Hamilton: The Revolution

*Originally published on book blog Will Read for Feels. With the Tony Awards scheduled for today, I couldn’t not pay tribute even in some small way to my current obsession, Hamilton: An American Musical. I can’t count the number of times I’ve listened to the soundtrack in the past week or two, but it was only this week that I started reading the book for it, Hamilton: The Revolution, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda (the genius behind the book, lyrics, music, and titular performance for Hamilton) and his co-author Jeremy McCarter (who is also director of the Public Theater, where Hamilton was staged before moving to Broadway). By the time I read this, the lyrics to the songs were nothing new to me, but I really appreciated the annotations by Miranda (and a few from McCarter), as they let me look at each song in a new light, and I found myself experiencing the feels all over again, and magnified at that, thanks to the context provided by those notes. It took me three days to read this book because I kept stopping to listen and re-listen to the songs. And that’s not all. Between the annotated song lyric pages were chapters that explored Lin-Manuel Miranda’s writing and development process as well as all the work everyone involved in the production, from the director to the choreographer to the actors and more. Little details about what each person brought to make the story come alive onstage but also in terms of the words and music. Things like personal triumphs and tragedies and how they affected those who helped put the musical together made each song, each photo mean so much more, even though the lyrics held a rainbow of feels even without that additional information. Being over 8,000 miles from New York, I haven’t had a chance to see the Broadway musical myself, nor will I have one in the immediate future, but somehow the descriptions of the direction and choreography really helped me solidify it in my imagination. And some of the details the authors shared about the decisions made for the choreography were things I felt would enrich the understanding and appreciation of someone who did see the musical, maybe even multiple times. The overall result? The Hamilton soundtrack alone still chokes me up even after I’ve listened to it dozens of times, but several parts of Hamilton: The Revolution had me blubbering all over again, while others had me giggling or hugging myself in what we Filipinos call kilig (romantic sort of thrill). And there were enough notes on Miranda’s efforts to keep things historically accurate and the instances in which he departed from the facts that I’m now determined to read the book that inspired the musical, Alexander Hamilton, the Founding Father’s biography written by Ron Chernow, as well as his Washington: A Life. I’ve also decided to rewatch a bio-documentary I watched a few years ago, called The Real George Washington, as well as HBO’s John Adams miniseries. Which is more American history than I’ve had since the seventh grade! In the end, Hamilton: The Revolution helped me understand that this musical tells of at least three revolutions: the historical one fought between the Americans and the Brits, for sure, but also the revolution in thought that created the United States of America and that still exists in and helps define it today. Thirdly, the revolutionary nature of this play in music and in theater, and the way it plays notes to a song we won’t hear the whole of for years to come. And that song? That same revolution in thought and burning ambition that keeps people like Hamilton inspiring people of today.

...plus so much more. I had to stop reading this and write this review *now*. I've been reading this book skipping around, reading Lin Manuel Miranda's foot notes, stopping to read an essay here and there. It's fascinating. It enhances the experience of the lyrics and also gives background of the much of the music, the inspiration of rhythms, and the evolution of the revolution of the modern musical that became "Hamilton". So after playing around with reading (and honestly belting out more than a few songs; hopefully the walls in my apartment aren't too thin) here and there, I went back to the beginning and started reading the essays. They are amazing. They introduce the many people who are a part of this evolution of this revolution in musical theatre. I was reading "Part IV: In Which the Character of New York City is Considered in Its Musical & Scenic Aspects". It's fascinating in and of itself. The challenges of depicting of the show's settings. And then I turned the page it took my breath away and threw me back into the experience of anticipation as we waited for the performance begin. Start *now* here. I was lucky enough to see "Hamilton" 5 days ago. Everything you've heard about it cannot in any way express what an amazing, beautiful, dynamic experience it is. Listening to the soundtrack is amazing, but it's as if you forget the rest of the musical. The dancing, the choreography, the staging. I literally, unconsciously, had my mouth open the whole time. Okay, this isn't a review of the musical. The picture on pages 40 & 41 is the stage for "Hamilton". It is the anticipation of sitting in the orchestra waiting for the musical to begin. I have read many parts of this book in bits and pieces. It is an amazing supplement if you have the amazing luck to see "Hamilton". At the same time if you have not seen it, this book is closest you can get to seeing it. The musical is simply it is breath taking. This book has taken me back to that experience and taken my breath away again. The picture is of the actual stage. It is virtually an exact copy (but taken with a phone, far away, in crap ligh). Btw, this is a tome of a book. Hard covered, inches thick, archival worthy pages, fabulously rendered pictures, full lyrics with footnotes, and essays with Pulitzer winners and Presidents. The price of this book could easily be 4-6 times what it is. Even if you're on the fence about "Hamilton", get this.

BUY THIS BOOK! It's worth every penny! I bought it for my daughter for Christmas! She loves it! (and so do I) The quality is excellent and it looks like an "old" book. There are some pages that are longer then the others. The behind the scenes pictures, extras and things that were left out of the musical are all in the book. I highly recommend it to everyone who loves the musical Hamilton! You or the person you buy it for will not be disappointed.

My daughter absolutely loved this. She was so excited about all of the information it has about the musical and characters. It's nice quality and looks nice too. I would recommend this for any Hamilton fan!

Love the show, love the book! So entertaining to read, you get insights from the show and the creative process as well as Lin’s own notes on the songs and they’re meanings, he explains why he did this here and what that verse is referencing to. Great read, loved it!

For a fan hoping to enrich their collection, this book is the perfect addition. It looks exactly like the pictures and is bigger than I expected. It is clearly well-crafted and has a classy design for both its cover and spine. The contents are interesting and follow the creation of the musical in the chronological order of the musical numbers. There are numerous illustrations ranging from professional shots of the performers and casual group photos to photocopies of Lin's handwritten notes and letters penned by Hamilton. Personally, I was only looking to purchase the complete book and lyrics of Hamilton in order to study its composition, therefore, this book was less practically useful than I'd hoped (the lyrics were broken down and inserted in different sections of the book, and it's clear that visual appeal trumped structural readability in the making of this book). Admittedly, that's on me entirely, and even so, the book is still a brilliant read. I'd fully recommend this purchase for any Hamilton fan.

Fantastico!

If you are, like million others, in a loop where you just can’t get this amazing piece of art out of your mind, then this book is for you! I had purchased the book under the influence that this will be straightforward story of how the musical came to life but it’s so much more than that. It lets you in the room where it all happened. Every little beat that we love, every line that got stuck in our head for days, this book will give you their origination story and it will blow us all away! If the team Hamilton embarked on a mission to make something which at the end does nothing more but makes us smile, they did it with the musical and did it with this book too! I could hear the songs in my head as I flipped through the pages and have smiled and cried almost as much as I did when I am watching the movie! Again, I will say since the book is slightly expensive, invest in it only if you are helplessly in love with this musical and want to know more about the geniuses that created this piece of art. For a non-fan, the book may seem a little boring!

Magnifique livre avec des photos superbes ! Je le conseille pour tous les fan de Hamilton ;)