Hamilton

Story

Hamilton follows the remarkable life of Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of the United States, in music and rap. Hamilton emigrates to America from the Caribbean and fights in the War of Independence where he impresses General George Washington. After the war he is made Treasury Secretary, founds several banks, opposes slavery - and engages in multiple scandals.

Why we chose it

Hamilton is innovative and original – a hip hop musical that opens the genre to new audiences and a production that stays true to its intention to increase diverse representation in the theatre.

Where it came from

Hamilton was created by Lin-Manuel Miranda as a passion project, based on the life of Alexander Hamilton, whom he greatly admired. It was inspired particularly by the 2004 biography Alexander Hamilton by Rob Chernow. Miranda aims to increase diverse representation in the theatre, hence his decision to use the hip hop style, saying it felt right to him for hip hop to be the music of the Revolution. He also stepped away from historic accuracy and opted for colour conscious casting with a primarily non-white cast despite the fact that these historical figures were all white.

Where it went next

The musical was 6 years in the making before it premiered on Broadway and it is still one of the hottest tickets. Fans wait months and pay huge amounts of money for tickets.

In 2016 it won the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Price for Drama.

Hamilton has been performed across North and South America, Europe and Australia. It came to London’s West End in 2017.

Associated stories

Hamilton has taken the world by storm. Numerous cast recordings have been released. In 2016 a live recording was made which will be released on Disney+ in 2020.

In 2016 Miranda and Jeremy McCarter released a book, Hamilton: A Revolution, detailing the process of creating the musical alongside historical facts of the Revolution.

In 2019 Hamilton: The Interactive Exhibition opened in Chicago focusing on the life of Alexander Hamilton and the musical.

Miranda also used the popularity of Hamilton to help support Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017.

There have also been numerous parodies, documentaries. There is not yet a film adaptation, although Miranda has hinted that there will be one day.