The Hamilton Tour Proves that Lin Manuel Miranda is an Evil Genius
It’s finally here! The long anticipated tour of the phenomenon that is Hamilton opened at the Marcus Center this week. Settling into Milwaukee for an extended run, the show continues — eight shows per week, through November 17 — with all of the energy, electricity and artistry that became the hallmark of the original production and made it an international sensation.
The tight, extremely talented ensemble of 35 that makes up the “Phillip” cast performs all of the original, demanding choreography that dazzled audiences on Broadway in 2015, while navigating two rotating “revolves” built into the stage floor. A simple set of exposed brick, rough-hewn beams, staircases and a few dark wood desks and chairs, easily makes the trip from New York to fill the Uihlein Hall stage, leaving plenty of room for the now iconic gowns and uniforms, and vocal pyrotechnics showcased on the Grammy-winning cast album.
Based on the biography of Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow, the story of the Caribbean-born “bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a Scotsman” who immigrated to America in the 18th century, just as the country was gearing up for the war of independence from England, is in exceptionally good hands here. The cast is led by Joseph Morales as the brash upstart Alexander Hamilton; Nik Walker as his foe, the calculating, frustrated Aaron Burr; Marcus Choi as a circumspect and world-weary George Washington; and the irrepressible Warren Egypt Franklin in the dual roles of Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson.
As Hamilton, Morales has the thankless job of trying to perform the role with as much charisma, energy, anger and complexity as the man who wrote it. He succeeds most when embodying Hamilton’s more serious side — plotting with Washington about how to win the war, arguing with fellow politicians in rap battles, and realizing that his obsessions will ultimately doom him. His romances — both honorable and illicit — could have used more heat and overall, his energy seemed to flag in the second half of the show.
Walker’s Aaron Burr, on the other hand, is delightfully infused with personality, long before the character feels he needs to explore his more passionate side, while campaigning for office. The actor’s playful vocal inflections and precise hand gestures give Burr a much more varied inner life than one can hear on the cast album, making the character more entertaining and complex. Burr is so animated here, he upstages Franklin’s Lafayette, an almost impossible feat. Franklin definitely has the speed and panache required for his two flamboyant roles, but little variation in his delivery. He plays Jefferson as more of a silly fop than an eccentric statesman, which undercuts the character’s importance.
As founding father George Washington, Choi brings great weight to his scenes. Audiences can almost see the burden he struggles with during the war and the actor shows a more frustrated and pessimistic leader than any noble statue would let on. It’s a great interpretation.
As ferociously smart and determined Angelica Schuyler, Ta’rea Campbell has no trouble describing the “revelations” she’s looking for or the fierce love and loyalty she feels for her delicate sister Eliza, played by Erin Clemons. And of course there’s the youngest sister Peggy. Nyla Sostre fills the gowns of both the little tag-along and the sultry Maria Reynolds, a woman who pleads for kindness from Hamilton after being ill-used by her husband — a man who would figure prominently in our hero’s political downfall. All three women have spectacular voices that easily scale the demands of the score, and even put a little extra flair on some well known passages. Clemons’s Eliza is complicated — more playful with her son, and more a mixture of hard and soft moments vocally than her predecessor. In her final moments onstage, she even adopts some of Hamilton’s frantic fervor, desperately hoping to get all of her projects accomplished. Campbell’s Angelica is a more maternal elder sister than competitor for Hamilton’s love, which is a fine take. Her resonant, enormous voice is also a nice contrast to her two sisters.
Other stand-outs in the extraordinary cast include Neil Haskell as King George — a plum role that has less than ten minutes of stage time. Playing up the ridiculous and tantrum-y elements of the mad king, Haskell has a great deal of fun sneering his songs, that were modeled on Elton John’s break-up songs of the ’70s and ’80s. And as Hamilton’s abolitionist friend John Laurens and his cocky son Phillip, Elijah Malcomb’s bright, higher pitched voice lends his characters extra energy, youth and optimism.
Seeing the show live, rather than listening to the cast album for the 14,000th time, audiences can truly appreciate the almost non-stop movement of the core ensemble cast members, flawlessly executing Andy Blankenbuehler’s clever choreography that pulls from many eras and styles. Lighting design, by Howell Binkley also becomes its own character, punctuating the entire show, where large scene changes are indicated through color and intensity of lighting rather than huge set pieces or video.
With the mountain of awards, critical accolades and legions of fans that have grown up around Lin Manuel Miranda’s creation, Hamilton, it is hard to deny that the man is a genius. (For those keeping score at home, Miranda has won a Pulitzer Prize, three Tony Awards, three Grammys, an Emmy, and two Olivier Awards and has been nominated for an Academy Award. In 2015, he was the recipient of an actual Genius Grant from the MacArthur Fellows Program and three years later he and the Hamilton creative team received the Kennedy Center Honors.) I would submit that all of this recognition is well deserved, but the performance last night proved that there’s one more title he has earned; that of an evil genius.
He wrote the greatest leading role in musical theater for himself. Again.
Lin Manuel Miranda’s first musical on Broadway was a piece about his mostly Hispanic immigrant neighborhood in New York City titled In The Heights. He played the narrator Usnavi, a young bodega worker who basically knits the show together by introducing all of the characters to the audience, as well as participating and commenting on the action. Unsurprisingly, as the show’s writer and composer Miranda tailored the part to his own voice, signature onstage energy, and performance strengths, including his exceptional talent for hip-hop. He did the same for Hamilton, but this time his character has an even greater role, as the intellectual, the idealist, the action hero, the lover and the bearer of tragic flaws. Hamilton is surrounded by strong characters, played by musical giants, but it is his passion, force of will and talent that drive the entire show. Other leading men in this masterpiece will always be judged next to Miranda and they will always, through no fault of their own, fall short.
He made mainstream American audiences love hip-hop and understand color conscious casting at the same time.
Statistically, Broadway audiences are made up overwhelmingly of older, white patrons — the majority of whom are women. These ticket buyers have the time and money to devote to ever more expensive theater tickets, and they can be counted on to show up for the chestnuts — the Rodgers and Hammerstein revivals that have filled houses for decade after decade. They’ve seen Wicked several times and they love bringing their grandchildren to Frozen and Beauty and the Beast. They probably went to see Spring Awakening, Book of Mormon and Rent because of the buzz, but they may have been a bit shocked by the subject matter. They are, in general, not bothered by current conversations about racism and sexism inherent in old favorites, such as My Fair Lady, Miss Saigon, The King and I and Carousel.
And then Lin Manuel Miranda came along, insisting that his multi-racial cast portray the whitest stars of our country’s history and that hip-hop (alongside many other musical styles) was the perfect musical vehicle to tell the story. And audiences loved it. Not just loved it, they lost their minds. Now the cast members of the original Broadway production are household names and (hopefully) they are empowered to approach virtually any role in the future, whether it was written for a POC or not.
He successfully created AND MARKETED a brand new musical to a staggeringly large demographic.
Through the musical’s cast and content; Lin Manuel Miranda’s social media savvy; his persistent demand that tickets be kept at affordable prices through the $10 ticket lottery and by fighting off scalpers; and through extensive educational outreach activities, he has sincerely invited diverse audience members from age 13-35 to the musical theater table and engaged them like no one has before. Performing arts companies often talk about their media as dying art forms and wring their hands about how they will ever replace the aged donors and ticket buyers who fill their seats. I dunno. . . LMM’s Hamilton makes it look pretty easy.
To be continued . . .