Hamilton (2020) Reaction & Commentary - First Time Watching - Who Tells YOUR Story? 

I'm not into musicals generally, but we had Disney + so we thought 'Let's give it a go. We can switch it off if it's rubbish'. 3 hours later we realised neither of us had moved an inch. Absolutely fantastic. And I'm a Brit.

My wife dragged me to Hamilton in London. I had no interest in it whatsoever. I am an idiot. Guess which one of us was in tears during Quiet Uptown?

"Dear Theodosia" is particularly gut wrenching when you remember that both of these men would outlive their oldest children: Philip dying in a duel in 1801 and Theodosia's ship being sunk or captured by pirates in 1813

I don't know if anyone's mentioned this, but Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote literally all the words to this himself. He's also the genius behind In the Heights and the music of Moana and Encanto. Also, just a couple of fun facts: Maria Reynolds later got divorced from her husband. Her lawyer? Aaron Burr. Aaron Burr later in life married a wealthy teenager, scammed her out of all her money, and bounced. Her lawyer to prosecute him: Alexander Hamilton Jr. 😂 These are possibly the two most intertwined and inseparable historical figures of all time.

They say the reason it’s called Hamilton and not Alexander Hamilton, because it’s also the telling of Eliza’s story. At the end, her line is “will they tell MY story” so I subscribe to the theory that her gasp at the end is her spirit recognizing that Lin told her story

Lin said this cast was selected to tell the countries history through the eyes of how the country looks today. Which is why you have Burr, Washington and Jefferson being played by African-Americans. It was an absolutely brilliant decision.

Thanks to Hamilton and the song “Quiet Uptown” I realized there was no word in many languages for a parent that has lost their child. There’s a word for those that lose their spouse through divorce or death and be a “widow” and/or a “divorcé(e)”. Now, as of 2009, thanks to Karla F. C. Holloway a professor of English at Duke University who herself lost a child, we have “Vilomah”. In many languages, a parent who has lost a child is simply called an “orphaned parent”, as in the German phrase "verwaiste eltern". To be an orphaned parent swaps the object of orphanhood. Holloway, after losing her child, wrote that she felt “punished by this empty space of language.” Noting that the word “widow” comes from Sanskrit, she decided to look for another word from that ancient language to name her tragic identity. She found “vilomah”, which means “against the natural order.” In response to Holloway, scholars pointed out that the original Sanskrit word does not connote the death of a child, but it does connote the inversion of what is right, the opposition of what is natural. It is the inversion of what is right, the opposition of what is natural that the child should die before the parent. “Vilomah” is a legacy erased, a genetic line extinguished as if it had never existed, oblivion, a reversal of creation itself. Yet claiming a name provides a balm. As Holloway puts it, “the difference between today’s grief and tomorrow’s is that now there is a name; Vilomah - A parent whose child has died.”

Realizing that these men were "great" but not necessarily "good" is spot on. I think this is the first lesson I took from this musical, rethinking about history from this prospective. The historical "heroes" were people, humans, and we need to remember this. Daveed Deegs (Lafayette/Jefferson) commented that about Jefferson as well. The man was a "great" man AND he owned slaves. We shouldn't focus only on one of these sides - he was both these things. I love that you commented on that right after finishing the movie. A really strong point. Glad you enjoyed it, welcome to the Hamilfam ;) now go listen to the soundtrack on repeat for couple of months :)

