Delaying The Inevitable: "Hamilton"

I was bound to write about this musical eventually, and it seems this is the day.  Today, I am not throwing away my shot to talk about "Hamilton"!

Written and composed by theatre giant Lin-Manuel Miranda, the show premiered on Feb. 17, 2015 at the Off-Broadway Public Theatre to rave reviews.  Transferring to the Richard Rodgers Theatre in August 2015, critics lauded the show and tickets have been selling like hotcakes ever since.  It was even nominated for 16 trophies at the 2016 Tony Awards, winning 11.

After purchasing a copy of Ron Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton at an airport, Miranda became fascinated with the life of the founding father and began to imagine that life as a musical.  Originally, Miranda envisioned a Hamilton musical as a mixtape and performed the opening song, "Alexander Hamilton", at the White House Poetry Jam in 2009 to great applause.  

The rest is history (literally).

An Exclusive Sneak Peek at "Hamilton: The Exhibition" Coming to Chicago

Few of the actors from "Hamilton"'s workshop days reprise their roles in the Off-Broadway production.  Miranda, who played Alexander Hamilton, was joined by Daveed Diggs, who played French revolutionary Lafayette and politician Thomas Jefferson, and Christopher Jackson, who portrayed the first American president, George Washington.

I will admit right now that I have not seen a full production of "Hamilton".  However, the musical is mostly sung through, which makes it a lot easier to listen to the whole show and visualize what's on stage.  

Lin-Manuel Miranda Brings ‘Hamilton’ to a Troubled but Appreciative Puerto Rico

Let's start off with the writing!  Each character has their own style of lyrical flow.  Alexander Hamilton mainly uses polysyllabic rhymes; for example, in the song "Non-Stop", Hamilton pairs the phrase "be Socrates" with the word "mediocrities".  However, he switches to the exact opposite rhyming scheme in the beginning of "The Room Where It Happens", as he has Maria Reynolds, a temptress from the previous song, "Say No To This", on the brain.

Meanwhile, George Washington mainly sings in glossy prose
with polished lyrics, which does make sense for his dignified character.

The acting is also very impressive.  Miranda deliberately casts talent of different ethnicity and gender than the real people.  Okieriete Onaodowan, born in New Jersey to Nigerian parents, plays James Madison and Hercules Mulligan, two fair-skinned men, while Phillipa Soo, a half-Chinese woman, plays Elizabeth Schulyer, Hamilton's wife.  The direction, lighting, set design, and choreography is also well done.

Finally, there comes the eternal question: "what is my favorite song from the musical?"  Personally, I used to adore "My Shot" (due to the impressive lyrics), but my current favorite song from "Hamilton" is "The Room Where It Happens", a tune detailing a closed-door meeting between Hamilton, Jefferson, and Madison from Aaron Burr's perspective.  

What I really love about this musical is how there's always new to discover.  You can listen to or watch the musical multiple times over, which I have done, and still not catch an important detail or an instance of embedded foreshadowing.

Hamilthought, show #6, 1/15/19:
It’s so fun playing the top of Room Where It Happens after Say No To This.
Hamilton is so distracted and foggy: it’s the only time he’s monosyllabic: “No. Yeah. Sure.”
He’s still got Maria Reynolds on the brain.

— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) January 16, 2019

The current Broadway cast of "Hamilton" includes Austin Scott as the title character, Denee Benton as Elizabeth Schuyler, Mandy Gonzalez as Angelica Schulyer, James Monroe Iglehart as Jefferson/Lafayette, Daniel Breaker as Aaron Burr, and Euan Morton as King George III.  

Tickets for the nationwide "Philip", "Angelica", and "And Peggy" tours are available now! 

New Hamilton Tour to Star Julius Thomas III and Donald Webber Jr.

What is your opinion of "Hamilton"?  Do you think it deserves the praise it's getting?  Do you have a favorite song from the show?  Feel free to leave a comment down below!

Ten Broadway Facts For The Theatre Nerd In You

"I feel it is my job in life to provide helpful tidbits, and it is Tim Horton's job in my life to provide helpful Timbits."

The above quote is from yours truly.  Since I was a little kid, I have been fascinated by trivia and fun facts related to all different areas of knowledge.  I even competed on my high school quiz team with this acquired knowledge, scoring major wins with my teammates.

Today's post will be a fact dump of neat Broadway facts that I have acquired recently.  Next week will be another review of a popular musical! In the meantime, here are 10 musical theatre facts that will surely satisfy the trivia nerd in you.

1. The cost of a Broadway ticket is about $95 on average.

 

This is less than I anticipated.  However, as I am a college student trying to get by, I'm still going to pass, no matter how much I want to see "Be More Chill".

2. In 2012, Broadway ticket offices sold 12.4 million tickets!

9,081,636 of these tickets were sold for musical attendees. That number rose to 11,454,081 for the 2017-2018 season!

Attendance At Broadway Shows Since 2006

3. The first production on Broadway was produced by legendary showman P.T. Barnum in 1870.

That must've been the greatest show!  You can throw popcorn at me now.

4. The longest running show on Broadway is "The Phantom Of The Opera".  It premiered on Jan. 26, 1988. As of March 19, 2019, it has run for 12,959 performances.

The second-longest running show is "Chicago", which has had 9,283 performances so far!

5. Theatres in New York City must follow specific criteria in order to be considered a "Broadway" theatre.  

They must seat at least 500 people and have to be located between 40th Street and 54th Street, west of 6th Avenue and east of 8th Avenue.

