hamilton: a revolution about a revolution

For this week, I'm taking a slight break from social justice rants to spread my love for an amazing, beautiful, genius piece of art that deserves everyone's appreciation: Hamilton: An American Musical.  Anyone who knows me, or really, anyone who has been in earshot of me for the past two months, has probably noticed that I talk about this musical almost non-stop (for those of you who are familiar with it, you'll get that pun) and have been singing the soundtrack constantly.  The best way I can describe Hamilton's magic is that it is infectious -- it's garnered media hype unprecedented for Broadway, making its way to Vogue, InStyle, and Time, and it doesn't look like the buzz will die down anytime soon -- just a few months ago, the cast performed at the Grammy's (then proceeded to receive one!), and now they've broken the record for Tony Award nominations with a whopping 16.  Not to mention that my entire family has become absolutely obsessed, even my 12 year old brother, who typically has zero interest in musicals and hates history.  It's that good. 

Yes, I know what many are thinking -- how could a musical about the founding fathers be entertaining?  Why would I want to spend my time listening to songs about Alexander Hamilton?  I shared this skepticism and confusion at once too. The only thing I thought I knew about Hamilton was that he was a president, and that's not even close to right -- this was the extent of my disregard for the musical and the events it is based on. But eventually, after months of putting it off, I finally opened the playlist on Spotify -- and the rest is history. 

There are so many aspects that make Hamilton incredible, the main one being that while it tells the tale of the American revolution, its existence is a revolution in and of itself.  Broadway is a community known for being super white -- the composers are white, the actresses/actors are primarily white, there's hardly any diversity in musical style, and it appeals to a mainly white, upper class audience .  After all, think of Broadway, and the first things that come to mind are likely classics such as Annie, Sound of Music, Bye Bye Birdie, etc. However, Hamilton is in the process of changing these ideals, through highlighting a genre of music that has been labelled inferior by the "purity" of Broadway, and casting almost all people of color. 

Even more so, the POC of Hamilton are playing American founding fathers, and rap is the medium through which they tell their stories.  Weird at first, considering that the founding fathers were some of the whitest people around, but inspired once you think about it -- Hamilton is giving marginalized groups, groups whose voices are continuously shut out, a chance to write themselves into history, to fight their own exclusion, to tell America that they are a part of it, too. That their faces and their hip-hop and their art belongs on Broadway. Lin-Manuel Miranda, the writer of Hamilton, has said that he wants it to be the story of American then, told by America today -- he definitely succeeded there. 

But even with social messages aside, it's undeniable that Hamilton is just as marvelous when taken at face value -- the soundtrack will stay in your head forever, and you'll fall in love with Miranda's witty, unbelievably intelligent prose, Phillipa Soo's perfect voice, and Daveed Digg's indescribable rapping, just to name a few. Plus, the story that the songs tell is nuanced, compelling, and will make you feel every feeling -- I smiled and laughed and quite literally cried throughout the entire thing.

One of my favorite lines is rapped by Angelica Schuyler, one of Hamilton's love interests -- she and her sisters say, "We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal.  And when I meet Thomas Jefferson, imma' compel him to include women in the sequel!  Work!!"  There's something beautiful and refreshing to hear women of color (playing 18th century white women at that), singing about feminism, and in such an assured, empowered, agency-filled way.  Such ideologies are not highlighted nearly enough, if at all, on Broadway, so this song ("The Schuyler Sisters") just makes me so happy, and I listen to it whenever I need personal motivation.  And, it's a prime example of how Hamilton strives to create social conversation -- strong, intelligent women like the Schuylers are often pushed to the side, but here they take center stage.

If I had to pick one favorite song, it would be so difficult, but the list would definitely include "Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story," the final song.  Although its melody is beautiful on its own, what I love about it is that it focuses the story of not Alexander, but Eliza Hamilton, his wife, and allows her to close the show.  In the beginning of the musical, she isn't "the type to try and grab the spotlight" -- shy and soft-spoken and not the most proactive.  However, as the story progresses she becomes increasingly empowered and utilizes her own agency more and more -- she tells Alexander that she wants to be a part of his narrative, then later proceeds to erase herself from it (metaphorically of course, but I won't spoil it for you all).  But, she still typically takes a sideline to Alexander, the center of the show, and many of her actions are contingent on his. 

In this last song, though, we see a complete transformation -- she uses it to sing of all her real-life accomplishments, completely unrelated to Hamilton's, such as establishing "the first private orphanage in New York City" and helping to abolish slavery.  And, in the beginning of the song, she asks "Will they tell [Hamilton's] story?" but by the end, it's changed to "Will they tell my story?"  This shows how Eliza has come to keep not only Hamilton's legacy alive, but her own as well, and she's finally takes control of the overall narrative.  She makes the finale of the musical about herself, rather than the male protagonist, which is something we don't often see in history or on Broadway.  And to answer, her question -- Hamilton is granting her wish and telling her story.  Her story is in fact an incredible one, but one that really hasn't gotten any acknowledgment, and probably wouldn't have if not for this musical -- women's stories tend to be marginalized in favor of the stories of the males at their side. That's the last reason I'll give as to why Hamilton is amazing -- it changes the patterns of whose stories are told in history, and makes you think about how/by who it has been shaped.

Overall, all I can say is that you should really really try listening to Hamilton, even if you aren't a theater-goer, at least for a few songs -- I can assure you that many of them are reminiscent of contemporary music. You might just fall in love with it, and you definitely don't want to throw away your shot (lol puns). Because really, look around, look around, at how lucky we are to be alive right now (or at the same time as Lin-Manuel Miranda and Phillipa Soo -- she is my LITERAL QUEEN can I please be her friend or just be her?!!)

xoxo, elyse