What’s up guys, it’s Emile Ennis Jr. with Clevver News, and calling all theater buffs,
or really anyone who’s looking for a new binge.
The day is here, the highly-coveted musical Hamilton is now available for streaming on
Disney+, so happy binge-ing!
When it first hit Broadway back in 2015, trying to score a “Hamilton” ticket was like
trying to win the lottery with a whopping $10.
In other words, you were literally better off putting your money toward the mega millions
lotto.
Award-winning composer Lin-Manuel Miranda’s modernized take on the script, music and lyrics
of the popular Shakespeare musical about Alexander Hamilton took off in popularity in record
speed, to the point where it would cost hundreds of dollars just to sit in the last row of
the theater.
The musical went on to win 11 Tony Awards, a Grammy and the Pulitzer Prize in the drama
category, so it’s no wonder why this story about one of America’s founding fathers
has become such a massive cultural phenomenon.
That said, as of TODAY, you’re now able to see what all the fuss is about and tune
into the actual movie-adaption of the musical, which is streaming on Disney+... and trust
me when I say that after you’re finished, you won’t be able to get these catchy hip
hop-inspired beats out of your head all weekend.
The 2-hour and 40 minute movie adaption was recorded live back in 2016 at the Richard
Rodgers Theater in New York City, and was announced earlier this year that it would
be acquired by Disney by fall of 2021.
Fans were even more surprised to hear that the film will be paying a visit to their own
homes MUCH sooner… like… an entire year sooner.
After the news was confirmed, Lin-Manuel revealed even more details just last week in a tweet
responding to a fan asking exactly what time today we’ll be able to stream it, saying
QUOTE, “1.
I know this now!
It's midnight July 3 PST, so that's 3am for us in NY and east coast, do the math til your
time zone.
2.
Not just one day.
3.
You will just have it.
For as many times as you like, right next to A Goofy Movie and Talespin and An Extremely
Goofy Movie…”
Sources also reveal that Disney beat out many other suitors in acquiring the film, and paid
a whopping $75 million for worldwide rights to the show, which is one of, if not, THE
biggest movie acquisition deals to date.
The stage version of the show’s director Tommy Kail, also took on directing the movie,
which consisted of shooting three live performances and some setup shots without an audience.
This was used to create multiple angles to make for a more cinematic feel of the event
unlike a one-off or far-away angle an audience member would experience in a theater.
Both Lin-Manuel and Tommy spoke about the reasoning for creating a movie-adaption of
the play during a recent Zoom call, agreeing that the main reason was accessibility.
Lin-Manuel revealed QUOTE, “Theaters struggle with the notion of accessibility.
We had our front two rows for 10 bucks via lottery.
We did extra shows out in the street for people.
So we prioritized two things: One, we said, ‘It’s a crime if kids can’t see this
show.’
And then it was, ‘How do we preserve the lightning in the bottle that is these actors
in this moment?’
Tommy added, “We were conscious that if you film anything, it changes the equation.
It’s not a negative impact, it just changes the thing.
This was as close as we could get to trying to collect as much of the energy that existed
in the room at the Richard Rodgers in New York City.”
As for some of the songs having renewed relevance considering America’s current political
and social climate, Lin-Manuel assured that it’s both a “source of frustration and
of comfort” in knowing that “every problem at the founding of this country is a problem
we’re still having.”
He added QUOTE, “The lyrics about slavery in the show hit different in this moment than
they did then.
John Laurens saying, ‘We’ll never be free until we end slavery’ hits different now
than it did maybe five years ago.
The reaction in the audience to ‘Immigrants, we get the job done,’ was a laugh line that
became a defiant screen line under the Trump administration.
Because it’s a conversation about America, good and bad, I think there’s always going
to be stuff that resonates.”
On that note, when “Hamilton” first opened, Lin-Manuel made it a point to diversify his
cast and crew, while bringing the hip-hop genre to Broadway.
He talked about the next barrier for theater to overcome, saying that the next step is
QUOTE, “Making our audiences as diverse as the cast of “Hamilton,” and making
our backstage crews as diverse as the cast of “Hamilton.”
I’ve been heartened by the conversations as we discuss systemic racism in our country
and in our world, in our corner, our silo that is American theater.”
Fans are thrilled about the news that “Hamilton” will be making its way to the small screen
much sooner than anticipated.
One user wrote, “I’m getting myself so ready for @HamiltonMusical next Friday.
My schedule is clear.
Phone will be on do not disturb.
The emotions are already bubbling up.”
Similarly, another fan tweeted, “I am so ready for #HamiFilm @HamiltonMusical @Lin_Manuel.
I have socks just for this day that I am saving to wear.
No, I’m not joking.
I’m going all founding fathers.”
And this user is even prepared to multitask while working if that’s what it takes to
watch the film, saying, “Look I’m off next Friday and you can absolutely 100% bet
that @HamiltonMusical on @disneyplus will be the first and the last thing I watch.
Even if I had to work I would still watch it on my phone while I worked.”
That’s some serious dedication right there…
For more exciting new Disney rollouts, click right over here to watch another Clevver video.
Then be sure to let me know all your thoughts on the movie adaption of Hamilton down here
in the comments, and if you haven’t seen it yet, what are you waiting for?!
I’m your host Emile Ennis Jr., bye guys!