I knew little about this ballyhooed musical, so I enjoyed this opportunity to gain a little insight.
Lin-Manuel Miranda seems to have done a great job of taking a little-known founding father and turning him into a hip-hop sensation. The documentary says a lot about West Indies-born wunderkind Alexander Hamilton, Miranda himself, a native son of Washington Heights, and previous musicals that breathed life back into Broadway (i.e., "A Chorus Line" and "Cats").
Miranda "sees things that we don't," we're told here. "He read a 900-page biography of Alexander Hamilton, and he saw a musical." Indeed, his creative vision does seem impressive.
My only quibble with this production is that it shows precious little of the show itself. We see few excerpts of dance or song. Though I'd like a ticket to the Grammy and Pulitzer winner, I haven't been left with so great a zeal I'd pay Broadway prices.
Lin-Manuel Miranda seems to have done a great job of taking a little-known founding father and turning him into a hip-hop sensation. The documentary says a lot about West Indies-born wunderkind Alexander Hamilton, Miranda himself, a native son of Washington Heights, and previous musicals that breathed life back into Broadway (i.e., "A Chorus Line" and "Cats").
Miranda "sees things that we don't," we're told here. "He read a 900-page biography of Alexander Hamilton, and he saw a musical." Indeed, his creative vision does seem impressive.
My only quibble with this production is that it shows precious little of the show itself. We see few excerpts of dance or song. Though I'd like a ticket to the Grammy and Pulitzer winner, I haven't been left with so great a zeal I'd pay Broadway prices.