I Saw Hamilton and I Feel Renewed

I saw Hamilton and it felt I began a new chapter of my life. Immediately afterward, I announced that I would never feel satisfied again without Hamilton in my life. I've been filling the hole that the musical created by listening to the soundtrack and reading everything about both the show and the history that I can get my hands on. Everything I read supports my feelings about the show. Lin-Manuel Miranda is (certifiably) a genius. He also has a community orientation. The success of Hamilton feels like not just his success, but all of our success. And that comes not only from a powerful and powerfully told story, but also from Lin's sharing it with those who stand to benefit from it, both the lovers of theater, lovers of rap and history, and students. Hamilton is the story of us, which is all the more significant because the story of America is rarely told so inclusively.

Here are the themes I loved from it:
- Revolution: The musical argues that revolution is terribly important in the face of oppression. It also portrays the complexities of revolution and the other side of revolution - the creation of a new society. As George Washington says in one of the songs, "Winning was easy, young man. Governing's harder."

- America's identity: The cast and music of this show reflects the diversity of the United States today. It also explores the values on which the US was founded, values rooted the dignity of all people that we could use a reminder of today.

- Ideals of democracy and their challenges: Many of the questions being decided early in the US's democracy are still questions we ponder today: What are the qualities of the leaders we want? Can we be easily charmed by political charlatans? Where is the line between the agency of states versus the federal government? How much support should we offer foreign allies? There were no easy answers then as remains the case today. One important moment from this period that continues to set the standard is Washington's decision to relinquish his power and allow for a smooth transition to the next president.

- Believing in something and never giving up: Probably Hamilton's defining characteristic was his relentless persistence. While not a universally positive trait, it does allow him to achieve many of his dreams and helps him to build a country he could be proud of. The Burr of Hamilton is not the villain because he kills Hamilton so much as because he refused to stand for anything.

- Immigration and slavery: Hamilton and Lafayette are proud to be immigrants shaping the US (a reference to which apparently gets long applause each line). Hamilton and John Laurens fight against slavery, and then Hamilton's widow continues to fight for the abolition of slavery to honor Hamilton's memory after he dies.

- Writing: The other thing that Hamilton is most well known for is his prodigious writing. He wrote literally thousands of pages over the course of his lifetime. He used writing to express his feelings and his insights. His writing was persuasive and helped him to shape the early United States. One of the lines that stuck with me was "How do you write like you need it to survive?" Reminds me of my blog post from this fall about how writing is one of my "five to stay alive."

- Friendship: No man is an island. Hamilton's friends all brought something to the table in helping America to win the Revolutionary War. His friendship with and mentoring by George Washington was also hugely important to his growth over the years.

- Different types of love: Love of all kinds (friendship included) is at the heart of this story. The Schuyler sisters love for each other is sustaining for them, and that gets transferred to Hamilton and his relationship with both his wife and her sister. The importance of one's nuclear family and the inspiration that family provides is also one of the themes of the story.

- Forgiveness: Hamilton made very human mistakes. His wife forgives him for his affair. Burr cannot forgive Hamilton and the story ends with his regretting that.

Hamilton had what I can only imagine is a lifelong impact on me. It asks that we bring out best selves to all we do, keeping in mind the impact that we have on others. I could not recommend it more highly! Check it out at http://atlanticrecords.com/HamiltonMusic and http://genius.com/albums/Lin-manuel-miranda/Hamilton-original-broadway-cast-recording.