Yes, It Is That Good

After years of impossible hype, the musical Hamilton arrived this holiday weekend on Disney+ for all who couldn't secure the hottest-ticket-in-town to finally see. For some, absolutely impervious to the charms of any musical, it was never going to satisfy. (They will never be satisfied.) But my social media is now peppered with many forms of "I didn't think I was going to like it, but I totally did."

Because, yes, it's really that good.

I'm also seeing a lot of contrarian think pieces on various web sites, taking click-bait stands on various supposed shortcomings of the musical. "It strays quite far from the facts to craft a lionizing narrative." Of course! This is not a documentary, it's a "biopic." It wants you to think something of its protagonist (and the other characters; I'll get to them), and is definitely curating the experience to that end. But as with the best "based on a true story" stories, it's compelling enough to drive a desire to learn more once its over.

"It's racially diverse, but it's still lacking when it comes to women." I suppose you can squint hard and arrive at that conclusion, if you want to ignore that the musical is about an incredibly patriarchal point in history that has been preserved for centuries in a patriarchal frame. And moreover, if you want to ignore the fact that the scenes and songs featuring the female characters are the most impactful ones in the entire piece, preferring instead just to count minutes on stage. (Jonathan Groff's King George would like a word with you about making an impression in little stage time.) Perhaps a decade or two from now, when every high school everywhere is performing Hamilton, there will be some gender-blind casting along with the color-blind casting.

(Indeed, the only bit of contrarian criticism I've seen that landed with me is that the release of a filmed Broadway production like this shouldn't be a rarity. The New York Public Library has an archive, going back 50 years, of thousands of productions that can only be viewed for professional or academic reasons, a veritable dragon's hoard of treasure secreted away in a cave. But I digress...)

Sorry, nay-sayers, but Hamilton really is as good as the hype. Even on film, its highly theatrical presentation doesn't feel hokey or cheap. Even at a remove, it has songs that will move you. And it's endlessly clever; only the people who have been listening to the Hamilton soundtrack on a loop for the last four years have any sense of every funny or smart lyric in it, and the rest of us still have more to discover.

I'll just offer this particular observation (which surely isn't that original): I'm struck by how much Hamilton is not a show piece written by Lin-Manuel Miranda for himself. Yes, he plays the title character. But all the best material in the show, he crafted for the other characters. In writing, casting, and performance, this musical is an embarrassment of riches. Every time you're blown away by an actor and their show-stopping number, there's another one yet to come: Phillipa Soo as Eliza, Jonathan Groff as King George, Daveed Diggs as Lafayette and Jefferson, Christopher Jackson as Washington, Renée Elise Goldsberry as Angelica, and Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr... Each of them, impossibly, is the best thing about the show. (Or, if you prefer that in a less paradoxical form: you could easily make the case for any of them being the best thing about the show.)


Seeing this filmed production has in no way diminished my desire to see the real thing on stage someday. (Once the live theater industry -- and everyone else -- is back to work.) The only negative I could muster: I do think this presentation renders any prospective film adaptation utterly unnecessary. (Shrug?) It's an A, all the way.