By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“)
It’s been a full decade since Lin-Manuel Miranda’s idea of a “mixtape” about the Founding Fathers was playing at the Public Theater to sold out performances and plans for a transfer to Broadway had been announced.
If the buzz about Hamilton were to live up to its expectations, the opening at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in July of 2015 would mark the next Broadway juggernaut.
Indeed, with 20-20 hindsight, Hamilton‘s runaway train of ticket sales has now eclipsed the previous records set for a billion dollar box office gross quicker than Phantom of the Opera (25 years), The Lion King (13 years) and Wicked (12 years), and it shows no sign of slowing down.
While it is difficult to capture the same kind of electricity found in the original cast members of Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr., Renee Elise Goldsberry, Daveed Diggs, Philippa Soo, Christopher Jackson, Anthony Ramos, Jonathan Groff and others, the current cast of Hamilton playing at the Saenger Theater In New Orleans comes very close.
Audiences are in for a real treat as the magical spark found in the young, scrappy and hungry original cast members is present in every one of the cast members on the current “Angelica” tour playing until Sunday, April 20, at the 2600-seat Saenger Theater in New Orleans. Of the 11 remaining shows on tap, all but two are sold out.
While Miranda was the guiding force and genius behind Hamilton, it might be said that his performance in the title role of Alexander Hamilton was of a slightly lesser stature than his fellow cast members, all of whom were blessed with remarkable voices. Miranda was good about surrounding himself with a superfluous amount of talent to carry and uplift his own performance. By the time he left the original cast to work on other projects for The Disney Company (“Moana” “Coco” and “Mary Poppins Returns” among them), Miranda’s level of performance was on par with the others and his charisma and the response of the audiences lifted him.
As the Alexander Hamilton of this tour, Tyler Fauntleroy stands tall and proud. He possesses a voice that is strong, but pliant and has the skill to pull back when needed to work with his fellow cast members. The opening number “Alexander Hamilton” gives an insight into what will be coming as the cast members representing General and (later) President George Washington, the other Founding Fathers and his wife Eliza and sister-in-law Angelica weigh in on his importance to their own lives and to the country.
The original conceit of Hamilton was found in its first, expanded title Hamilton: An American Musical. As the son of Puerto Rican immigrants, he felt left out of the story of the American Revolution and wanted to showcase the significant contribution of immigrants in the building of the country. He flipped the traditional picture of White men in powdered wigs and heavy dark jackets and cast diverse players of Black, Hispanic and Asian actors in their place.
It was Miranda’s intention not to dishonor the memories and contributions of the Founding Fathers, but to give them a fresh coat of paint that would resonate with the diverse audiences of our present-day. A student of musical theatre, Miranda also paid homage to previous Broadway powerhouses that brought together ensemble casts such as Hair, Rent and especially Les Miserables.
While Fauntleroy is the central figure throughout the work and is very effective in the role, the other cast members also deliver astonishingly faithful renderings of their roles that could quite easily be compared favorably with the original cast members.
Jimmie “JJ” Jeter is a passionate Aaron Burr, who describes himself as “the damn fool that shot him” in the opening number. But there is more to Aaron Burr than being a bitter political rival. Burr is the man with whom Hamilton is initially impressed, a fellow orphan and immigrant trying to better himself in a cold and unforgiving world.
But similar backgrounds notwithstanding, Hamilton and Burr soon deviate upon different paths. Hamilton takes the aggressive, more direct route, while Burr defers and decides where his chances may be better in the long run. Burr considers Hamilton as a brash and unnecessary risk taker. Hamilton thinks Burr is an opportunist.
Jeter’s performance in the plaintive “Dear Theodosia” is beautifully paired with Fauntleroy as the two talk of their pride in their children and their future. In the energetic “The Room Where It Happens” Jeter is flummoxed at his being left out of the political process that creates the District of Columbia and moves the nation’s capital away from New York. Hamilton proves himself a shrewd negotiator and gives Burr the credit for his guile – a surgically placed knife in Burr’s heart.
Nathan Haydel returns to his spiritual home on this tour. The great-grandson of Dookie and Leah Chase of culinary fame, Haydel performs as abolitionist and confidant of Hamilton, John Laurens, in Act One. His work is best displayed in “My Shot” that serves to establish a leitmotif for Hamilton and the beautiful drinking ballad “The Story of Tonight” that focuses on Hamilton and his friends. In Act Two he performs as Philip Hamilton.
