I am not following the news this month, but, after watching Hamilton on Disney+ over 4th of July weekend, I have to suspect that the musical must be “canceled” by the Twitter mob at this point. You’ll have to let me know if this is so in the comments!
I love Hamilton. I love it so much that I’ve seen it five times in three different cities! Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco times three. That’s as many times as all other musicals as I’ve seen in my life combined.
After the first time I saw the performance, I spent the next six months walking to work through San Francisco with the soundtrack on repeat. One Last Time, What Did I Miss?, Reynolds Pamphlets, Washington on Your Side, and Room Where it Happens were my early morning pump-up jams.
And of course I love it. It celebrates the founding ideals of America and implores us to strive for those very same ideals today. It celebrates the intelligence and scrappiness of some of the most influential men and women in all of history, not just American history. It recognizes the flaws in these individuals, too, from Hamilton’s adultery and subsequent tell-all writings to Aaron Burr’s insecurity and murder of Hamilton. No person and no country is perfect. But some founders and some countries are built on better ideas.
I love Hamilton even though I don’t personally like the politics and antics of its outspoken cast. I respect Manuel-Miranda’s creative genius and the talent of anyone who earns a spot on the cast nationwide. How ironic would it be if the uneducated mob that our so-called leaders have indulged were to turn their backs against this celebration of American exceptionalism? How sad would this be? And what would it show us?
If Hamilton were to be “canceled” or deemed “problematic,” I’d say it would show us how deep the wound in the American psyche is at the moment.
How confused and conflicted we feel. How isolated and truly unseen we feel. How small and insignificant our lives seem in comparison to the greats of history. How without purpose and self-love so many of our fellow countrymen feel today.
How strange it is to witness a “revolution” being led by the wealthiest and most protected corporate entities. And how sad it is to witness an entire country hate itself, or at least have to pretend so.
Watch Hamilton if you haven’t seen it. It will remind you not just of the promise of America, but the promise for humanity when a people are bound by ideas and values over skin color or blood lines. America was a departure from human history, and I, for one, do not desire to return to a world where I am asked to see someone first and foremost for what they look like and not for what they believe and how they treat me. And I hope that you desire the same.