@31:26 “Honestly, it’s kind of draining” is an introvert’s motto

In terms of the how, they recorded two performances straight on (maybe 3?) and then had a day of close ups/pick ups. And then Tommy Kail sat with the editors and sliced it together. Jonathan Groff (King George) had already left the show, but flew back just for the filming. As for how it made me feel as an American, well, I felt conflicted. The biggest thing, which was really fantastic, was it took the founding fathers off their pedestals and out of their paintings and made you realize they were just men. Regular, messy, imperfect people just as we all are. And these regular men created an entire country. It's mind blowing. It also made me realize that we're still dealing with a lot of the same things today and we have a lot further to go. As a theatre person? Good God. I went to see it before the cast album came out. Jaded theatre person that I am, my thought going in was "This can't possibly be as good as people are saying." Fifteen minutes in "Hold on... this is... wow. OK, but does it continue? And wait, did they just make a Your Mom joke?" to absolutely sobbing by the end. Between the music, lyrics, orchestrations (Lac is INCREDIBLE), lighting, set and sound designs. direction and choreography, it is the most cohesive piece of theatre I've ever seen, if that makes sense. Also, it has one of the best sound designs live that I've ever heard. The A2 on the show did a podcast interview where she walked through some of it and it is astounding.

When this came out on Disney+ at the beginning of July 2020, I don't think I knew what kind of state my mind was in after three months of lockdown. Hamilton broke me. I was covered in goosebumps from the moment the Disney logo appears with the '10 Duel Commandments' music over it, and I was captivated, enthralled and awed at every moment to finally be seeing the cast from the soundtrack I'd had stuck in my head for four years. But when 'Wait For It' started, I was destroyed. Something overtook me, and I found myself wracked with sobs, almost struggling to breathe through them. This wasn't opening-of-Up tears; it was beyond even end-of-Coco tears. I have never been that emotionally overwhelmed by any piece of art or culture, ever. I don't think I ever will be again. It was like every anxiety, stress, worry, frustration, fear and feeling that had been building up since March inside my head burst out all at the same time. And this happened two more times before the end of the film ('Stay Alive (reprise)' and 'Who Lives, Who Dies...'). Hamilton did something to me that no other film has ever done or may ever do. I watched it three times on that first day. I've watched it once every couple of months since. I still notice new and amazing things. It might be my favourite thing.

Remember that all the music is live too - the performers under the stage are every bit as talented as the ones on stage. And I love how hardworking the Company are - there’s no curtain-down, lights-down, scene-shifters - they do it all, in plain sight. Best piece of theatre I’ve ever seen

Leslie Odom Jr. is fantastic ✨

"This feels kind of like an Amadeus/Salieri relationship." YES.

Burr's story after the duel is fascinating as well...and would make a good movie. In 1804 (the same year as the duel), he apparently approached the British Ambassador to the US with an offer to help decouple some of the new Louisiana Purchase from the US and set up an independent country, supposedly with him as President. He was arrested and charged with treason but was ultimately acquitted by the US Supreme Court based on a narrow interpretation of the crime. He exiled himself to Britain but ultimately returned to New York, where he died penniless in 1836.

This is the reason why I keep my Disney account. So that I can watch this incredible work of art as often as I wish.

22:10 - The technical term for that is called counterpoint. Don’t sell yourself short, you get brownie points in my book for your earlier reference to Amadeus and Salieri, one of my favorite movies of all time. And I’m a classically trained pianist & composer.

Glad you enjoyed it, I’d recommend listening to the soundtrack too. The more you listen the cleverer it gets.

Everything about this is poetry! And you’re 100% right about the cast demographic - that’s poetry, too. The telling of history through those who would have been enslaved. LMM is a crazy talent! Check out “In the Heights” which he wrote during his sophomore year in college.

In my friend group, i was the last to watch Hamilton. They keep talking about it and how great it is, but i really wasn't that into musicals so i doubted if it's really that good. Now guess who has every Hamilton song memorized and i'm not even American i'm southeast asian

Jonathan Groff (King George) is there for the bow. He is dressed like the ensemble.

I ❤️the roller coaster of emotion I can see on Hamilton newbies faces!

They filmed 2 performances and one time without an audience to get the close ups. This cast was amazingly talented. It won numerous Tony Awards and the London production won several Oliviers.

Lin-Manuel Miranda was inspired by the Ron Chernow biography he read.

