I had intended to open with a merry quip: who has my eye-teeth? Unfortunately, although that did apply, this show ultimately left me somewhat underwhelmed. Unlike the rest of the audience, at one point, the girl behind us got so excited, her drink flew out of her hand down my companion’s back.
But I remained confused: history, story and characters; it’s not as if Mr Google is a new acquaintance, I just didn’t expect to have to call on him quite so much and still can’t match some of the name and faces from the cast list. Yes, there’s no denying Lin-Manuel Miranda’s was a brilliant idea, so original it’s like a beautiful, expensive, brand new sportscar compared with yet another weary, worn out bandwagon. He does justice to the under-rated man who was one of the founders of America, and with such style and innovation, particularly in the use of rap. But that’s not everybody’s up of tea and even fans, and I’m one, could find the rapid-fire dialogue tricky to follow, for all that clever rhyming. Also, while the first half is a history lesson, and something of a rather frantic, one key, mystery tour, the second part, while continuing the saga of the setting up of the USA, focuses on Hamilton’s personal life, where romance, scandal and tragedy make it more of a typical musical.
Even the staging is rather a mish-mash, tho the integral turntable is utilized to good effect: an impressive towering set, brickwork, wood, ropes, intended to be all things to all men predominately looks like a ship: harbour, war zone, offices, chambers, ball rooms etc, aided and abetted by the clever wheeling on and off of props. One of which was a gigantic staircase, to make an entrance rather more ostentatious, eg Jefferson, splendidly in the purple (fittingly, as Ashley J. Daniels makes an equally glorious job of Lafayette) was greeted with huge acclaim, Louis Maskell as George III even more so. The latter was hilarious, absolutely brilliant, as sinisterly camp as Frank N. Furter; he didn’t seem to put in an appearance at the end, and one can only wonder if that was because he would have upstaged the rest of the cast put together.
Something else I can’t help wondering about: having the Chorus scantily dressed at the start, assuming costume as the show goes on is a neat way of illustrating a rags to riches story – and yet, just the men. Apart from a couple of scenes, and changes of character eg to play soldiers, the girls throughout were clad in tights and corsets. However, some parts really were outstanding. During the song, Hurricane, chaos is amazingly evoked through mime and slow motion, while in the final duel, you get an incredible mix of movement and action conveying both being frozen in time and seeing your life flash before you.
And heroic or not, but certainly charismatic, given that Hamilton does not appear to have been a particularly pleasant man: ambitious to the exclusion of virtually everything else, vain, proud and always convinced he was the cleverest person in any room (OK, he usually was, and definitely the best writer) Marley Fenton does exceptionally well to bring him to life, creating such a sympathetic character. Akmed Junior Khemalai made it intriguing to meet the remarkable George Washington but the cast of thousands makes it impossible to give everybody their due, tho they all earned it, putting heart and soul into acting, song and dance: Billy Nevers is a magnificent Amos Burke; KM Drew Boateng compelling as Madison; Castell Parker for his cameos, in particular, the weaselly James Reynolds. And the women, from Hamilton’s passionate, dignified, longsuffering wife, Eliza (Casey Al-Shaqsy) and her elegant sister, Angelica (Sylvie Stenson) to his duplicitous mistress, Maria Reynolds, cunningly played by Sydney Spencer.
All this carping – and 4 out of 5? Simply because the ecstatic audience would have given it at least 8 out of 5.
Reviewer: Carole Baldock
Reviewed: 9th May 2025
North West End UK Rating: