Hamilton: The Revolution
Ratings7
Average rating4
15
Ratings7
Average rating4
A backstage pass to the groundbreaking, hit musical Hamilton.
Lin-Manuel Miranda's groundbreaking musical Hamilton is as revolutionary as its subject, the poor kid from the Caribbean who fought the British, defended the Constitution, and helped to found the United States. Fusing hip-hop, pop, R&B, and the best traditions of theater, this once-in-a-generation show broadens the sound of Broadway, reveals the storytelling power of rap, and claims our country's origins for a diverse new generation.
Hamilton: The Revolution gives readers an unprecedented view of both revolutions, from the only two writers able to provide it. Miranda, along with Jeremy McCarter, a cultural critic and theater artist who was involved in the project from its earliest stages -- "since before this was even a show," according to Miranda -- traces its development from an improbable performance at the White House to its landmark opening night on Broadway six years later. In addition, Miranda has written more than 200 funny, revealing footnotes for his award-winning libretto, the full text of which is published here.
Their account features photos by the renowned Frank Ockenfels and veteran Broadway photographer, Joan Marcus; exclusive looks at notebooks and emails; interviews with Questlove, Stephen Sondheim, leading political commentators, and more than 50 people involved with the production; and multiple appearances by President Obama himself. The book does more than tell the surprising story of how a Broadway musical became a national phenomenon: It demonstrates that America has always been renewed by the brash upstarts and brilliant outsiders, the men and women who don't throw away their shot.
Reviews with the most likes.
If you know me, you know I've been obsessing over Hamilton for the past five or six months. I don't know how it started, exactly, this relationship. I remember reading about a play—a musical; I love musicals—that had cast POC as American historical figures, but it took me a while to stop and listen to the OBC recording itself. I mean, I love musicals, but I don't like American History—I didn't, at the time. The idea was innovative, all right, but it wasn't until I accidentally heard The Schuyler Sisters in a playlist that I decided to stop and listen to the soundtrack. It was love at first listen, I think. It was different from anything I had experienced till then. And here we are now: reading about it and looking around for John Laurens' biographies. Well.
If you're into it, Hamilton: The Revolution is a great book. Knowing what happens backstage, knowing how everything was done is a particular pleasure of mine—I believe I've spent many hours watching special material on Attack of the Clones, and it isn't even good—, and it's really nice if what you're reading about is how one of the greatest musicals of the century was arranged. Besides, Lin-Manuel Miranda is probably my favourite person in the world right now, and the sentiment grows as I read more and more about him—ah! and his notes are great, too.
Book Review: Hamilton: The Revolution by Jeremy McCarter and Lin-Manuel Miranda - this is a book you want in print. There are three aspects to the book. The making of the musical and background on the performers and collaborators. The libretto with Miranda's annotations and a ton of photographs. The audiobook has a PDF of the libretto, but the print version is better. I went out and bought the print version when I was about 1/2 of the way through the audio version.
My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/hamilton-revolution/
Read the libretto a second time slowly. This really is so good.
