Hamilton
Bushnell Center for Performing Arts
Hartford
Nove. 5, 2025
I’ve been waiting ten years to see Hamilton. I still remember when the play burst onto the scene, and the craze that ensued. A hip-hop musical about one of the Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton, had managed to capture the attention of the nation? I was definitely interested, but as ticket prices soared, the experience quickly got out of reach for me.
But all good things come to those who wait. Finally, Hamilton was right down the street from me at the Bushnell Center for Performing Arts. My anticipation for the show remained unchanged over the long wait, but something I didn’t anticipate happened: I changed over the last ten years.
As a show, Hamilton remains unmatched. Lin-Manuel Miranda’s soundtrack is as perfect from top to bottom today as it was ten years ago. I’ve listened to Hamilton’s music nonstop since, but there’s still nothing like hearing “My Shot” and “Take a Break” performed live.
The songs were brought to life by one of the most talented casts I’ve seen at the Bushnell. Tyler Fauntleroy as Hamilton is a worthy successor to the titular role. He plays Hamilton as rebellious and optimistic, convinced of his own greatness and the greatness of his cause. Fauntleroy is also a terrific singer, and handles the demands of rapping and singing Miranda’s ambitious soundtrack with ease.
The other performers, from Lauren Mariasoosay’s Eliza Hamilton to A. D. Weaver’s George Washington, were outstanding as well. The breakout star of the show for me was Marja Harmon as Angelica Schuyler, sister-in-law to Hamilton. Her performance of “Satisfied,” where she recounted her regret at not pursuing Hamilton for herself, was my favorite of the night.
The staging for the performance was also excellent. It featured a turntable that added an extra layer of dynamism to the performance, allowing the action to be seen from multiple angles. The costume design and backdrops were also immaculate.
Yet I’m not the same person who jealousy watched as theatergoers in 2015 enjoyed Hamilton. I’ve become far less forgiving of the myths of the American Revolution, far more critical of the propensity towards violence.
As a result, I couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable during the performance. Lin-Manuel Miranda has said that Hamilton is a story about “America then, as told by America now.” I think that’s a laudable goal in a vacuum. But seeing George Washington, played by an African American, singing about freedom despite the hundreds of enslaved people at his Mount Vernon estate, felt more like an exercise in Orwellian thought manipulation than a diverse celebration of America’s founding. For enslaved people, Native Americans and women, what was there to celebrate? Putting a literal Black face on that may be well-meaning, but feels disingenuous.
It’s not just about slavery and race. Over the last decade, I’ve become skeptical of the idea of “righteous murder,” for lack of a better term. Does the desire for freedom and rights justify taking another person’s life? That question is not asked a single time during the play. The righteousness of war is self-evident, so the necessity of killing thousands of people to build a free country on a foundation of the rankest hypocrisy is simply treated as the cost of doing business.
Hamilton, Washington, Lafayette and the rest are men of war and violence, and I’ve had my fill of calling killers great men. Hamilton himself, despite surviving several years of war, still managed to get himself murdered in a duel with Burr. This is how civilized, enlightened men behave?
Hamilton is exactly the same show that it was when it broke out in 2015, an exuberant celebration of one of the country’s founders and a brilliant display of music, choreography, staging and acting. I’m different, and while I appreciate the achievement of Hamilton, I’m not too keen on its subject matter anymore.
NEXT
Hamilton continues at the Bushnell Center For Performing Arts through Nov. 16.
Jamil goes to check out some homegrown string players.
