On September 22nd, the Smith Scholars attended the musical Hamilton at the Aronoff Center. Written by Lin Manuel Miranda and choreographed by Cincinnati Native, Andy Blankenbuehler, Hamilton tells the enriching story of our founding father, Alexander Hamilton, and the birth of our nation. The musical was a special experience for Smith Scholars. Two takeaways from the play expressed by the Scholars were its historical accuracies and the subtitles that were part of the choreography.

Accuracies

Prior to viewing the musical, the Smith Scholars reviewed several of the Federalist Papers (Federalist 1, 10, and 51) to gain some historical perspective. While the main events and timeline of the show are accurate, Lin does takes creative liberties with character development. Here is a sample of some stretched truths and, in some cases, straight-up inaccuracies:

Musical: Martha Washington named her feral tomcat Hamilton.

Truth: It is not confirmed if Martha Washington did name a tomcat after Hamilton. Some historians believe that this was true, and others are not convinced due to a lack of substantial evidence on the subject.

Musical: Hamilton got in a dispute at Princeton College while talking to Arron Burr in which he punched the bursar.

Truth: Lin has admitted that this is a creative leap he took, and that Hamilton did not punch the bursar of Princeton. However, when the song is titled “Arron Burr, Sir,” who can blame him for that rhyme?

Musical: Throughout the course of the show, there is an intense flirtatious relationship with Hamilton and his sister-in-law Angelica.

Truth: While there are letters that portray the flirtatious writings of Angelica with not only Hamilton and his wife Eliza, but also with Jefferson, the significance of these is a stretch. In fact, by the time Hamilton and Eliza married, Angelica had been married for over three years. So while the flirtations provide for a more entertaining relationships, they are a stretch.  

Musical: Many characters in the musical portray exaggerated boldness in personality.

Truth: According to his biographer, Jon Meachum, Jefferson was a much more thoughtful and quiet founding father unlike his representation in the production, and Washington was quite sensitive and was easily offended and hurt by the words of his subordinates than it portratyed.

Musical: After General Lee was “left behind without a pot to piss in,” Laurens, a revolutionary partner of Hamilton, takes actions by declaring a duel between himself and Lee.

Truth: The duel is accurate except that Washington was not present for the occurrence and was not particularly bothered by it. In fact, Washington hosted Laurens for a Christmas dinner days later.

Musical: Many characters such as Schuyler Sisters are portrayed as having progressive and vocal views.

Truth: There is no evidence that the Schuyler Sisters paraded and campaigned for equal rights on the streets of New York.

Musical: Hamilton had a relaxed view on slavery.

Truth: Hamilton was an anti-slavery founding father. However, he married into the Schuyler family who owned over 20 slaves; some of which he helped purchase. So, while Hamilton was an abolitionist, he was willing to set aside his viewpoints for a greater position and status.

Subtilities

There are many subtle details that many first-time viewers often miss. For example, Hamilton and Burr have different movement patterns. Until the song “The Room Where It Happens,” Burr only walks in straight lines from spot to spot, whereas Hamilton walks in a wavy and circular motion for the whole show. Interestingly, Burr runs in a massive circle at the end of “The Room Where It Happens,” showing that he has begun to spiral out of control, losing his sanity and patience.

Another subtility is an ensemble character nicknamed “The Bullet.” Throughout the show, anyone who dies on stage has at least one interaction with “The Bullet.” For example, Hamilton’s son, Philip, who dies on stage, is seen flirting with Bullet who calls him a fox minutes before his fatal duel with George Eacker. Interestingly, Hamilton moves around with “The Bullet” the whole show. Some other subtilities include the Schuyler sisters parading around New York singing about equality holding their arms out horizontally to create an equal’s sign, the ensemble flipping furniture around in the air with the singing of “the world is upside down” in the “Battle of Yorktown” song, and finger pointing to the sky every time the line “my shot” is said.