Hamilton

[Tennesseer]

"This was created by members of the First Unitarian Church of Dallas and shot on our campus. "

[Cookies Galore]

I watched Hamilton yesterday and freaking loved it. My husband watched bits and pieces as he was coming in and out of the room (he smartly let me watch in peace) and even he liked what he saw (not a theater/musical guy, boo. I LOVE musicals). When the touring production came to Philly last year I entered the ticket lottery pretty much daily and never got picked. I finally decided to bite the bullet and try to buy tickets but all I could find was obstructed views so I never made the plunge.
For $7, it was well worth signing up for a month of Disney+. I'll have to watch again before I cancel!

[billisonboard]

Ran across this: The problem with the 'Hamilton' movie

[thyme4change]

Jul 5, 2020 17:06:34 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Ran across this: The problem with the 'Hamilton' movie

Not untrue - but I am not sure what a world looks like where we suddenly shift our thinking in one fell swoop - getting rid of all our "heros" and speaking more about their faults than their successes.  It would seem like we would lose at least a little of our anchor and we would all be adrift.  Maybe that is how the people upset by taking down their monuments.  Our look at that is that they should be uprooted, because their belief system is wrong.  There will come a time that we will have to face that too.  I just hope we can do it in an honest way that promotes growth - but that takes time.  The other option is governmental overthrow, and starting over.  I don't want to do that. 

[pulmonarymd]

People need to be shown with all their features, accomplishments, and faults. I think Hamilton was a fantastic show, and I think he fared well. But, when we act like our heroes are faultless, or are disappointed that they were men like the rest of us, we act like children. Getting disillusioned by our parents not measuring up in our eyes is also a problem. There are no perfect people. Hamilton is responsible for our banking system, a truly remarkable accomplishment. Being human should not detract from yhat

[wvugurl26]

Come From Away was awesome. I enjoyed that one. I have the book on my Amazon list to buy for DH some day but he reads super slow.

I saw Hamilton last June. I wasn't 100% sure of what to expect but it was amazing. It's in our 2020-2021 season package and we are seeing it again.

I'm sure we'll watch it at some point on Disney+.

Summer the musical is the only one of our cancelled shows that's been rescheduled. It's been rescheduled twice in fact. At least it's short with no intermission. Out of all the shows that had to be cancelled, that was the only one I was 100% okay with it not being rescheduled.

[pulmonarymd]

Jul 5, 2020 20:02:21 GMT -5 wvugurl26 said:

Come From Away was awesome. I enjoyed that one. I have the book on my Amazon list to buy for DH some day but he reads super slow.

I saw Hamilton last June. I wasn't 100% sure of what to expect but it was amazing. It's in our 2020-2021 season package and we are seeing it again.

I'm sure we'll watch it at some point on Disney+.

Summer the musical is the only one of our cancelled shows that's been rescheduled. It's been rescheduled twice in fact. At least it's short with no intermission. Out of all the shows that had to be cancelled, that was the only one I was 100% okay with it not being rescheduled.

Saw come from away on broadway. Another fantastic show, great story. Enjoyed it thoroughly. Hamilton was good on tv, but it is difficult to replicate the atmosphere of the live show.

[Tired Tess]

I watched Hamilton tonight. Meh. I'm going to try it again. I didn't enjoy the music. It was so loud and uneventful.

I actually fell asleep twice while trying to get thru it.

[Tired Tess]

Jul 5, 2020 21:21:39 GMT -5 Tired Tess said:

I watched Hamilton tonight. Meh. I'm going to try it again. I didn't enjoy the music. It was so loud and uneventful.

I actually fell asleep twice while trying to get thru it.

I do plan to give it a second try.

[steph08]

I watched it and enjoyed it. I liked the first half much better than the second half. The Rewind part was incredible- I have never seen anything like it.

I personally really enjoyed King George lll and his upbeat nastiness.

I liked Not Throwing Away my Shot.

I will have to watch it again to give a more thorough review.

I did fall asleep about halfway through so had to complete my watching over two nights. Hamilton shouldn't feel offended though, I have fallen asleep at live theater performances, NFL games, rock concerts, and more.

[billisonboard]

Jul 3, 2020 14:42:52 GMT -5 oped said:

...

Sigh. I'm going to stop now. Just... its ok if you don't like it. But talk to me after, there may be some bits you manage to like. 

Okay, I watched it. Not bad entertainment. My wife enjoyed it which is a great endorsement for it.

Certainly multiple levels for looking at it.

