HAMILTON

Last night (Friday 11/15) my sister Katie, brother in law Jean, sister Christine and I went to see HAMILTON. Never in a million years did I think I would get to see it. The ticket price is beyond my budget AND Dave does not do musicals. However, a few weeks ago when Katie and Jean when with our step mom Diana, Diana entered Katie in a raffle for free ticket and

SHE WON! 

The view from our seats

I wondered if HAMILTON would live up to the hype. No worries there it totally did. We saw the Angelical Company production. They were amazing. The non stop energy in the how is electrifying. The show has a 2 hour and 45 minute run time (including a 15 minute intermission) and it flew by.

I read the book by Ron Chernow that served as the inspiration for Lin Manuel Miranda to create the play. I enjoyed it. The play ..... that is something else. Mr. Miranda is one talented dude. To take a book (albeit a good one) on a historical figure and turn it into a song, rap, and hip hop musical? I didn't think I liked rap or hip hop so I was a worried that would affect my enjoyment of the play.
Obviously not so. In fact, I think I have a new appreciation for these musical styles now.

The raffle that Katie won included a back stage tour. So after the show we joined stage manager Eric Tysinger for our tour. First up was a photo op and chat with some cast members.

Left to right Zoe Jensen (Eliza Schuyler Hamilton), Katie Gentile, Paul Oakley Stovall (George Washington), Christine Elizabeth, Paula Tansey, Edred Utomi (Alexander Hamilton), Jean-Laurent Gentile, Stephanie Umoh (Angelica Schuyler)

These folks went above and beyond to meet and greet us. They were gracious and kind and answered all of our questions. Despite being only 20 minute or so from the conclusion of a high energy performance they were so patient and kind.

The tour was fascinating. We learned about lighting cues and how props are stored and moved in and out of scenes; something that happened seamlessly from the audience point of view. The space is not big. This just added to my awe of the production.

Us and Eric our tour guide

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Katie and Jean for taking me. I am not a theater geek. So perhaps my awe and appreciation of this production is out of proportion to reality. I really don't care though. All that matters is I had a really good time!!

Keep Smiling Keep Moving
-Paula