Hamilton

Three years ago when the pandemic was right at the beginning I received an email to let me know that the performance of Hamilton I had a ticket for was cancelled. My heart sank as it was only three days until the show was scheduled and I was so excited. At that point I had been listening to the original cast recording non stop and it was before the announcement of the film version (which was released later that year). I thought that this might be my only chance to see Hamilton and I was devastated that it had been cancelled.

At the time this was the first event to be cancelled due to covid and soon cancellations would become the norm for a while, everything was cancelled and the disappointment for each event became a little less of a blow.

After three years of waiting I finally received an email to let me know that Hamilton was coming back to Toronto and I was to get a code for a presale since I was had previously had a ticket. I was so excited but I think that I felt like I needed to manage my expectations. I didn’t have a ticket yet. I had to pinch myself when I booked my ticket. It was a little more expensive then my previous ticket but it was a better seat and on March 15th, almost three years to the exact date of my original ticket, I was in the room where it happened.

I was even more excited, I had seen the film version a few times and I was not only excited for the songs but for the staging as well. My seat was in the front row centre of the dress circle and this had to be one of the best seats I have ever had period. I didn’t have someone in front of me so I wasn’t straining to see around a tall person’s head and it also provided for a wonderful view of the entire stage.

When I walked into the theatre and my ticket scanned I felt giddy for the first time. I was in! I found my seat and couldn’t believe my luck in having this unobstructed view. This is why I paid the extra money! I sat and took in the stage and it hit me that I was actually going to see Hamilton!

Then the lights went down and Alexander Hamilton started to play. I didn’t know what to do with myself. I felt like crying, screaming, jumping up and down, I was a ball of emotion. I didn’t do anything crazy, I stayed in my seat vibrating and mouthing along to the words with the biggest smile on my face. At the intermission I couldn’t believe how fast the first half went. I didn’t want it to be half over yet! Slow down time! Before I knew it the second act started and before long it was after as well.

As I stood listening to the outro music I felt both happy and sad. Happy that I was lucky enough to see this amazing show but sad that it was over. At that moment I wished that I could sit down and watch it all over again. To say that I loved Hamilton might be a bit of an understatement but I’m not sure how else to describe it. It was magical.

I was nervous because I was worried that the cast would try to mimic the original broadway cast because so many people are familiar with it and they wouldn’t want to disappoint them. I was so happy to see that they really made it their own.

The song that I was most excited to see was Wait For It a Burr song. It was beautifully done and as Burr belted out “I am the one thing in my life I can control, I am inimitable, I am an original” I got goosebumps. The scene I was most excited for was Satisfied, there is so much that happens during the rewind that I couldn’t wait to see the whole stage so that I could see everything happening at once. I was not let down, it was incredible. In fact there is so much more that happens on the stage that you miss in the film due to all the close ups. I loved being able to notice things happening on the stage that you miss in the film.

After filing out of the theatre (after stopping to buy a teeshirt) I walked home on the cold damp Toronto streets and I couldn’t help but feel anything but happy. That is what theatre is supposed to do.

I know that theatre tickets are not accessible to everyone so I feel so lucky that I was able to afford the price. It really was something that I won’t ever forget. I hope that everyone has the opportunity to experience a rollercoaster of emotions like I did at some point in their life. There is nothing like it.