On Friday, the long-awaited filmed version of the stage musical Hamilton debuted on Disney+ and if you didn't sit down and watch it, you'd be forgiven for believing you're literally the only one. Whether people who had seen the show were taking the chance to revisit it, or those of us who had never had the chance we're finally getting an opportunity to see what the fuss was all about, this weekend was all about Hamilton and a lot of celebrities were surrounding their televisions just like the rest of us.
Among all the people singing the praises of Hamilton on social media this weekend were a lot of names we'd all recognize. Director Ava DuVernay, had not only seen the show before, she may have been among the first to ever see it, and she was as sure of Hamilton's brilliance then as she is now.
For most of us, this was our first chance to see Hamilton, and for even more it was our one chance to see the original cast perform in the roles. A lot of celebrities, unsurprisingly, actually saw this cast perform on stage, but that doesn't make the new film version any less special. As Jimmy Fallon says here, the fact that so many will get a chance to see the show that changed so much is a huge event. Hamilton changed Broadway and now the filmed version might change even more,
Whether you had seen the show or just memorized every word of the soundtrack, or waited to try and see the show as fresh as possible, a lot of people were excited for Hamilton's debut on Disney+. Originally, the plan was for the film to debut theatrically more than a year from now, but the decision was made instead to debut the film on Disney+ for the 4th of July weekend. Suddenly, Hamilton was the talk of the town once again, and people, like Kerry Washington, could not hold in the excitement.
Whether you've been a huge Hamilton fan for years or you just became one, one major benefit of having the show on Disney+ is that it's now available to watch as often as you like. And it's the sort of show where one can find something new to appreciate every time you watch it. The lyrics come fast and furious and so you're simply not going to catch them all on a single viewing. To truly appreciate the skill of Lin-Manuel Miranda's lyrics, you'll want to examine every single one.
The other thing you can do with Hamilton on Disney+ is replay the same scene over and over again so that you can get not just every word, but every step, just right.
I think it's safe to say based on the responses that Hamilton really was worth all the hyp[e, which, considering the level of hype we're talking about, is that much more impressive.
