It was always inevitable that Hamilton would make its way Down Under. It’s been almost three years since Lin-Manuel Miranda’s game-changing musical made its five-star Sydney debut in March 2021, and was met with overwhelming audience and critical acclaim. Remarkably, this was also the first production of the Broadway mega-hit to open anywhere in the world, following global pandemic lockdowns. A roaring success, the show went on to tour to Melbourne, Brisbane, New Zealand, and across Asia. Now, Hamilton’s back for round two. The Sydney Lyric Theatre’s exclusive return season reuniting some of the original Australasian cast with mind-boggling new talents, some of whom are making their professional theatre debut (not that you’d even guess).
So, in the year 2024, does the pop-culture hype around Hamilton maintain its heat? And can the live production withstand the test of time, especially when you can stream the original Broadway cast recording on Disney+ for $13.99?
The simple answer to both questions is: yes. Although, anyone who is unfamiliar with the Hamilton lore might benefit from reading up on it beforehand (we’ve explained it briefly over here). For Australian audiences, the draw of Hamilton is not really the plot, which holds many contradictions (even Miranda himself admits to that). But if you know anything about the show, you know that the true ingenuity (aside from the game-changing race-reverse casting) lies in Miranda’s magical, genre-defying score – and by bringing in fresh talents, this new staging has harnessed the element of surprise. Each new recruit brings their unique energy and clever inflections to these tried-and-tested riffs and rhymes, to create a singular watching experience that you can only get live.
It hits the benchmark that live theatre demands, and exceeds it. It surfaces new Australian talent that deserves our collective attention...
The refreshed cast also brings new perspectives to the key players in this epic story – a story inspired by America’s forgotten founding father, and his role in freeing the United States from the grip of the British Monarchy and establishing the young nation’s constitution. If the name “Alexander Hamilton” didn’t ring a bell with you before, I wouldn’t blame you – if Miranda hadn’t picked up Ron Chernow’s Hamilton biography on his summer vacation in 2008, many non-Americans (and Americans alike, probably) wouldn’t know it either.
While parallels can be drawn with Australia’s own dark colonial history, it's the timeless human drama at the heart of Hamilton that truly keeps you hooked for the almost three-hour runtime. Like any well-told story of a real person, it aptly juxtaposes the man’s admirable qualities with those that ultimately led to his demise – his pursuit of his ideals over all else, his obsession with his legacy, and his disruptive nature which created many enemies and his missteps into infidelity.
The groundbreaking musical vernacular established in Miranda’s breakthrough Broadway show In the Heights (which coincidentally is now playing at the Sydney Opera House until August 25) is on full display here – as is his love of Broadway, hip-hop, rap, and contemporary R’n’B. His lyrics and song structures borrow liberally from hip-hop’s own forefathers. There’s shout-outs to Jay-Z, Biggie, DMX and Mobb Deep, as well as the female trailblazers of the R’n’B world – Beyoncé, Brandy, Monica, Lauryn Hill and Mary J Blige. Political cabinet debates are reimagined as rap battles, and interspersed with references to Broadway classics like The Pirates of Penzance and fairytales like The Emperor’s New Clothes. The relentlessness of the references mimics Alexander Hamilton’s own tireless wordsmithing, but also insists that Hamilton is a show that gets better the more you hear it and the more you play with it (which is exactly what this cast has done!).
Jason Arrow reprises the role of Alexander Hamilton, and brings a lived-in, quietly commanding confidence to the scrappy-but-determined leading man. His frenemy Aaron Burr (who's also the show's narrator) is played by Callan Purcell (Hair, Bran Nue Dae, Whitefella Yella Tree) – reprising the role he took over in Brisbane and Auckland with zeal. Both Arrow and Purcell bring their own styles to the feuding roles – between belting ballads and dense rap segments, the pair also frequently lean into a more conversational tone, which creates more emotional levels in the typically through-sung score. The unlikely camaraderie between Burr and Hamilton is more present and palpable here than in previous productions. At times, the key seems too low for Purcell, his delivery lacking some oomph in the lower registers, but he excels in delivering a goosebump-worthy performance when it matters most.
The absolute stand-outs however, are the production's newest recruits. Gamilaroi singer Googoorewon Knox (Big Name, No Blankets) makes his major musical debut as George Washington. He personifies Washington’s commanding presence and calm wisdom effortlessly, with astounding vocals to boot. The depiction of America’s first president as a First Nations man has significance here, but it's Knox’s sultry tones and embodiment of Washington’s class that will blow you away. Meanwhile, local musical theatre prodigy Vidya Makan (Six the Musical, The Lucky Country) debuts as Eliza, Hamilton’s loving and forgiving wife. She brings immense emotional capacity, vocal strength and range to an often underperformed role. She is joyfully smitten in the Beyonce-inspired ‘Helpless’ and her captivating, heart-wrenching performance of ‘Burn’ had me in tears.
Gerard-Luke Malgas is astounding in the dual roles of Marquis De Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson – it’s astonishing to learn that this is his professional theatre debut. He injects the show’s viral rap number ‘Guns and Ships’ with surprising intonation and enunciation that is not only delicious to hear, but ultimately makes the shows’ fastest cadences easier to understand. He returns in the second act as Jefferson, employing unexpected jazz riffs and improvisations that bring the controversially lazy Jefferson to life. Etuare Lutui delivers a brilliant James Maddison, and the Watson to Malgas’ Holmes as Jefferson. They bring a distinctly entertaining energy to the camaraderie that easily garners laughs.
The main cast is rounded out by Akina Edmonds as Angelica, and the vocally dynamic Elandrah Eramiha as both Peggy and the indomitably sultry Maria Reynolds. Both reprise their roles alongside the hilarious Brent Hill, whose depiction of King George is a masterclass. The remaining 23 dancers and performers bring to life an elaborate production.
But where the show excels in its genre-defying score, its staging is less subversive. There are moments when the original choreography (by Andy Blankenbeuhler) aptly extends and enhances the lyrical visuals spectacularly – from the Battle of Yorktown, to the chaos of a hurricane, to solemnly rowing across the Hudson river, and the passage of a fatal bullet (and for those in the know, there’s some meta-referential sleights of hand that you’ll recognise from your TikTok feed). But these moments are few and far between. The lighting isn’t particularly memorable (save for a stark shift to “blue” comically triggered by Hill’s King George). Even the rotating set, once hyped as ingenious, seems under-utilised here. Perhaps, the gift of distance has pointed to where the opportunities lie for a future revival?
Outside of the United States, the story of Hamilton may present as a glorification of the American Dream(™) – one that aptly centres immigrants, but shies away from directly addressing the misogyny and active slavery that permeated US society at the time (not to mention, the consecration of gun ownership). It’s a problem that couldn’t be solved by the show’s optimistic colour-blind casting (but it’s also one that it pointedly didn’t try to solve). It’s a chasm that will continue to grow, and may impact the show's relevance as our collective consciousness evolves.
Overall, this production of Hamilton is excellent. It hits the benchmark that live theatre demands, and exceeds it. It surfaces new Australian talent that deserves our collective attention – and you can be guaranteed that each performance will be unlike the last. It would be great to see future revivals experiment more daringly – but for now, perhaps it will invite critical thinking and serve to start a few more conversations.
Don't throw away your shot. You can find tickets for Sydney's exclusive return season of Hamilton over here.
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