Thanks for sharing your reaction to "the best rehersed show ever" according to LMM. As for the accuracy, some of the details were changed to tighten the story or dramatic effect but the facts are based on facts. For example, in reality Burr was not Charles Lee's second for his duel with John Laurens but Burr was a popular "second" who had a reputation for getting resolution with no shots fired. But the drama of having Hamilton and Burr as seconds in the first duel of the show was too much to pass up. 😊

As an American: "My Shot" and "Yorktown" are chill-inducing no matter how many times I hear them, and actually feel like they capture the energy of that time better than any other revolutionary art I've seen. For a different perspective on Hamilton AND Jefferson check out HBO's excellent "John Adams" miniseries, where neither comes out smelling like roses and Alex in particular is portrayed as a conniving and power-hungry little shit. John Adams did not get along with ANYONE.

Bet you didn't think you'd be tearing up for Alexander Hamilton, huh? Lol don't worry, we've all been there 🤣 I'm an American and I wouldn't say it exactly stirred up my patriotism but I can say that it did give me an appreciation for the kind of human that Hamilton was. Like you said, he was a flawed human being even though he was an integral part and what the country became. I will also say that certain songs about the revolutionary war made me proud that our ancestors were able to achieve what they achieved. Thanks France lol

Had the pleasure of seeing this in person, was dying when Jonathan Groff came out.

How you shoot it is important. It’s my understanding that they went into this shooting like it was a movie. I believe they storyboarded the entire thing, filmed multiple shows and did a couple of nights without an audience to fill in some things. I’m always impressed with how they shoot musicals because usually you have to do it all live, and getting the visual story telling must be so hard, but this was next level and I think will change how we package and present musicals on film. I’m really hoping more people get to see Broadway shows either like this or with things like Fathom Events (where they show current musicals and operas on limited nights in movie theaters for people who don’t live near Broadway).

I'm not from Britain, but I'm from Denmark and have taken vocal lessons since I was young. My coach specifically taught me to sing with an American accent because it routinely tests as the most easily understood accent for songs in English. It also helps professional singers break into the American market, which is where the big money is.

Hamilton! I enjoy musicals but this one is special, I'm obsessed with all the songs. The cast is incredible, so many amazing voices. So glad you watched this one.

I read that it was recorded over 3 performances with an audience, with some pick-up stuff done separately so they could get closer to the action and get various jib and steadicam shots.

There's some fantastic analysis videos out there delving into all the details, that make you realise just how amazing, self-referential and thoughtful everything really is - every detail is considered, themes that come up, the main theme of not throwing away his shot, and actually throwing away his shot at the end being what got him killed... it really is a stunning show

Yep, Franklin was in France, too. He had actually been there for seven years before Jefferson even showed up, alongside John Adams. After the war, Adams eventually becomes an ambassador in Great Britain before coming home in the late 1780s.

I saw this live in the West End, it was unbelievably moving and such brilliant storytelling. Great to see more people discovering this for the first time, it brings me such joy to see others enjoying something I love.

I think you'd enjoy seeing "In the Heights" when you get a chance. The lead character in the movie - Usnavi - is Anthony Ramos, who is the actor in Hamilton who plays John Laurens in the first act and Philip Hamilton in the second (and - spoiler - is the only cast member to die twice in Hamilton)

For background, my mother enjoyed theater(so I had to attend) and I came of age with the birth of rap and received a university minor in history, so this was a natural confluence for me. But what makes it special is that it is cross-generational art. Like a lot of people, I was introduced to it by my high schooler, which gave us more music to bond over. And I enjoyed it so much that I was gifted the soundtrack so it was a staple in the car long before we saw the show(which admittedly the rest of the family enjoyed more than I did).

The multiethnic cast was amazing and even though we know who these characters are and what they looked like, I didn't notice the color of the cast. The story was very compelling.

