The “Hamilton” 10th anniversary marketing campaign rolls on.
Last night, Lin Manuel Miranda and a lot of his original Broadway cast came to Shakespeare in the Park’s Delacorte Theater for a huge screen showing of the filmed version of the famed musical.
The audience, composed of family, friends, and ardent fans, sang along like they were at a Taylor Swift concert.
On Friday, Disney — which already shows this version on Disney Plus — is putting it into theaters. Is that necessary at this point?
The answer, after seeing it in this form, is a resounding Yes. And much as I thought, Oy, Hamilton again? You forget. Lin Manuel Miranda’s work is a tour de force. There’s nothing quite like it. Maybe it’s a cliche to say it’s a work of genius, but go back and take a second or third look. It’s amazing.
LMM took Ron Chernow’s huge biography of Alexander Hamilton and worked on an adaptation for six years before showing it or playing it for anyone. Then he called director Thomas Kail and all the other artisans he needed, telling them he’d written a musical about Alexander Hamilton.
All of them rolled their eyes simultaneously.
You can still see the celebrated result on Broadway, where the show is selling out into its 11th year. And you can find it on Disney Plus. But the effect of being in a real movie theater is sensational. I remember opening night at the Public Theater, when no one knew what we were going to see. The show blasted off like a rocket and never stopped.
The same is true seeing it on a big screen, with no interruptions from your phone or other digressions. LMM structured Hamilton’s rise to power under George Washington, his frenemy like relationship with Aaron Burr, and his romantic life with Schuyler Sisters like spinning tops. Kail responded by staging the show that way. It never lets up. Neither does the humor or the pathos.
LMM introduced the movie from the stage. In the audience was not only Chernow, and choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler but also Leslie Odom Jr., Phillipa Soo, Renee Goldsberry, Christopher Jackson, and the effervescent Daveed Diggs. They are all Broadway megastars now. (Also in attendance was Kail’s wife, actress Michelle Williams, with bff Busy Phillips.)
The “Hamilton” experience — seeing it with 1800 people — can’t be duplicated. It’s sort of like listening to the Beatles. How did this happen? There are so many moving parts, subplots, and loads of historical information that LMM distilled into more than a dozen very catchy songs, it kind of boggles the mind.
Some highlights last night: Christopher Jackson, singing George Washington’s exit song, is more moving than I remembered. The audience was mesmerized by him, by the Soo and Goldsberry as the Schuyler Sisters. The latter has showier material that she really wows with while the former turns out to be the heart of the story. And of course everyone loves Jonathan Groff as King George (he couldn’t be there as “Just in Time” is a hit on Broadway).
“Hamilton” in movie theaters is a treat. It won’t last long. Highly recommended.
