We could have easily heaped a ton of praise on ‘Hamilton’ right after seeing it at Wharton Center in East Lansing, MI on May 15, 2019. Our initial instinct was to quickly recall Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hip-hop-infused production about the first Secretary of Treasury, United States founding father Alexander Hamilton, using as many complimentary adjectives as we could think of. What prevented such an outpouring was that ‘Hamilton’ left us thinking. To give it glow, even to stand and applaud long after it was over, wasn’t enough. It deserved more.
Near the end of the show, after nodding our heads along with the rhymes, laughing out loud, and bouncing in our seats to its music inspired by 90s east coast hip-hop, emotional quicksand drowned us in our seat cushions. We were sunk, completely overcome by the gravity of this story. So were the people seated around us and all throughout Wharton’s Cobb Great Hall. As the musical turned to silence, sobbing could be heard from the audience in every direction. Each of us in attendance were given this beautiful, unique red diamond heart only to have it smashed in our hands as we were holding it.
‘Hamilton’ gives its viewers a lot to grasp, and it hurts so good to gather what’s incredible about it intimately close to your chest. The acting was outstanding, especially Hannah Cruz as Eliza Hamilton. Several times her all-too-believable reactions made us ache and cringe and gasp. On the lighter side, the comedic antics of Bryson Bruce as Thomas Jefferson kept us laughing. Paul Oakley Stovall was also a dramatic standout as the wise and commanding George Washington.
Packed with riveting performances, the gold pedestal is rightfully shared by Edred Utomi as Hamilton and Josh Tower as Aaron Burr. In the beginning Hamilton is the young, loud, brash go-getter eager to shake things up in boisterous fashion. Burr was quieter and more calculating. Establishing a friendship that later became deathly soured, their personalities swapped a la late hip-hop icons Tupac Shakur and Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace.
‘Hamilton’ had a number of obvious references to hip-hop culture and lore, especially in its music. During the song “My Shot” Hamilton rhymes “I’m only 19 but my mind is older”, a direct quote from Mobb Deep’s now legendary hit “Shook Ones (Part II)”. They even went as far as having a scheduled debate between Hamilton and Jefferson depicted as a rap battle, calling back to a younger, more playful LL Cool J challenging the seriousness of the intellectually gifted Kool Moe Dee.
What also stood out were the similarities between ‘Hamilton’ and group De La Soul’s classic 1996 album ‘Stakes Is High’. One of them was the way the setting of New York was more like a character than just a place, similar to how Long Island on ‘Stakes’ felt more like a 4th group member and not just the city the trio hails from.
The turntable at the center of the set must also be noted. Used to create some cool effects, at one point during the story time was rewound to show the true story behind Hamilton meeting his wife Eliza. The turntable spun backwards to reset the scene. It also worked like an actual record on a record player, spinning during musical numbers and not moving when the music stopped – like it did suddenly during darker, tragic moments. Those were the ones that sent all our heads around in circles. With tears flying in all directions, we were sunk, overcome by the gravity, hearts smashed, and ready to give ‘Hamilton’ applause and complimentary adjectives. But it deserved more. |THIS
[Written by Mr. Joe Walker | Follow THIS on Twitter @THISENT1]