So glad you enjoyed it. Lin read Ron Chernow’s biography of Hamilton while on vacation and was inspired. You should Check out the first time Lin performed the opening song at the White House.

in the ending,i have a theory. when LMM (lin manuel mirranda ushers eliza to take a walk around, LMM is showing eliza the legacy that was created and the product of her telling Hamilton's story, thats why she gasped she was happy and shocked at the product. breaking the fourth wall for the second

If Hamilton was spoken word rather than rap, it would be approx 6 hrs long 🤩

As an American (and first gen immigrant), Hamilton spoke to both my identities. Sometimes folks forget that Americans can be anyone and not to get too political, it comes from both folks who think America is only for a certain group and immigrants themselves who don’t fully identify as Americans. I think Hamilton teaches all of us that anyone who holds these ideals are inherently American. That makes me very proud.

I know you say you don't have a good singing voice, but after listening to your speaking voice I feel like with some vocal training and practice you might discover that you have a lovely singing voice. The tone of your speaking voice is really nice so if you start off in your natural range I feel like it could make for beautiful vocals over time.

Jonathan Groff, the actor who plays King George, was there during the bow at the end, he was in one of the beige soldier costumes :)

10:18 One of my favorite little moments. Lafayette must whisper something really raunchy to Peggy in her ear, her reaction is great!

2020 was the first time I ever watched Hamilton and i've seen it at least 10 times now. But sometimes I forget just how great the voices are. I always remember how quick witted it is, but Leslie Odom Jr and Christopher Jackson's voices are so powerful (Phillipa Soo and Renee Elise Goldsberry too!)

Your reactions were spot on. Great editing also.

Shortly after the soundtrack had come out, and I was as obsessed with it as anyone would be, I made my sister listen to it with me. We grew up with musicals, and so we drove around and listened to it. We got to Satisfied, and she was like 'Oh, that's so sad' And I said "Oh, my sweet summer child, we haven't even gotten to act 2 yet"

Hamilton is amazing! Lin Manual Miranda (Alexander Hamilton) is so good at songwriting! I’m excited to watch your reaction!

What! I’d no idea this was coming. Amazing, can’t wait to watch!

In 2020 I got Disney Plus during quarantine. I must have watched Hamilton 60 times and Googled Hamilton, Burr, Hercules Mulligan, and Mariah Reynolds. I was amazed that all of this was true, was historical. Damn, there really was a Reynolds pamphlet. Was Hamilton the first sex scandal in history (Jefferson second?) Lin Manuel Miranda is a genius!!!

This was probably one of my fav Hamilton reactions to watch ❤️

The guy that played Aaron Burr won the Tony for best actor.

"I can't talk over this" That's why a pause button exists and a 10-second rewind so that you can say something but also don't miss anything

At Philips death I was like : "why is he not crying? Something is wrong" And then he cried at the end and we all were rassured

Shoutout to the Amadeus and Lazy Sunday references!! Love watching people experience Hamilton for the first time. Great video!

Loved your take on this. So much fun to re-watch “with” someone who hasn’t seen it before. Your comments on Hamilton’s outspokenness are on point!

Omg! First Lost (one of my favorite shows in my life, with Sense8) and now Hamilton! Love it!! I'm so happy... better way to wake up hahaha Now I'm going to watch your reaction 🤗🤗🤗

You should watch come from away. A Canadian musical that takes place in Newfoundland right after 9/11. When all the planes had to land. It’s great!

Oh I love Hamilton soooo much! 🔥 If you start digging into the BTS of the production I think you’d enjoy it even more. There’s so much going on at every moment across the entire stage you’d need to watch it over and over to catch it all 🤯 The entire cast was perfectly chosen for their roles in the OG cast. I’m sooo excited that the live production is FINALLY coming to the Q.E. in May/June after Covid pushed it back a few years. I’ve got my tickets for both opening and closing weekend!! YAY!!! It is 100% nonstop from the moment it starts. The soundtrack is so good too! Straight fire 🔥🔥🔥

Omg Neil! I just woke up and I see your doing Hamilton!!! I'm so excited you're doing this, just waiting on my tea to start watching.

