Hamilton is a phenomenon. After recreationally picking up Ron Chernow’s massive biography on the forgotten founding father, composer/lyricist/superhuman Lin Manuel Miranda was inspired.
He saw similarities between the rags-to-riches story of Alexander Hamilton’s life and the struggle many hip hop artists face in their rise to success.
And so birthed Hamilton; a Broadway musical about the man who started America’s banking system, told predominantly through rap music. A difficult sell, admittedly. But Miranda persevered.
He assembled a creative team comprising of multiple Tony Award winners to bring his vision to life. Hamilton took to the stage in 2015 and was launched into the cultural zeitgeist in ways most theatrical productions can only dream of.
Originally slated for the big screen next year, this filmed production (shot over three days in June 2016) was moved forward to a 2020 small screen release.
It’s not a movie adaptation in the vein of Les Misérables or Mamma Mia. Rather, it’s the original stage show, captured on film and preserved for generations to come.
It’s a keyhole into the lightning-in-a-bottle success that captivated the world.
The Hamilton hype is immeasurable, so how does it hold up? We’ll look at the show as a whole, then how it was captured, and what was lost, and gained, in translation.
