Hamilton

That is amazing.

The most surprising thing for me was that the set design, the staging, the choreography and the acting were all as brilliant as the music and lyrics.

Some of the stuff they did with that spartan set was magnificent. For example, using the rolling stairway to show long distance travel several times, clever use of the rotating stage elements, both to add tension to dramatic scenes and to create the illusion of a busy NYC, and people walking down streets. The choreography for Yorktown was sensational, with the ensemble and lights making all the BOOMs look like real explosions. Similarly, the ensemble in Hurricane, all around Hamilton, taking random places and positions on the stage, some carrying furniture or other detritus in random positions as if the items and people were being blown around by the storm. And oh yes, the use of the rotation sections to raise tension during both pistol duel scenes — very cinematic, like a 360 degree tracking shot during an argument in a movie.

The acting was phenomenal. Daveed Diggs' Lafayette and Jefferson were each unique, and I had no idea from just the cast recording how sassy Jefferson's character was (despite the tone of What'd I Miss). All the different reactions to The Reynolds Pamphlet were very amusing too, especially the various DAMN!s.

They managed to take that minimalist set and turn it into an intimate love scene, a battlefield, a session of congress, a bar, several different streets, an abstract vision of a hurricane, a dueling field somewhere in New Jersey, and so much more.

One other thing comes to mind about staging, and that was the segment in which Washington is telling Hamilton to write his farewell address, then it fades to a spot on Hamilton starting the speech, again with a brilliant use of the rotating stage to gradually move Washington to the forefront, fading both the lights and the voices between the two of them until Washington is alone in the spot, then the crowd fades in all around him. I think that was my favorite visual of the whole show. Just brilliant.

It was much better than Cats. I want to watch it again and again.

And oh yes, I cried like a baby at the end. Partly because of Phillipa Soo's gorgeous voice, but also partly because it was over.

Can't wait to watch it tomorrow.

Once again Quiet Uptown just wrecked me. I swear to god I tear up just thinking about it.

DrSugardaddy wrote:
Antichulius wrote:

I’m still working through my first watch, the day did not lend itself well, and now I just can’t wait for It’s Quiet Uptown as that one and Eliza in the finale always wrecks me hardest.

I keep trying to convince the wife that Eliza is the real star and the "Hamilton" of the title, as not only is she clearly the most sympathetic character in the narrative and gets the best songs, but also--arguably--the whole thing may very well be her summary of Alexander's life in the Colonies. Damnably, the wife keeps reminding me that 1/4-1/3 of the production takes place before Eliza's first appearance.

I haven't given up, yet.

I think you have the right of it. Eliza has lines as her character in the opening ensemble song, that describe A. Ham's life and cements her involvement in the narrative from the start (even if not present until later).

Oh and...

I just remembered something else I found amusing. I wondered if all the digs at John Adams have anything to do with what I’ve read that John Adams’ popular biography is not at all complimentary to Mr. Hamilton.

That could be. The line “Sit down, John, you fat m*****f*****!” is also a nod to the musical 1776, where there’s a song using “Sit down, John!” as a constant refrain.

Docjoe wrote:

Once again Quiet Uptown just wrecked me. I swear to god I tear up just thinking about it.

I'm with you, that's the one I can't make it through. Philippa sells it perfectly, as does Lin. They hit "forgiveness" and I'm lost.

Down for the count and you’re... drownin in ‘em? (tears)

ColdForged wrote:
Docjoe wrote:

Once again Quiet Uptown just wrecked me. I swear to god I tear up just thinking about it.

I'm with you, that's the one I can't make it through. Philippa sells it perfectly, as does Lin. They hit "forgiveness" and I'm lost.

Yeah, forgiveness was the point that got me too. Also the look on Lin's face when Eliza takes his hand.

I saw the show live when it was in Des Moines 2 years ago. This version is really great, and the performances are fantastic (in particular I don’t think you can replace Leslie Odom and Daveed Diggs without losing a little something). That said, there is an energy when you are seeing something live in person with a crowd of thousands around you that can’t be replicated watching at home on your couch.

Pacman wrote:
ColdForged wrote:
Docjoe wrote:

Once again Quiet Uptown just wrecked me. I swear to god I tear up just thinking about it.

I'm with you, that's the one I can't make it through. Philippa sells it perfectly, as does Lin. They hit "forgiveness" and I'm lost.

Yeah, forgiveness was the point that got me too. Also the look on Lin's face when Eliza takes his hand.

I saw the show live when it was in Des Moines 2 years ago. This version is really great, and the performances are fantastic (in particular I don’t think you can replace Leslie Odom and Daveed Diggs without losing a little something). That said, there is an energy when you are seeing something live in person with a crowd of thousands around you that can’t be replicated watching at home on your couch.

Agree although unless you are down in the really expensive seats you can’t see the range of facial expressions that you do with the film version. So fantastic!

