Hamilton

 

I saw Hamilton this weekend in San Francisco and was blown away. The performances were terrific, but it was the lyrics that knocked me out. So clever, with multilayered rhyming that only someone who loves the English language could devise.

Lin-Manuel Miranda is indeed a man of many talents. Not only did he craft the lyrics, he wrote the music as well, a grand synthesis of left-brain and right-brain superpowers. The play is based on the biography written by Ron Chernow—which I can’t wait to read–and Miranda brings it to life with humor, drama, and heart.

The woman behind me sobbed loudly through much of the second act, which portrayed various personal tragedies in the lives of the protagonists. But I was more moved by the history, the incredibly daring experiment that is US democracy. Yes, the founding fathers were flawed, but their vision is undeniable.

If you have the opportunity to see this work of brilliance, by all means, go.