Jared Howelton steals much of the show in his twin roles of the Marquis de Lafayette in Act One and Thomas Jefferson in Act Two. His rap as Lafayette in “Yorktown” (“Guns and Ships”) is simply marvelous and his delicious turn as Jefferson in the jazzy “What’d I Miss” should not be missed as it is yet another show highlight.
A.D. Weaver is also an imposing George Washington, introduced in the energetic “Right Hand Man” and featured in the beautifully structured “One Last Time” as a fading political figure. Kai Thomani Tshikosi tears up the stage as Hercules Mulligan in Act One, but is reserved as James Madison in Act Two.
While the men carry out much of the action in Hamilton, it is the women to whom much attention is paid by both the actors on stage and in the audience. Lauren Mariasoosay is an excellent Eliza Schuyler, wife of Hamilton, and sister to Angelica, played by Marja Harmon. Lily Soto rounds out the trio of siblings as Peggy Schuyler in Act One. In Act Two she burns as sexy Maria Reynolds, Hamilton’s mistress, in “Say No To This.”
Speaking of burning, Mariasoosay’s solo in “Burn” in Act Two is as good as it gets. The feeling of being betrayed by her husband and of her wanting to rid herself of all the reminders of their courtship is spot on. Her clear voice is strong and resolute while containing the deep hurt she feels. This is in contrast to the joyful and playful attachment she has to Hamilton in Act One’s “Helpless.”
Harmon’s Angelica Schulyer is the oldest sister and professes an immediate attraction to Hamilton, while admitting the two are similarly disposed (“You will never be satisfied.”). Despite the kinship, she deliberately introduces him to her sister who is more eligible to marry a man of Hamilton’s lowly financial status (“Rewind”). Angelica’s longing for Hamilton eventually dissipates when she learns of his affair in “The Reynolds Pamphlet” as she proves to be a strong and supportive sister.
Mariassosay and Fauntleroy share many sentimental moments on stage as husband and wife such as in”Stay Alive” in Act One but their best pairing is in “It’s Quiet Uptown,” late in Act Two, where the two reconcile their lives in act of confirmation that elicits tears.
That’s the beauty inherent in Hamilton. These are not cardboard characters drawn from history. There’s the backdrop of revolution, politics, envy, death and personal strife and then there’s tenderness between a loving couple or from a proud parent to his child or a son to his father.
For comic relief, King George III, played by Justin Matthew Sargent, is a sheer delight. Even though he is only on stage for a total of nine minutes, when he is there, he commands the attention of the audience and adds flourishes in his physicality and extensions of notes in his vocal performance to put his own tack on the role originated by Brian d’Arcy James at the Public Theater and played to perfection by Jonathan Groff on Broadway. Sargent’s “You’ll Be Back” eventually has the audience ecstatically taking part in a sing-along with the British monarch.
In addition to Miranda’s Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning book, score and lyrics, the orchestrations and music supervision by Alex Lacamoire and Miranda are exquisite. Directed by Tony Award winner Thomas Kail, the choreography by fellow Tony winner Andy Blankenbuehler is as revolutionary as the times it reflects. There is constant movement that is still supervised by the brilliant Stephanie Klemons who served as Blankenbuehler’s associate choreographer.
Tony Award winner and recent Oscar winner (“Wicked”) Paul Tazewell created the fantastic costumes for the production, while David Korins designed and supervised the construction of the set in an oblique salute to Les Miserables. While Howell Binkley won a Tony for his lighting designs, Nevin Steinberg only garnered a nomination. Yet, the sound is rich and full and the music fills the Saenger Theater at every performance.
Keyboardist Emmanuel Schvartzman leads an ensemble of ten musicians that beautifully render the score and a procession of tour programmers and supervisiors take care to maintain the highest of standards for this Actor’s Equity national road company.
Based on Ron Chernow’s book “Alexander Hamilton,” Hamilton has played to New Orleans audiences on three previous runs in 2019, 2021 and 2022. The story is not just a show. It is a phenomenon and while the use of hip hop music may be off-putting to some, it is a deliberate intention to make the story of the Founding Fathers relevant to today’s modern audiences. Keeping an open mind, theatre goers will experience the story of Alexander Hamilton and others through a prism of diversity with an emphasis on how immigrants built this country and how Hamilton and others fought for our independence and freedom and then helped draft the Constitution to keep it.
Hamilton (2 hours and 45 minutes including intermission) continues its national tour with a mostly sold-out run at the Saenger Theater, 1111 Canal Street, in New Orleans. Monday is dark. Limited tickets are still available for the Saturday, April 19 evening performance (8 p.m.) and and Sunday, April 20 (1 p.m.) matinee. For tickets, click here or call 504-287-0351.