As a historical story it obviously was a Broadway show. "King George" and "Jefferson" were great characters for keeping the show from being too serious. Highlighting the dramatic and brief mention of significant things (e.g. Federalist Papers) are always a part of such endeavors. I guess there is a benefit if it creates interest in further study and no real damage to those who think they have learned history from it

It was certainly a musical, although I thought is would better be called a hip-hop opera. The ensemble cast in their little white outfits were of course a necessary part for the show to be the show. They did a nice job dancing and the required displays of some of them being lifted and "floated" around was there a few times. But the generic use of such is one of the reasons I am not fond of this type of theater. There were a few times I thought it would have been more effective if main charactors could have just delivered information in a conversation instead of having to do the hippy-hoppy sing-song thing.

The theatrical production was of course top notch. My wife and I do community theater (acting and directing). I have directed a couple of times and she just directed her first show. It was fun to hear her thoughts on that side of things. We are always jealous of resources available to put on shows. I thought the two turntable stage was incredibly well used. One time I remember was using it to move the older sister away from Hamilton as his wife came to him. Her step to be next to him was flawless. I am always impressed with physicality by actors as it is a weakness for me. I found costuming at times to be distracting. I am pretty sure that Washington's outfits were designed to show different stages of his role in the story but thought they were too much at times. I really appreciated how the ensemble cast was used as stage crew for movement of the minimal props and when they were used to provide physical support for people falling on stage.

I appreciated the opportunity to view it with the hype it has received over the years.

[HoneyBBQ]

Jul 3, 2020 15:07:16 GMT -5 swamp said:

I'm generally pretty meh about theater.   

I loved Book of Mormon, Menopause the Musical, and what I've seen of Hamilton.  I want peppy music and humor.   I've also recently decided I like rap.   

I laugh several times throughout the show... pretty much non-stop when the King shows up...

[swamp]

Jul 9, 2020 13:30:26 GMT -5 HoneyBBQ said:

Jul 3, 2020 15:07:16 GMT -5 swamp said:

I'm generally pretty meh about theater.   

I loved Book of Mormon, Menopause the Musical, and what I've seen of Hamilton.  I want peppy music and humor.   I've also recently decided I like rap.   

I laugh several times throughout the show... pretty much non-stop when the King shows up...

I laughed when it was said that Martha Washington named her feral tom cat after Alexander Hamilton. 

[justme]

Jul 9, 2020 13:08:16 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Jul 3, 2020 14:42:52 GMT -5 oped said:

...

Sigh. I'm going to stop now. Just... its ok if you don't like it. But talk to me after, there may be some bits you manage to like. 

Okay, I watched it. Not bad entertainment. My wife enjoyed it which is a great endorsement for it.

Certainly multiple levels for looking at it.

As a historical story it obviously was a Broadway show. "King George" and "Jefferson" were great characters for keeping the show from being too serious. Highlighting the dramatic and brief mention of significant things (e.g. Federalist Papers) are always a part of such endeavors. I guess there is a benefit if it creates interest in further study and no real damage to those who think they have learned history from it

It was certainly a musical, although I thought is would better be called a hip-hop opera. The ensemble cast in their little white outfits were of course a necessary part for the show to be the show. They did a nice job dancing and the required displays of some of them being lifted and "floated" around was there a few times. But the generic use of such is one of the reasons I am not fond of this type of theater. There were a few times I thought it would have been more effective if main charactors could have just delivered information in a conversation instead of having to do the hippy-hoppy sing-song thing.

The theatrical production was of course top notch. My wife and I do community theater (acting and directing). I have directed a couple of times and she just directed her first show. It was fun to hear her thoughts on that side of things. We are always jealous of resources available to put on shows. I thought the two turntable stage was incredibly well used. One time I remember was using it to move the older sister away from Hamilton as his wife came to him. Her step to be next to him was flawless. I am always impressed with physicality by actors as it is a weakness for me. I found costuming at times to be distracting. I am pretty sure that Washington's outfits were designed to show different stages of his role in the story but thought they were too much at times. I really appreciated how the ensemble cast was used as stage crew for movement of the minimal props and when they were used to provide physical support for people falling on stage.

I appreciated the opportunity to view it with the hype it has received over the years.

I think the last paragraph is what's going to have me watch it more times. I was in the cheap seats live so I got the big view, but the first time I watched it streaming I was more engrossed in the up close facial expressions and interactions that are hard to see from way up high. I watched it a second time with the captions to catch words I didn't before and started watching all the other things. Like the turn table you mentioned - I was like damn was that a computer program moving it so Eliza had to be in the exact right spot or was there someone that had to press the stop button exactly right? But then I saw an article about the Bullet. And I noticed her a few times when she was the actual bullet, but I didn't notice all the other instances where she was essentially death in the play. So now I'm wanting to go back and watch it again and just pay attention to all the ensemble people to see what else was missed. 

