IS ‘Hamilton’ the greatest play ever staged? The current answer to this question is probably in the negative. It is not THE greatest play ever staged. William Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’, Tennessee Williams’ ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’, Sophocles’, ‘Oedipus Rex’, Anton Chekhov’s ‘Uncle Vanya’, Lorraine Hansberry’s ‘A Raisin in the Sun’, Eugene O’Neill’s ‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night’, Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of a Salesman’, and Henrik Ibsen’s ‘A Doll’s House’, are just a few of the great works of theatre that would be perceived as outranking ‘Hamilton.’ However, there is no doubt that the success of ‘Hamilton’ in its current incarnation, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, with its inherent beauty, stylistic music and lyrics, and well-developed characters, is destined to become a classic. Within the next few decades, there is no doubt that ‘Hamilton’ will come to be regarded as one of the greatest plays ever staged. This destiny is predicted not only in the universal acclaim and the number of awards (for example, winning 11 Tony Awards out of an astounding 16 nominations) the show has received but more in the way that the music has had an impact on various aspects of culture.

This show also not only helped to highlight the value of the musical form of rap to those who were previously unaware of it, but it also managed to bring back to the forefront some of the elements of theatre that had been lost in recent years. Casting actors of colour to play white characters, for example, or generating such a storm of attention in the world of pop culture, among the people, and even making it cool to go to the theatre again are all attributes that can be bestowed on ‘Hamilton.’ Indeed, whether existing only in the mind or not, it does seem as if there are two periods in which modern musicals exist: those that came before ‘Hamilton’ and those that came after. Such is the impact of this particular play on the modern musical scene.

The play tells the story of the real-life historical figure, Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of America, detailing his life and his relationships with various other historical figures, including George Washington, Elizabeth Schuyler, Aaron Burr, Thomas Jefferson and Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette. One of the important elements regarding the dramatis personae of the play has to do with the fact that almost all of the main roles were played by black, Latino, Asian, and mixed-race actors. This reversal of ethnicity of real white historical figures is noteworthy in the production because it was this kind of gigantic artistic decision that helped propelled the musical to fame and acclaim, which undoubtedly brought attention to the (lack of) presence of people of colour in the popular musical scene. This casting decision is also significant to the play itself because it brought attention to the fact that Hamilton himself was a (white) immigrant from the Caribbean who moved to the United States, and the theme of immigration becomes more pronounced and emphasised in a cast, with various ethnicities representing modern immigrants and, by extension, as stated by Lin-Manuel Miranda, modern America itself.
Several technical elements work along with the plot structure and conflicts to make ‘Hamilton’ an invaluable theatrical production. The moving stage, for example, amplifies both the reversal of time in ‘Satisfied’ when Angelica rewinds time to let us know how she felt upon meeting Hamilton, and then later in the play when the final duel between Hamilton and Burr takes place. The set, as another example,
provides room on the stage, as well as on elevated structures for the ensemble to use as well, for the staging of the battle and dance sequences, and this adds to the grandeur and awe-inspiring nature of the play.

The music in a musical is undoubtedly one of the most important parts of the production and in ‘Hamilton’ the music is one of the elements that stand out the most. Often, when it comes to Broadway shows, it is the music that people find most accessible (through YouTube and streaming sites), and it is the music through which people not living in NYC can first access a Broadway musical. Perhaps we hear a specific song on social media or we read an article about it, and when this happens, the gives us our first taste of the musical.
Truly, in ‘Hamilton’ there is something for everyone, whether it’s the warm, emotional ballad of ‘Helpless,’ the aching and sorrowful, ‘Satisfied’ or ‘Wait for It’ or even fun and raucous numbers like ‘You’ll be Back.’ Even though it is a play, the music can sometimes make one feel as if one is in a concert. The songs are catchy and alive and are really the kinds of tunes that you never forget. It is a doubly artistic experience in that the play is excellent, and the music matches it at the same level. On a third level of artistry, the use of dance is also outstanding, conveying balls and battle scenes with equal ease and beauty. The ensemble carries the play along, essaying a variety of roles, managing to rove between specific people and the horde seamlessly.

‘Hamilton’ is a truly great play. It is beautiful, arresting, fantastic, and emotional all at once. I do believe that it will be on Broadway for a very long time and I do hope that people continue to support it, because, like all classics, more than anything else, ‘Hamilton’ is simply too important, too valuable of a contribution to the arts, and too well-executed as a mechanism that captures and represents the human experience, to be missed.