by Harper Long (6th)

For nearly 300 years, Broadway has taken over the world, producing some of the best musicals such as Wicked, The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, and West Side Story, but the best of all of them is Hamilton.

Here is some background on Hamilton if you haven’t heard of it or seen it. Alexander Hamilton was one of the Founding Fathers. He came to New York after people recognized how smart he was and hoped to get into Princeton College. While in New York, he meets Aaron Burr (keep him in mind—he’s pretty important). Soon after, Angelica Schuyler, one of the three Schuyler sisters, introduces Hamilton to Eliza. They end up getting married and having a child named Philip. Soon after, Hamilton becomes George Washington’s right-hand man in the war against Britain.

However, once Eliza is gone for the summer, Hamilton cheats on her and eventually tells everyone, which leads the news back to Eliza. But that’s not the only tragedy in his life, because Philip sadly passes away in a gunfight. After the war, Alexander later has a duel with Aaron Burr. Burr shoots him in the chest, and the man who changed history dies. These are just some of the most important parts of Hamilton.

To start off, Hamilton’s soundtrack is amazing, from Phillipa Soo’s emotional performance of “Burn” to Renée Elise Goldsberry’s powerful riffs in “Satisfied.” Every song in Hamilton contributes an important part to the musical, giving details and information about what happened in Alexander Hamilton’s life.

Next, even though not everything in Hamilton actually happened exactly as shown, it still adds suspense and tension to the musical, making people want to know what will happen next. For example, in the musical, Angelica seems interested in Alexander and writes him letters, but in real life she was already married when she introduced Hamilton to Eliza.

Lastly, Hamilton is not just about how the Revolution evolved or how Alexander Hamilton went down in history. It also highlights representation by casting people of color in the roles of America’s Founding Fathers and other historical figures. This choice reminds audiences that history can be told in new ways and helps show that people of all backgrounds have an important place in storytelling and culture.

To sum everything up, Hamilton is one of the best musicals on Broadway because of its amazing music, acting, and storytelling. If you haven’t watched it yet, what are you doing? Go watch it! It will be worth it. You get to experience an amazing musical, and you might even learn facts you can use in school, like in history or ELA.