published By:

Picture

Ozaukee Living Local
A Community Supported Publication

OLL is always looking for Contributing Writers and Photography, which is an excellent way to highlight what your business or organization is doing in Oz.  Not a writer but have a Story Idea or Event Submission?  Just contact us at:
 [email protected]  

Contact Us

[email protected]

Join our mailing list today!  One email newsletter a week, every Friday, with everything you need to know about what's happening in Oz.  
Subscribe Now
  • Home
  • Stories
  • Events
  • #LiveMusicLove
  • Wisconsin Theatre News