[oped]

One thing about the hip hop vs conversation thing is that the length would have been dramatically increased or the content shortened... there was some study on the number of words and relative speed completed when it first came out and the format was integral to conveying the level of discourse in the time allotted.

[billisonboard]

Jul 9, 2020 14:22:53 GMT -5 oped said:

One thing about the hip hop vs conversation thing is that the length would have been dramatically increased or the content shortened... there was some study on the number of words and relative speed completed when it first came out and the format was integral to conveying the level of discourse in the time allotted.

Which is a part of my lack of fondness for using theatrical productions for a sweeping historical story.

[billisonboard]

Jul 9, 2020 14:05:47 GMT -5 justme said:

Jul 9, 2020 13:08:16 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Okay, I watched it. Not bad entertainment. My wife enjoyed it which is a great endorsement for it.

Certainly multiple levels for looking at it.

As a historical story it obviously was a Broadway show. "King George" and "Jefferson" were great characters for keeping the show from being too serious. Highlighting the dramatic and brief mention of significant things (e.g. Federalist Papers) are always a part of such endeavors. I guess there is a benefit if it creates interest in further study and no real damage to those who think they have learned history from it

It was certainly a musical, although I thought is would better be called a hip-hop opera. The ensemble cast in their little white outfits were of course a necessary part for the show to be the show. They did a nice job dancing and the required displays of some of them being lifted and "floated" around was there a few times. But the generic use of such is one of the reasons I am not fond of this type of theater. There were a few times I thought it would have been more effective if main charactors could have just delivered information in a conversation instead of having to do the hippy-hoppy sing-song thing.

The theatrical production was of course top notch. My wife and I do community theater (acting and directing). I have directed a couple of times and she just directed her first show. It was fun to hear her thoughts on that side of things. We are always jealous of resources available to put on shows. I thought the two turntable stage was incredibly well used. One time I remember was using it to move the older sister away from Hamilton as his wife came to him. Her step to be next to him was flawless. I am always impressed with physicality by actors as it is a weakness for me. I found costuming at times to be distracting. I am pretty sure that Washington's outfits were designed to show different stages of his role in the story but thought they were too much at times. I really appreciated how the ensemble cast was used as stage crew for movement of the minimal props and when they were used to provide physical support for people falling on stage.

I appreciated the opportunity to view it with the hype it has received over the years.

I think the last paragraph is what's going to have me watch it more times. I was in the cheap seats live so I got the big view, but the first time I watched it streaming I was more engrossed in the up close facial expressions and interactions that are hard to see from way up high. I watched it a second time with the captions to catch words I didn't before and started watching all the other things. Like the turn table you mentioned - I was like damn was that a computer program moving it so Eliza had to be in the exact right spot or was there someone that had to press the stop button exactly right? But then I saw an article about the Bullet. And I noticed her a few times when she was the actual bullet, but I didn't notice all the other instances where she was essentially death in the play. So now I'm wanting to go back and watch it again and just pay attention to all the ensemble people to see what else was missed. 

I frequently find that I appreciate a production but don't particular like the show. I love actors, directors, stage people. Playwrights, not so much.

[justme]

Jul 9, 2020 14:35:30 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Jul 9, 2020 14:05:47 GMT -5 justme said:

I think the last paragraph is what's going to have me watch it more times. I was in the cheap seats live so I got the big view, but the first time I watched it streaming I was more engrossed in the up close facial expressions and interactions that are hard to see from way up high. I watched it a second time with the captions to catch words I didn't before and started watching all the other things. Like the turn table you mentioned - I was like damn was that a computer program moving it so Eliza had to be in the exact right spot or was there someone that had to press the stop button exactly right? But then I saw an article about the Bullet. And I noticed her a few times when she was the actual bullet, but I didn't notice all the other instances where she was essentially death in the play. So now I'm wanting to go back and watch it again and just pay attention to all the ensemble people to see what else was missed. 

I frequently find that I appreciate a production but don't particular like the show. I love actors, directors, stage people. Playwrights, not so much.

One of my favorite plays I've seen is The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and it's 100% because of the production. I mean, I liked the story too, but man the production. Just a black box with a ton of lights embedded into it, some hidden doors in the walls, and a few smaller props. The entire thing was told by switching the lights. It was crazy simplistic yet amazingly conveyed how overwhelming the world could be to the autistic lead. 

Ah, now I want to see if anyone put that play online. 

[thyme4change]

Jul 9, 2020 13:08:16 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Jul 3, 2020 14:42:52 GMT -5 oped said:

...

Sigh. I'm going to stop now. Just... its ok if you don't like it. But talk to me after, there may be some bits you manage to like. 

Okay, I watched it. Not bad entertainment. My wife enjoyed it which is a great endorsement for it.

Certainly multiple levels for looking at it.