DrSugardaddy wrote:
Antichulius wrote:

I’m still working through my first watch, the day did not lend itself well, and now I just can’t wait for It’s Quiet Uptown as that one and Eliza in the finale always wrecks me hardest.

I keep trying to convince the wife that Eliza is the real star and the "Hamilton" of the title, as not only is she clearly the most sympathetic character in the narrative and gets the best songs, but also--arguably--the whole thing may very well be her summary of Alexander's life in the Colonies. Damnably, the wife keeps reminding me that 1/4-1/3 of the production takes place before Eliza's first appearance.

I haven't given up, yet.

Having just watched it for the first time, that's what the finale seemed to heavily imply.

I watched Hamilton one time, and "My Shot" has been stuck in my head all day. I can't imagine how long the cast was dealing with these earworms.

Watched it again. So good.

Didn't know we had a thread in this. Already covered the censorship in the Disney+ thread.

Got an account for a month, mostly for this.

Had the soundtrack for years since a friend gave us a copy. We loved it so much, we bought our own. Feels like I've seen it but this will be nice to really see it.

Just finished it. So good! Will be watching that again. f*cking fireworks kept interrupting the quiet bits.

A lot of new videos have popped up on YouTube this weekend featuring the cast of Hamilton!

For example...

Took us a couple sessions to get through. Baby's nap time and after bed time. But wow, that was something.

The song is a few years old at this point, but the music video is new.

Watching it yet again...

Hell yeah!

Two viewings in, one the day it came out and again the next night. Just as amazing both times. Seeing how the staging works and all of the little physical things the characters do. Just amazing.

I think my "live" favorite thing is the immigrants getting things done high five.

Mixolyde wrote:

Anyone watch with captions? Are they good? Rewinding because my wife who isn't paying attention says, "what did he say?" drives me nuts.

Yes. They seem comprehensive too. Not like with some shows where phrases are changed to fit the meaning and the screen. Was word for word.

Had to lower the volume when baby was asleep and generally watch everything with them lately.

Twitter is all aflutter because of actor Jonathan Groff spitting a lot while singing King George. Silly me, I thought it was an acting choice, but apparently it's just something he does when he sings on stage!

After watching I decided to listen to Rivals! on Audible to try to understand the rivalry between Burr and Hamilton a bit better.

Boy it paints Hamilton in an unflattering light. He was basically a major A-hole to Burr for years. It is a very stark contrast to the Broadway show.

Like much of history I am sure it is nuanced but I came away feeling rather disappointed Miranda picked Hamilton to be the "hero" of the show.

Like much of history I am sure it is nuanced but I came away feeling rather disappointed Miranda picked Hamilton to be the "hero" of the show.

Is he though?

My takeaway was that Burr was the secret protagonist of the show, who ultimately fell to his darker impulses due to repeatedly failing to be able to overcome Hamilton's misspent charisma and talent -- very reminiscent of the Salieri/Mozart relationship in Amadeus.

That was the sense I got from the cast official recording, but it was particularly well conveyed for me thanks to Leslie Odom Jr's amazing performance. I still haven't seen the Disney+ version, but I maybe might have watched a bootleg of the original cast a few year ago, and those performances really gave me the strong feeling that Burr, Angelica, and Eliza were the real heroes in the subtext the story being told, whose lives were tragically damaged by the whirlwind of cheerful, exuberant chaos that was Hamilton.

My wife and I tried to give it a go. Seemed good but it was late and without knowing the background I wasn't too much into it. Miranda does a bang up job of making it a great soundtrack. Musicals are not usually our jam either. I'll see if I get back to it. All in all great but maybe not my harbor of tea.

Lots of fun facts in this one:

zeroKFE wrote:
Like much of history I am sure it is nuanced but I came away feeling rather disappointed Miranda picked Hamilton to be the "hero" of the show.

Is he though?

My takeaway was that Burr was the secret protagonist of the show, who ultimately fell to his darker impulses due to repeatedly failing to be able to overcome Hamilton's misspent charisma and talent -- very reminiscent of the Salieri/Mozart relationship in Amadeus.

That was the sense I got from the cast official recording, but it was particularly well conveyed for me thanks to Leslie Odom Jr's amazing performance. I still haven't seen the Disney+ version, but I maybe might have watched a bootleg of the original cast a few year ago, and those performances really gave me the strong feeling that Burr, Angelica, and Eliza were the real heroes in the subtext the story being told, whose lives were tragically damaged by the whirlwind of cheerful, exuberant chaos that was Hamilton.

I love this take. Personally, I had never before thought of Burr as a secret protagonist or hero of the show. Not because he's a foil for Hamilton---who I don't think is presented as a hero---but because he doesn't seem to stand for anything. Nonetheless, I always loved that the show does a really good job presenting all the characters as three-dimensional, and gives you a way to sympathize with them, like how Wait For It really gets into Burr's motivations and how he sees himself.