Reviewing the Drama: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Ballet, Movies, and TV Reviews

His name is Alexander Hamilton, and he is no longer the forgotten founding father. Much has already been written about Hamilton , the new musical written by and starring Lin-Manuel Miranda ( In the Heights , tick, tick…BOOM! ) and inspired by Ron Chernow ’s biography, Alexander Hamilton . I’ve written about it ;  Stephen Sondheim and the Roots have written about ; and, just a couple of weeks ago, President Barack Obama gave it his seal of approval . All of it is true. It is a game-changing musical. It is revolutionary. It is an incredible, nearly impossible mix of musical theatre tropes, hip hop references, flipping-the-script casting, history lesson and so much more. Using mostly hip hop (as well as some R+B and Brit pop) to tell Alexander Hamilton’s story—Alexander Hamilton, a bastard, immigrant son of a whore, who wrote his way to great heights and then fell even farther—an important, integral part of our American history is made vivid and accessible. Because David K...

The tagline for Hamilton is, "Who lives / Who dies / who tells your story." It's taken from a lyric in Lin-Manuel Miranda 's new hip-hop musical about founding father Alexander Hamilton. And though the show is called Hamilton , the story that's told is much grander, helping us understand the others who lived, died and have yet to have their story told. Inspired by Ron Chernow 's biography, Alexander Hamilton , Miranda explores the treasury secretary's motivations (by writing the show and playing him on stage), who he was as a person and not just what he did. He doesn't stop there, thankfully. Miranda also gives equal attention and insight to Hamilton's foil, Aaron Burr (a captivating Leslie Odom, Jr  ( Leap of Faith , tick, tick...BOOM! )). This sensational musical is as much about Burr as it is about Hamilton. Indeed, it seems that to understand Hamilton we need to understand Burr. Tiny but significant bits of their respective biographies a...