Why Hamilton Being Made Available on Disney+ Is So Important
The release of Hamilton, the hit Broadway musical, on Disney+ solves many major accessibility problems and exposes new audiences to theater.
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Hamilton’s recent release on Disney+ is more important than it first seems, as the streaming service solves many accessibility problems that plague high-end Broadway productions. Adapted from Ron Chernow’s 2004 historical biography Alexander Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rap/hip-hop Broadway smash-hit was recorded in front of a live audience in June 2016 using multiple cameras – some that captured close-up shots after the audience had left. The final product was edited together and was originally going to hit in theaters, until the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a Disney+ release.
Hamilton chronicles the political rise of the “ten-dollar founding father,” following Alexander Hamilton (Miranda) from his early life as a soldier in the American Revolutionary War through his appointment as the United States’ first Secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton’s journey is juxtaposed with Aaron Burr’s (Leslie Odom, Jr.) rise to prominence and the Vice Presidency – before fate collides their paths. The original Broadway production holds the record with 16 Tony nominations, winning 11, which is only one shy of The Producers’ record.
But Hamilton’s unquestioned success on Broadway came with some unfortunate downfalls. As Miranda states in a recent interview with GMA, “Our biggest issue has always been accessibility.” Indeed, during the height of its Broadway run, Hamilton tickets reached almost $10,000 [via CNN] on the secondary market, and any seat in the Richard Rodgers Theatre was almost impossible to acquire. Though Miranda and the show’s producers attempted to broaden the show’s reach by instituting the #Ham4Ham lottery, which would randomly award lucky same-day entrants with the opportunity to score reduced price front-row seats, this was an incredibly competitive sweepstakes. That problem of accessibility changes with Hamilton’s availability on Disney+.
While Disney is not especially charitable, as they have ended the seven-day free trial option, the price point for the subscription service, $6.99, is a massive reduction from the heights of Hamilton’s Broadway and tour prices, opening up the show to a huge swath of the country and the world who would otherwise have never been able to see American history told in rap and hip-hop songs. Theater’s ability to inspire and Hamilton’s special message of hope can now transcend many of the class hurdles that affected its accessibility during the early days.
But that’s not all. Disney+’s presentation of Hamilton comes with captions for the hearing-impaired and Deaf communities (though foreign language captions are as yet unavailable), and while it’s possible to watch many Hamilton American Sign Language interpretations on YouTube, many in these communities consider ASL a separate, or at least tangential, art form. Watching the original Broadway cast, consisting primarily of non-white actors and actresses, rap and sing an inclusive view of American history provides a unique and important experience to people who would have few other ways to experience the show.
Hamilton was an unparalleled success on Broadway, and by all accounts its first weekend on Disney+ was the type of landmark cultural event that the service needed. Miranda’s telling of Hamilton’s life is a reflection of his take on American ideals: hard work, determination, and above all, inclusiveness. And while the circumstances of its Broadway release prevented the show from being as accessible as some might hope, Hamilton’s Disney+ release to some degree democratizes the production – just as the show’s protagonist would’ve wanted.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/hamilton-disney-plus-problems-solved-accessibility/