These days, it's hard to go anywhere without hearing something about the musical" Hamilton." "Hamilton" tells the story of one of our Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton, who went from an orphan to one of the most influential people in our nation's government. This musical has gained so much popularity that tickets are basically sold out until January of 2017, and the few tickets that are left are more than $600. You may be asking yourself “What’s so special about "Hamilton" and why does everyone love it so much?” Well, lucky for you, the top seven reasons are right here.
1. It makes U.S. History enjoyable
"Hamilton" makes learning about the way our government came to be more exciting and enjoyable than ever before. You’ve never seen so many faces light up in a classroom when the names Alexander Hamilton or Aaron Burr mentioned. It makes it much easier for teachers to engage students as well.
2. It’s almost all rap music
One of many things that makes "Hamilton" so unique is that out of 46 songs, only 14 of them aren't rap. This helps bring in young audiences who may have turned away from Broadway in the past because they didn’t like the sound of showtunes. "Hamilton" is one of two musicals that feature rap music. The other one is "In The Heights" and they are both written by Lin Manuel Miranda.
3. The Multi-Ethnic Casting
Although all the historical figures in this musical were white, "Hamilton" tells the story with people of all different ethnicities portraying these characters. For example, the Schuyler sisters, although sisters, are all different races. Eliza, played by Phillipa Soo, is Asian-American. Angelica, played by Renee Elise Goldsberry, is African-American, and Jasmine Cephas Jones, who plays Peggy, is Latino. The rest of the cast, as well, varies in races. Lin Manuel Miranda, who wrote the musical, and plays Alexander Hamilton, is also Latino.
4. The Lotteries
Every day that there's a show, there's also a lottery, that gives several lucky winners tickets to the show. Although it may be frustrating to keep losing, the excitement of possibly winning can make any dull day exciting. Also, who doesn't love the hilarious Ham4Ham shows?
5. The Lyrics
The lyrics of the songs in "Hamilton" are just beautiful. One of my personal favorites is “Life doesn’t discriminate between the sinners and the saints.” Each song in "Hamilton" is bound to have at least one line that’ll make you feel a range of emotions.
6. The Cast
The cast of "Hamilton" is very humble and spend any free time they have connecting with fans, whether it’s at the stage door or on Twitter. They always let us know what they’re doing through social media and have inspiration to offer us. They don’t act like celebrities, they just act like normal people.
7. The Set
Although many of us haven’t gotten the chance to see "Hamilton" even from pictures you can tell how amazing the set is. The set of any show is so important because it transports you out of your world and into the actors world. One thing that makes the "Hamilton" set unique is that they actually have a turntable on the stage, giving each scene that extra something special.
To anyone who hasn't listened to the soundtrack-give it a try. You wont be disappointed. TO those in the same boat as me-keep the faith and keep entering the lottery. Our time will come. We cant throw away our shot, right?
