Hamilton

The obsession is real.

Hamilton was released on Disney+ on July 3rd, 2020. I have already watched it three times. All my social media started to reflect my obsession: TikTok For You page, Instagram Discover page, YouTube Recommended, and my Twitter feed in general. A new song gets stuck in my head every. single. day.

It took me a little time to get into Hamilton. My sister was a massive fan and begged me to listen to the soundtrack. I hesitated at first because I didn’t want to fall in love with it and then never have a chance to see it. I also loved how annoyed my sister would get when I wouldn’t listen to it—I can petty. I finally sat down to listen to the entire soundtrack and I was of course blown away from the genius of it all. I found a bootleg copy on YouTube and watched he entire two and a half hour show in 10 minute sections. It may have taken me forever, but it was so worth it. For a few months it was all I thought about—I even listened to it as I fell asleep. When it came to LA, my sister and I got to see it live and I cried so much

Fast forward to 2020. It was announced a while ago that a filmed production of the original cast was going to be released in theaters October 2021 and I was pumped! Then the entire world kind of went to shit and they decided to release it over a year early—knowing the world needed a little bit of happiness. Premiering 4th of July weekend during the protests for Black Lives Matter and police brutality is not just a coincidence. I was counting down the days until its release; it was the only thing I was looking forward to, especially being in quarantine.

It was more amazing than I could have ever imagined. Every single time I watch it, I notice something new. Everyone is coming out with new theories of the meanings of different moments in the show. Being able to see close ups, the viewer is able to notice little nuances that may get lost on a big stage. I really noticed this during King George III’s songs. The little inflections Jonathan Groff does with his face and body are just genius. I soon understood the importance of the character of The Bullet, played by Ariana DeBose. I knew of her role during “The World Was Wide Enough,” but I never realized that she is foreshadowing death throughout the entire show. There are so many other examples and much better reviews you can read about that will highlight them.

I love that Hamilton is gaining a whole new fanbase from people who have probably never seen a musical before. Hopefully this encourages more Broadway productions to film and release shows for mass audiences. Nothing can take away from experiencing live theater, but a lot of people don’t have the means of seeing shows in person. I would give anything to be able to watch a recording of Ben Platt in Dear Evan Hansen or Andrew Rannells in The Book of Mormon.

To theater snobs, Hamilton is maybe getting to be overrated, but to me it’s still pretty flawless. I will never stop trying to learn any of the choreography or sing along to Angelica’s rapping in “Satisfied.”  I will never not cry during “One Last Time” or “It’s Quiet Uptown.” And don’t even get me started on the ending: “The orphanage…”

I hope you semi-enjoyed my rambling. When I love something, I get obsessed. Are you a Hamilton fan? What are some of your favorite parts? Let me know in the comments!