A Ramble About Hamilton

Hello! 

In 2020, one thing I developed an interest for was musicals.They got me through self-isolating/quarantining/social distancing (a process which I refuse to ever repeat) last spring. It began with Les Miserables, which I loved. I listened to it non-stop for a whole two months.

Then, this summer, my family watched Hamilton on Disney+. I’d heard about it before, and I was like, “Hey, it’s a musical. I liked Les Mis, so let’s try this!” After finishing it, I only had a brief understanding of what was happening, but I still didn’t hate it. It was different from Les Mis in many ways, but they were both musicals that dealt with heavy topics. I didn’t want to admit I liked it, though. 

Oh, just you wait. 

So, mainly because I was bored, I decided to listen to the soundtrack. Maybe I could get more out of the musical? I listened to it all the way through, getting a little bit more understanding of what was happening. I started to recognize different songs and could pick out the ones that I loved. 

Then during my family’s summer road trip across the country, I listened to the whole musical a total of 4 and a half times, give or take a random song. It was at this point that I admitted I liked Hamilton. 

But… why? 

On the surface, Hamilton is a musical about the life and legacy of Alexander Hamilton, along with a giant history lesson on the Revolutionary War and the founding of the United States. Then, after listening to it a few more times, it becomes a musical about other characters too (ahem, ELIZA). It becomes a story about two people who did opposite things. It becomes a question of if it is better to act fast or wait. 

And guys, this is just off the top of my head. I’m sure there are so many other ideas and themes that I just haven’t noticed or can’t remember. (I may or may not be writing this in the late hours of night.) Each person will get something different out of Hamilton. 

What I love about this musical is that, while there is an antagonist and protagonist, there also isn’t. You could say Aaron Burr was the villain. He killed Hamilton, for goodness sake! But Hamilton himself wasn’t the best guy either…The characters were realistic. They were good and bad, having believable motivations for everything that they did. They were human. 

I Am Not Throwing Away My Shot

I really like the constant fight between waiting for things and acting fast. Burr waits for things, taking time to plan out a strategy. Hamilton, on the other hand, doesn’t throw away his shot. He just keeps going. 

Let’s think about this in real life. If you wait for everything to be in the perfect, then things will move slower. You can plan out a strategy, but while you’re waiting you might miss some good opportunities.

If you act quickly, you won’t miss as many opportunities. But, if you always act fast, things will get very chaotic very quickly. Sometimes there are opportunities that look great at first, but aren’t so much after a while. So which is the better option? 

During the musical, Burr usually waited for things. Hamilton never threw away his shot. But then, during the climax, Burr didn’t wait and Hamilton threw away his shot. This is what kept me up at night. I couldn’t stop thinking about the irony of it all. 

Songs: 

Okay, if you haven’t listened to Hamilton, you should. Please, just do it. And if you don’t like it at first, maybe give it another try? To really think about and dissect a story, it is important to know the story well first. 

My Favorite Songs: 

So, I could really name a lot of songs for this, but I’m going to try to keep it at three. 

1. Dear Theodosia – a sweet, innocent, kind break from the tougher songs. I’ve finally gotten the piano music for this too, so now all I need is someone to sing…

You will come of age with our young nation

We’ll bleed and fight for you

We’ll make it right for you

If we lay a strong enough foundation

We’ll pass it on to you, we’ll give the world to you

And you’ll blow us all away

2. It’s Quiet Uptown – *WARNING* Please don’t listen to this if you have to be able to function soon after. I cry while listening to this. I purposely skip it sometimes because I just can’t do the emotions. But I love it too. 

If you see him in the street

Walking by himself, talking to himself, have pity

(Philip, you would like it uptown, it’s quiet uptown)

He is working through the unimaginable

3. Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story – Literally, the longest title ever, but it’s worth it. This is a truly epic ending, I cry too while listening to this. It ties everything up so, so well. 

 I put myself back in the narrative

I stop wasting time on tears

I live another 50 years

It’s not enough

Songs For The Writers: 

Hamilton was made for writers, basically. There are a lot of songs and lyrics that I relate to so much as a writer: 

1. Non-Stop – Okay, so this one just has general multitasking vibes complete with running around in chaotic circles. But this is a great song to dance to with friends. 

How do you write like you’re running out of time?

Write day and night like you’re running out of time? 

Every day you fight, like you’re running out of time

2. Hurricane – I don’t hear enough people talking about this one, but it’s pretty epic too. 

I wrote my way out

Wrote everything down far as I could see

Fluffy Songs to Dance and Sing To: 

AKA the ones I like just to sing to and not necessarily for the feels: 

1. My Shot 
2. The Schuyler Sisters 
3. You’ll Be Back (and basically all of the king’s songs)
4. Satisfied (I love rapping this, but I also kinda don’t like Angelica…) 
5. Non-Stop 
6. The Room Where it Happens 
7. The Election of 1800 

In Summary: 

The Hamilton musical is a pretty awesome musical. I think there’s a good balance of fluffier songs that are mainly for dancing and more emotional songs. I love the emotional songs, but sometimes we need something happy to listen to. So, if you’re bored, or maybe going on a long road trip, Hamilton could be some sanity-saving entertainment! 

Have you listened to Hamilton? What are your favorite and least favorite songs? What themes and ideas have you picked out of it? Until next time! 

-Hannah

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