6. There are a total of 41 Broadway theatres.  However, if you look at the number of Broadway theatres actually located on Broadway, the number is drastically reduced to four.

The Circle In The Square Theatre, the Marquis Theatre, the Palace Theatre, and the Winter Garden Theatre are the only theatres located on the street known as Broadway.

7. Speaking of the street, Broadway is the most lengthy road in the city.  It runs for 33 whole miles, starting in Lower Manhattan and ending in Albany.

The street was originally called Brede Weg by the Dutch, which can be literally translated into "Broad Way".

8. Broadway theatres do not have a row designated with the letter "I".  Why is this? Too many theatregoers were discouraged after realizing that "Row 1" on their ticket was actually row I, so the row designation was dissolved.

Another reason behind the change?  Ticketholders who had tickets to that row went to the front row instead of the ninth and got into fights.  

If I was a theatregoer with a "Row I" ticket, I would think it meant a first row ticket also, so I'm not surprised that they made this change.

9. The highest grossing Broadway show is "The Lion King".

Based on the 1994 Disney flick, the "Lion King" musical has made over $1.4 billion in ticket sales.  This amounts to around $2 million each week.

Just this week, the show has made over $2.024 million, coming in second to recent powerhouse "Hamilton".

10. The Palace Theatre, located on Broadway, is said to be haunted, with around 100 spirits passing through.  Popular supernatural visitors include the ghosts of actress Judy Garland and acrobat Louis Bossalina.

What is your favorite tidbit of Broadway trivia?  Have you ever seen a spirit lurking in the Palace Theatre?  Would you accidentally go to the wrong row if you had a ticket for row I? Feel free to comment down below!

Dayton's Newly Announced Musical Schedule

The Victoria Theatre Association (otherwise known as the VTA) in Dayton, Ohio recently announced their upcoming shows scheduled between Oct. 2019 and May 2020.  Six productions have been scheduled as a part of an annual Broadway Series sponsored by Premier Health.  The span of these shows includes two Ohio premieres, one regional premiere and the local opening of another.  Today's post will be me going over the list of musicals coming to Dayton in the coming months and giving my rating of anticipation.  I'm excited to see them all!

"Once On This Island" (Ohio Premiere): Oct. 22-27

We start off the shows swinging with "Once On This Island", a one-act musical written by Lynn Ahrens with music composed by Stephen Flaherty.  Winning the award for Best Revival at the 2018 Tony Awards, the story involves a peasant girl named Ti Moune who, guided by the four gods of a tropical island, falls for an upper-class gentleman.  

From what I've heard, this is a fantastic musical and I'm certainly glad that it's coming to the Dayton area.  I'd give this show a 68 percent anticipation rating!

"Spongebob Squarepants: The Musical" (Ohio Premiere): Nov. 19-24

Based on the hit Nickelodeon television show, the "Spongebob Squarepants" musical was written by Kyle Jarrow and includes songs written by various artists, ranging from Sara Bareilles to Panic! At The Disco and even the late David Bowie.  In the musical, Spongebob and his friends must save their town of Bikini Bottom when a volcano threatens to destroy it.

When I first heard about this musical, I was skeptical since I grew up on the television show.  However, after reading reviews and listening to the soundtrack, I'm ecstatic to see it here in Dayton.  I'll give this an 80 percent anticipation rating.

"Rent" 20th Anniversary Tour: 

Jan. 21-26, 2020

525,600 minutes.  That's how long a year is, and almost how long we'll have to wait for "Rent" to hit the Dayton stage again.  Written by the late Jonathan Larson and based on the Puccini opera "La Boheme", "Rent" follows a group of artists in New York trying to get by during the height of the AIDS epidemic.  The show was also made into a film in 2005.

I have only seen the movie version of "Rent", though I do enjoy the show.  This show receives a 73 percent anticipation rating, since I'm more familiar with the musical.

"Summer: The Donna Summer Musical" (Regional Premiere): Mar. 31-Apr. 5

A tribute to the late Donna Summer, "Summer", written by Colman Domingo, Robert Cary, and Des McAnuff, is a biographical musical following the story of its namesake.  Using three different lead actresses portraying different eras of Summer, the show packs in plenty of her hits from "Bad Girls" to "Hot Stuff" and everything in between.

I'm intrigued by the concept, so I'll give this a 70 percent anticipation rating.

"Charlie And The Chocolate Factory" (Local Premiere): Apr. 28-May 3, 2020

This is probably the show I'm most familiar with, having seen a small production locally and both the Johnny Depp and Gene Wilder movie versions.  Based on Roald Dahl's 1964 book of the same name, the show follows Charlie Bucket and four other children as they score golden tickets to tour Willy Wonka's chocolate factory.

I do enjoy the show and I'm excited to see how it plays out on a big stage.  I'll give this a 71 percent anticipation rating.

"Cats": May 26-31, 2020

Finally we come to "Cats", Sit Andrew Lloyd Webber's legendary musical about, you guessed it, cats!  In the show, a group of cats called the Jellicles must decide which cats will ascend to heaven and come back to Earth born anew.

They say all dogs go to heaven, but it seems that not all cats do!  I am excited to see this production; since the concept intrigues me, I'll give it a 68 percent anticipation rating!

My Final Thoughts

Well, there you have it!  These six shows are coming to Dayton next year, and each will bring its own style of quirkiness and fun!  

RELATED: Broadway Shows Coming To Dayton

Which musical are you most excited to see?  Are you hoping for any other premieres to come in the next announced season?  Do you think we'll get Broadway showstoppers like "Hamilton", "Heathers", or "Be More Chill"?  Feel free to leave a comment below!