It’s quite hard to believe that a hip-hop-based musical focusing on Alexander Hamilton’s life would turn out to be among Broadway’s hot-selling tickets, but that’s exactly what happened when it debuted in 2015. Later on, a movie version of the show, including the original cast, made it to Disney Plus on the 3rd of July, 2020. By now, most of us may have watched it or not, but this article will be revealing awesome Hamilton facts you didn’t know about until now.
- The Show was Inspired by Ron Chernow’s Book Concerning Alexander Hamilton’s Biography
In 2007, after concluding “in the heights,” Lin-Manuel Miranda came across Ron Chernow’s biography about Alexander Hamilton in the airport and bought it to read during his trip to Mexico. As he read through, he imagined creating a musical based on the life of the founding father, and this was the inspiration of the Hamilton show in NYC. As he shared his thoughts concerning making a musical interpretation of Hamilton’s biography, some people seemed to understand his point, while some didn’t. Nevertheless, Lin was greatly inspired and saw to it in the following years.
- Hamilton was First Performed in the White House
The song “Alexander Hamilton” was first performed by Lin-Manuel Miranda at the White House in 2009, during the reign of Barack Obama. The performance got quite an attention, and Lin kept working on the song with a broader approach. However, another song, “My Shot,” was released within a year.
- Mixtape toMusical
The Hamilton musical was initially a mixtape. However, it wasn’t enough to vividly display Lin’s ideas. He wanted to cast actors in the musical based on diversity. Also, he stated that he wanted to be a bit more selfish and center the density of his lyrics to his favorite hip-hop albums.
- “Wait For It” was Written by Lin-Manuel on a Subway
Lin was on a train heading to Brooklyn for a friend’s birthday, and most times, great ideas pop up when you least expect them. When he was on the train, this happened to Lin, and he had to record the song on his iPhone. After Lin spent 15 minutes at his friend’s party, he headed back home by train, and this was where the rest of “Wait For It” was created.
- Hamilton: The Fastest Musical
Six words per second, impressive, right? The show portrays full-time action, and Lin made each second to reveal his ideas to the audience. Assuming the lyrics were sung on a usual note, they would have had people sitting at the theater for over 6 hours. Therefore, in this hip-hop-based musical, they transmitted 144 words per minute to the audience.
- The Success of Hamilton Kept Alexander Hamilton’s Face on the Ten Dollar Bill
In addition to the achievements of Hamilton’s musicals, including 11 Tony Awards and a Pulitzer prize, Hamilton had a huge impact on the United States currency. In 2015, there were thoughts of removing Alexander Hamilton from the ten-dollar bill. Still, as the success of Hamilton’s musical kept growing and shedding more light into Alexander Hamilton’s life, the government finally decided to keep Alexander Hamilton’s face intact in the ten-dollar bill.
Just so you know, some actions in the Hamilton show were focused on making it more dramatic. Hamilton never punched Burr in real life; that line aimed to make it more active and dramatic. Finally, the whole show isn’t just focussing on history alone; it’s about the United State’s past and present. It portrays that hard work and steadfastness always pay off irrespective of where you come from or what you look like. The Hamilton musical is considered to be a classic by many.
