I recently watched Hamilton’s UK tour at the Bristol Hippodrome.
Here’s what I thought, and, what my Mum thought too as someone who had no prior knowledge of Hamilton, the music or the plot.
Firstly, I want to clarify that this is not a paid review. When the Hamilton UK Tour was announced, I spent my hard-earned cash on two tickets over a year ago.
I’ve always been a bit of a musical theatre geek, and while I adore classics such as The Sound of Music and many Andrew Lloyd-Webber shows, especially, Joseph and Jesus Christ Superstar, nothing has ever quite blown me away in the way that Hamilton did the first time I saw it on Disney+ during Lockdown.
I’ve seen Hamilton in the West End and was very excited when the UK tour was announced in 2023.
While my husband was supposed to attend the show with me, he ended up having major surgery a few days before and wasn’t well enough to come.
I persuaded my Mum to come along instead.
I think she was a little bit reluctant, as the problem with Hamilton is that when you explain the plot, it sounds a bit boring.
Lots of American History which many of us Brits aren’t overly familiar with.
The American Revolutionary War.
Plus, lots of historical American politics, when many of us can barely keep up with what’s going on today let alone rehashing things that happened over two centuries ago.
But there is something about Hamilton that just works, mostly thanks to the music and songs, the majority of which are rapped (another thing that my Mum was sceptical about).
What Is Hamilton The Musical About?
For the uninitiated, here is a quick overview of the plot of The Musical Hamilton.
A young orphaned Alexander Hamilton heads to New York to seek his fortune after a hurricane destroys his hometown in the Caribbean.
His intelligence and drive to succeed find him rising through the ranks during the American Revolutionary War, eventually becoming right-hand man to George Washington and seeing him marry the very wealthy Elizabeth Schueler.
The second half of the musical focuses on Hamilton’s political career and eventual death at the hands of the man who is both his friend and enemy, Aaron Burr.
There is love, death, grief, scandal, comradery and rivalry.
Hamilton UK Tour Review
So, now I’ve waxed lyrical about my love of Hamilton overall, let’s take a look at the specific show that is currently touring the UK.
As I am so familiar with Hamilton, I often worry that when I go to see it live, I won’t enjoy it.
After years of having the soundtrack on repeat in my car I think am I too familiar, will it seem old or boring?
This was not the case at all and I preferred this production to the one we saw in the West End a few years ago.
The UK tour of Hamilton is fantastic, with an exceptionally talented cast and crew that brings this amazing musical to life each night.
While at first, the staging may look a little basic, the revolving central pieces are put to good use throughout the show.
I particularly loved watching the battle scenes as the choreography is just breathtaking and the red and blue costumes pop.
For me, the standout performance of the show came from Billy Nevers as Aaron Burr.
I cried during ‘Wait For It’ which is my favourite song from the musical and as soon as we left the theatre I said to my Mum how fantastic I thought he was in this role.
Unbeknownst to me, Nevers was the second understudy for Aaron Burr and this was his first time performing the role in front of a live audience.
Honestly, you would not have known (although his high-fiving other cast members after the bows should have given us a clue – we thought maybe this was because it was his last show and he was leaving!)
He smashed it and the lengthy applause after ‘The Room Where It Happens’ was a testament to his incredible talent.
I spent the first half of Hamilton wondering what my Mum would make of it, and a bit nervous she’d hate it.
Thankfully, she enjoyed it and it’s now her favourite theatre show she’s seen, knocking off Blood Brothers from the top spot (Blood Brothers is one of my least favourite musicals if you want to know how different our tastes can be!).
Her favourite song was ‘Yorktown (The World Turned Upside Down)’ and I can see why as it’s my husband’s favourite too.
Some small aspects of the show could be improved upon.
Occasionally the music was so loud it was difficult to hear what some performers were singing and this is an issue in a show that moves at a fast pace with lots of songs being rapped – especially for those unfamiliar with the story.
I found this especially with Angelica (Aisha Jawando), even though I knew the words, I often couldn’t quite hear or understand what she was singing.
I would just like to point out though, that Jawando was incredible during ‘It’s Quiet Uptown’.
I will be booking to see this tour of Hamilton again when it’s back in the Southwest, either in Plymouth or Cardiff.
Should I Go And See The UK Hamilton Tour?
In short, yes you should.
It’s an incredible show with a vast array of insanely talented people working on it.
Hamilton is very different to many traditional musicals.
Some people love this about it, whereas others do find it’s not quite their cup of tea.
If you’re unsure, you might want to listen to the soundtrack or have a watch on Disney+ before committing to spending a significant amount of money on theatre tickets.