As a historical story it obviously was a Broadway show. "King George" and "Jefferson" were great characters for keeping the show from being too serious. Highlighting the dramatic and brief mention of significant things (e.g. Federalist Papers) are always a part of such endeavors. I guess there is a benefit if it creates interest in further study and no real damage to those who think they have learned history from it

It was certainly a musical, although I thought is would better be called a hip-hop opera. The ensemble cast in their little white outfits were of course a necessary part for the show to be the show. They did a nice job dancing and the required displays of some of them being lifted and "floated" around was there a few times. But the generic use of such is one of the reasons I am not fond of this type of theater. There were a few times I thought it would have been more effective if main charactors could have just delivered information in a conversation instead of having to do the hippy-hoppy sing-song thing.

The theatrical production was of course top notch. My wife and I do community theater (acting and directing). I have directed a couple of times and she just directed her first show. It was fun to hear her thoughts on that side of things. We are always jealous of resources available to put on shows. I thought the two turntable stage was incredibly well used. One time I remember was using it to move the older sister away from Hamilton as his wife came to him. Her step to be next to him was flawless. I am always impressed with physicality by actors as it is a weakness for me. I found costuming at times to be distracting. I am pretty sure that Washington's outfits were designed to show different stages of his role in the story but thought they were too much at times. I really appreciated how the ensemble cast was used as stage crew for movement of the minimal props and when they were used to provide physical support for people falling on stage.

I appreciated the opportunity to view it with the hype it has received over the years.

I'm glad you liked it. I agree that it is an opera. And it can be more difficult to catch stuff, or not follow some plot lines when it is primarily sung. Even worse when they rap at 6 trillion words per minute. Lol.

[Tiny]

Jul 9, 2020 13:31:51 GMT -5 swamp said:

Jul 9, 2020 13:30:26 GMT -5 HoneyBBQ said:

I laugh several times throughout the show... pretty much non-stop when the King shows up...

I laughed when it was said that Martha Washington named her feral tom cat after Alexander Hamilton. 

The recurring "Arron Burr, Sir" variations thru the musical always make me laugh...   (for some strange reason I think Mozart and Shakespeare would have approved of them...) 

[Tiny]

Jul 4, 2020 18:12:35 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

"This was created by members of the First Unitarian Church of Dallas and shot on our campus. "

I cannot thank you enough for this.  I went thru several years of other people learning to cope with their Hamilaria.   
I wish I had seen this in the past.  I may still share it... as I suspect there will be a relapse of Hamilaria in my circle of friends and acquaintances. 

[justme]

🤣🤣🤣💀💀💀

Omg, best!

[justme]

It's easier to understand...some parts. You're on your own with beaker and the chicken though 

[irishpad]

Jul 9, 2020 22:51:19 GMT -5 justme said:

It's easier to understand...some parts. You're on your own with beaker and the chicken though 

Shit, I'm whiter than white (1/4 Irish, 3/4 German)   And i loved this production.   I know I need to learn a lot.

[justme]

I really hope they don't take that down. You can't listen to Satisfied by Camilla the Chicken without laughing your ass off. I need this for comic relief. 

[justme]

Jul 9, 2020 23:04:13 GMT -5 irishpad said:

Jul 9, 2020 22:51:19 GMT -5 justme said:

It's easier to understand...some parts. You're on your own with beaker and the chicken though 

Shit, I'm whiter than while (1/4 Irish, 3/4 German)   And i loved this production.   I know I need to learn a lot.

The Muppet version probably speaks a bit to the whiter side, but it's still great. 

[justme]

OMG Charles Lee as Elmo 


Yeah I'm live posting this

[lynnerself]

"I found costuming at times to be distracting. I am pretty sure that Washington's outfits were designed to show different stages of his role in the story but thought they were too much at times."

I watched an interesting talk on the costumes form an historical fashion expert. She discussed how they were obviously not completely accurate, but how well certain choices were made.

[oped]

My daughter has made me watch several videos by that costuming person... she calls her ‘a gateway drug to costuming professionals’ ... lol.

[Lizard Queen]

I finally got around to watching it today. I wasn't feeling it at first, but my eyes got slightly leaky at the end. It was a little too long, IMO. The actor who played Hamilton did a good job acting, but I found his voice a bit disappointing. It might have been part of his character--I'm not sure, but I preferred the singing of the others with more resonant voices. I was surprised by how many of the characters were race-bent (a term I recently learned discussing RV shows on the primetimer forum), but that aspect really seemed to add to the production.

I might watch it again with the closed-captioning on. I figured out how to turn it on about halfway through. I'm terrible at understanding lyrics. I'm not necessarily compelled to watch it again, though, or live. It beats reading a history book, and it's entertaining enough, but I still don't get the hysteria.