Review: HAMILTON at Benedum Center

The last time Hamilton came through town, it already felt like a waste of space to write a review of the show. It's maybe not the greatest musical of all time (a tough race: discuss amongst yourselves!), but in terms of influence and cultural impact, it's hard to argue anything other than Hamilton as "the most important musical of all time." It single-handedly finished the work High School Musical and Moulin Rouge had done of kicking the pop musical into mainstream acceptance; it launched the careers of several A-list celebrity superstars today; and its "West Wing with rhymes and alliteration" phraseology has left an indelible mark on the way we talk politics and culture. Even when Camelot became associated with the Kennedy era, it didn't mean people could quote snatches of it in public discourse, but surely you repeatedly heard "the room where it happens" or "who lives, who dies, who tells your story" quoted by non-theatre people during the contentious last few years in global politics.

And now, here we are, in 2022. The tour is back in town, tickets are staggeringly expensive, and people are still snatching them up like hot cakes. The availability of a proshot featuring the now-legendary original cast has not deterred the theatregoing public (and a large number of non-theatregoers as well) from desperately needing to see Hamilton live. And they're not wrong! Hamilton is JUST. THAT. GOOD.

In the title role of A dot Ham, Pierre Jean Gonzalez brings the appropriate amount of naivite, enthusiasm and gravitas. He doesn't rap as well as Lin (this is a universal statement over the cast: their singing is often better but they lack the tailor-made hip-hop flow of the originals), but he sings much better and is notably more confident than the Godfather himself in the dancing portions. Blaine Alden Krauss also shines as Hamilton's off-and-on nemesis Burr, his smooth baritone fitting the calculated political schemer well. Nick Sanchez's bundle of energy performance makes Lafayette/Jefferson a galvanizing portrayal, and Elijah Malcolmb gives the best performance as Philip Hamilton I've ever seen, aging from a preteen boy to a cocky wannabe gangster so realistically you'd almost think it was two different performers. Stephanie Jae Park's voice is cool and smooth and soothing, making her quietly passionate Eliza the emotional center of the show as always, while Ta'Rea Campbell's righteous fire and fury makes "The Schuyler Sisters" and "Satisfied" kick.

If there's one thing that seems to be getting lost in translation from production to production, it's King George. Don't get me wrong, Neil Haskell is doing a great job as the mad king, and audiences love him. But something is missing. Jonathan Groff famously based the role's physicality on Beyonce Knowles, and used her sense of self-possessed poise and stillness as the point from which literally anything could happen. Shades of Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka could be seen in his tightly controlled, stiff-upper-lip performance with brief bursts of lunacy and camp. But over the years, that sense of wackiness and play has taken over the character's portrayal. There's less mystery and surprise now; Haskell goes for the swishy, cartoonish King almost from the beginning and milks the laughs rather than the elements of surprise. It works, of course; he got some of the biggest cheers of the whole night. But part of me misses the subtlety that no one but Groff has managed to find in the role.

Seeing Hamilton is one of those watershed moments in modern theatregoing: like visiting NYC or your first trip to Disney, it's a pleasurable experience AND a sort of lifestyle check-box of having "achieved" something. This show changes worlds. Surely that's worth a two-hundred-dollar ticket.

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