“You have no control
Who lives
Who dies
Who tells your story?”
This is, indeed, a story well told. An orphan, bastard, ‘son of a whore’, an immigrant from the Caribbean island of Nevis played a critical role in the American War of Independence and rose to become one of the founding fathers of the United States and its first Secretary of the Treasury. This is his story, a fascinating, true retelling of a very tall man.
A prolific writer, legal scholar, lawyer, banker and economist, Alexander Hamilton was a polymath whose sexual liaison with a married woman sadly cost him a possible American presidency.
Like Icarus, he flew too close to the sun and got his wings burnt. Such is the stuff the stories of legends are made of.
Hamilton wrote 51 of the 85 essays of The Federalist Papers, an evangelising collection that was pivotal in drumming up support for the American constitution; and till date is used as the lodestar to shine light and help interpret the provisions of the constitution.
Hamilton is unlike any musical that I have seen and it is truly electrifying, in more ways than one. A sharp hip-hop, rap musical, it weaves the sheer brilliance and intensity of its prose-poetry in an ensemble that’s exhilarating and replete with unexpected delights. The showrunner deploys essentially a Black and Hispanic cast, an experiment and a statement of sorts, and pulls it off with remarkable elan.
Hamilton is played to perfection by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who is also the creator, scriptwriter, lyricist and music composer of this spellbinding musical, a modern day polymath himself.
The musical is deeply enriching and entertaining and won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. No wonder, it is one of the top 10 Broadway musicals of all time. It’s a privilege to experience the magic and majesty of Hamilton. Go for it!
Rating: 4.5/5
Where to Watch: Hotstar
