Don't tell me art isn't political
You're gonna look at me and tell me that I'm wrong?
Sunday was the Tony’s.
I’m firmly anti-award show because 1. art is subjective 2. they’re self-aggrandizing and 3. they’re usually boring.
However, I am first and foremost a theater kid and so the only exception to this rule is the Tony’s. I will always support theater artists supporting other theater artists.
I’ve spent most of the week musing over the best actress in a musical snub. Nicole “red hat” Scherzinger was a much better Norma Desmond than I wanted her to be, but I hope everyone who voted for her is questioning their choices after that Audra performance. Audra McDonald could play Norma, but Nicole could never reach the levels of presence and vulnerability in “Rose’s Turn.” I will be thinking about Audra’s amazing performance for as long as I live.
Sure, I think Nicole shouldn’t have won in part because of her support of the current administration. But more that art must exist in the context in which it is produced and her speech rang hollow when her vote has helped the attacks on the queer community and by proxy many members of the theater community.
Anyway, that’s not what I want to talk about.
Nope, I want to talk about Hamilton.
10 years ago (give or take), a rap and hip-hop inspired musical about a bunch of dead white guys took the world by storm. It was (and is) everywhere, helping to expand the modern theater audience. I remember (vaguely) discussing this at a post wedding after party with some of my most non-theater friends and their husbands, very drunk. Everyone knew Hamilton.
And as is often the case when musicals are still performing on Broadway years after their opening, the original Broadway cast returned for an anniversary performance on the Tony stage. Instead of a stand alone song like Wait For It, LMM rearranged his lyrics into a medley of political commentary after political commentary. So with that here’s what I’ve noticed (and I’m sure there’s even more to find):
Before the lyrics begin, we see our two leading men in black suits. The show utilized white and neutral colored costumes, allowing actors to easily shift between characters. Color comes in to define the individuals. But this night they are all clad in formal black. Formal for the Tony’s? Formal to mourn our current democracy or lack thereof?
The music starts with Non-stop for a brief introduction. Non-stop tells us the story of the Federalists Papers, Hamilton’s work to defend and support the Constitution. From there it quickly transitioning to My Shot. LMM raps as Hamilton saying:
I'ma get a scholarship to King's College
I prob'ly shouldn't brag, but dag, I amaze and astonish
The problem is I got a lot of brains, but no polish
I gotta holler just to be heard
With every word, I drop knowledge
Out of the gate, we see of Hamilton as the student, the immigrant. Had to double check, but King’s College is now known as Columbia University. Hm. Anyway, today the plight of the immigrant student is very real. Trump’s fight against universities has put international students right in the middle of a complicated legal battle. LMM reminds us that this is a country of immigrants.
He continues on with a call to action. The time to wait is over and the time to speak out, to act is now.
I'm past patiently waitin'
I'm passionately smashin' every expectation
Every action's an act of creation
I'm laughin' in the face of casualties and sorrow
For the first time, I'm thinkin' past tomorrow
In come the Schuyler sisters, singing their love letter to New York, a city of immigrants. They tell us to look around, they tell us that history is happening. As I write this protests are occurring in LA, but also in major cities across the country. The three women are also looking for a mind at work, perhaps leaders who actually represent the people?
Cameo of the bullet (the passing of time, fate) aimed at…
Lafayette. While all actors are wearing black, Lafayette is also wearing the black beret most commonly associated with the Black Panther Party and a single black glove, a reference to the Black Power movement.
But he’s interrupted by the king and we get our first splash of color in the form of a red blazer. A red coat, you might say. Republican, you might say. Regardless, the king spews nonsense, not a single word of note in his entire stroll across the stage. Though he does demand everyone join in blind support of his nonsensical mumbling.
Onto the World Turned Upside Down, the song often known for the phrase “immigrants, we get the job done.” Hercules Mulligan this time shares his story about being a spy and LMM stresses our resilience.
We in the shit now, somebody gotta shovel it!
Hercules Mulligan, I need no introduction
When you knock me down I get the fuck back up again!
Aaron Burr, our antagonist. Our anti-hero. In this version, whether fictional or factual, a power-hungry, party-changing narcissist. Sound familiar? I’m actually more taken by what is left out from the bridge in Room Where It Happens. The first half is omitted but it goes:
The art of the compromise
Hold your nose and close your eyes
We want our leaders to save the day
But we don’t get a say in what they trade away
In steps our fearless leader. Chief Tui of Motunui…George Washington. And as in the show, he uses the power of hindsight to highlight the gravity of the moment. History has its eyes on us. The world is watching this moment.
As the music builds in the chaos of the end of the song, the camera focuses on LMM saying he will not throw away his shot before pulling back to reveal the whole stage. The cast stands in a line downstage as the upstage lights flash in a white and gold pattern reminiscent of a certain house on Pennsylvania Ave.
It was a five minute performance and LMM had 2 hours and 40 minutes of material to work with. You cannot tell me he did not choose these words deliberately, intentionally and with a message to say.
After all, he wasn’t going to throw away his shot.
Today is the No Kings Day protests. A few nights ago, the president and his wife saw a performance of Les Miserables—the musical about a failed revolution at its surface, but explores class, sin, and love at a deeper level. Do we think learned anything? Probably not.
But art isn’t political. It’s just something pretty to fill space and pass time.
Bread and circus.