Term limits weren't instated until 1951 following FDR's inauguration to a fourth term in 1945. Washington just stepped down because he was ready.

I remember on the news watching Lin sing one of the songs to Barack and Michelle. The show was in development at the time so it wasn't completed but he was giving them a preview.

Great reaction during Burn and Quiet Uptown, we all had the same expression. Gotta hand it to you, we were in a puddle of tears at the end.

love how many of Hercules/Madison moments you left in! great reaction:)

IIRC, they filmed 2 performances and had one non-performance day for additional angles. King George's actor is on-stage for the bows -- he's costumed as a chorus member.

You might want to check out two other things in connection to Hamilton. The first is '1776' a musical written in the 1970s about the Philadelphia Congress and the writing of the Declaration Of Independance. It highlights John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. The other is 'Mindhunter' a Netflix series starring Jonathan Groff (King William III from Hamilton) in a serious drama. It was created by David Fincher. He also directed a few episodes. It's a brilliant series about some FBI agents starting up the science of criminal profiling.

I was crying when Eliza sang that very last song!

The Decemberists were approached by LMM to record Benjamin Franklin’s song for the Hamilton Mix Tape but it didn’t make the cut. They still recoded & released it tho, it’s really good!

Don’t apologize. It’s soooo Canadian. 😜😜😜 Your reaction is fine. ☺️ It’s very much worth watching some of the videos that break down how historical this show actually is and how much detail is crammed into it that only extreme history nerds will get. There’s a lot of material out there that dissects all the songs that didn’t make it into the final show and why they were cut. Not every writer is as immediately forthcoming about all that as Miranda has been. My only gripe about how successful Miranda has been lately is that I don’t see how he has the time to write anything else as a follow up to “Hamilton” now. I admit it, I’m greedy. 😌

I only came here for the Jonathan Groff scenes and I'm out but this reactor is so good that I decided to watch the whole thing lol

I’m genuinely enjoying your reaction I’m glad RU-vid brought me to this video

That was an excellent reaction. New subscriber now !

I live just outside of Angelica, NY. Named for this very Angelica. The mansion built for her by her husband, the Belvidere, still stands as a restaurant and museum.

This is by far the best reaction to Hamilton I've ever seen ❤

I'd recommend having a watch of some other pro-shot musicals, and I'd love to see a reaction to. Sometimes I feel like a lot of the things people praise Hamilton for are true for any good musical (only the genre of music used makes it stand out from the rest/opens it up to more people who would not otherwise watch musicals)... Anyway, here are some pro-shot recommendations: - Come From Away (it's Canadian!) - Into the Woods - Falsettos - Billy Elliot - Rent - Newsies - Les Miserables (the 2020 staged concert is great! or the 10th Anniversary concert) - Miss Saigon

Great reaction! I’d love to see you react to Encanto, also on Disney+. Lin-Manuel also did the music for it, and it is also superb! Thank you!

So many Tony award winners and a future Oscar winner (Ariana DuBose)

Hells bells!! Good morning to me!!! Enjoy yourself sir, you are in for a ride!!!

Ben Franklin and John Adams were ambassadors to France before the war or during it, and I believe that Jefferson was ambassador after the war. I may be wrong about that so don’t quote me on it. Also, great reaction! I love hamilton!!

"Thats sexy for Broadway" Says a man who has clearly not seen Heathers

I know you're not going to see my comment as it's April of 2023 that I've come across your reaction. But I just wanted to say that I grew up and lived most of my life in northern N.J. So much of this history happened where I grew up. The woman that Aaron Burr marked was Theodosia Prost. She and Burr got married in her family home just 1 1/2 miles from where I lived. The house still stands today and is an historical landmark called "The Hermitage". Geo. Washington stayed at that house during the Revolutionary war and his troops had an encampment just north of the house, in my town. Our high school was built on that site. Both of the duels were fought on the Palisades that over look the Hudson River'( I think in Hoboken, but I'm not positive) which again is only about 20 miles from my home. There are a couple of references made in jest about N.J. in the play. ( N.J is a beautiful state). But being one of the original colonies, has a treasure trove of history surrounding the founding of our country. One of the signers of the Declaration lived just about a mile from my house and his house still stands. This movie/play is close to my heart. I'm so glad you enjoyed it. You really shoulders it again as you will discover lots that you missed in the first viewing of it.

I was WEEPING by the end!!!

Hi-American here. For me, it roused a pride/patriotism toward the American ideals, but stirred something different toward the current system-a distaste/dissatisfaction in a way. It’s a window into “what-could-have-been” (albeit, embellished) but still made me crave the heart of what America was founded for, especially as a marginalized (but still so very privileged) person ❤

Neil did you catch that Aaron Burr, in the end, did not in fact "wait for it?"

I somehow missed the poll and am now upset, grease is iconic but also, in my opinion meh. In the heights or West side story (original film or the new Spielberg adaptation) would have been my suggestion. Even if you don’t react to them for RU-vid you need to see see them, they kinda exemplify how to film a musical for today. Grease did a great job of that ,but, I just personally don’t care for the book. Also, “Satisfied” is one of the most satisfying things I’ve seen on on stage. I kinda wish they hadn’t focused on the closeups and just let us experience it in it’s entirety. There are other songs I like just as well, but seeing the staging of satisfied was incredible.

If you don't cry in the last song you have no soul

You should check out the musical 1776. Hamilton pulled some inspiration and lines from that musical. namely when he says "Sit down John!" and when burr says "Sweet Jesus!" 1776 is about John Adams and getting the Declaration of Independence created and signed.

Ah hell take my money xD TO THE PATREON! Thank you for doing this

the old theatre adaptation of the Horrible Histories.

The history in the play is a bit questionable because it had to also be entertaining, but it gives you some idea how things went

I love your hair dude

You need to listen to version with Obama talking in one last time with Christopher Jackson & Bebe winans on

I'm glad that they included the French in this play, but I do kinda wish they could have at least mentioned the Spanish and the Prussians.

the actor who played king george was there at the end too but dress in white like the rest

Incidentally, I absolutely love this musical and I am a history nerd....but one fallacy I need to point out is that when you consider the time frame, Hamilton and Lafayette both were not technically immigrants. Before the war was over, the colonies were still considered belonging to the British just as the Virgin Islands where Hamilton was from. Lafayette did not stay in the states so he was more of a visitor and on a "visa." I believe the more I look into the way the musical portrayed each character, I wonder why the "history" was skewed - even though the musical was based on a biography about Hamilton. I love the comparison to Amadeus and Salieri. Hamilton and Burr, if they were truly portrayed correctly, they had very strong personalities.....that should not have been brought together for fate to deal with. Take the time to watch a few documentaries (and why not? Watch the TV series "Turn.") to get the full understanding of Hamilton's place in history as well as the American Revolution itself. My opinion on the voices of the females are that they sound like Disney princesses. Washington has some pipes! Jefferson might have been the president...but he could not have changed the rules about the VP - that's up to a Constitutional amendment. Burr's daughter ended up becoming a missing person anyway. She is lost to sea 9 years after the death of Hamilton. And she was already an adult by the time the famous duel occurred. In general, the musical is genius. I still ask myself how one person can come up with the total of the songs and storyline.

Excellent reaction 👌🏻

Term limits wasn't Washington's idea. It wasn't done until Franklin Roosevelt's got a third term. And then he died in office so he didn't actually get a third term. Prior to Franklin Roosevelt there was no actual rule saying you couldn't run three times or four times or a million times. It's just most presidents didn't.

I cry EVERY damn time.

Watch Katherine Ryan's stand up bit on Hamilton