Hamilton’s New Home on Disney+
Hamilton is changing the entire idea of musical theatre by introducing a musical movie that is considered to be the game-changer. With very many subscribers globally, Disney has transfixed its viewers to their screens and entrapped them with the lyrics of the genius musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The musical has broken the norm and has attained numerous award nominations winning 11 Tony awards out of a total of 13 categories. The musical relates the life of Alexander Hamilton one of United States founding fathers who went from being an immigrant and rose to the position of Secretary of the U.S. Treasury; he was the first person to ever hold that office. Hamilton’s soundtrack is a real beat in itself, it has had millions of musical theatre fans talking about it without ceasing. Now thanks to Disney+, the future of Broadway shall always refer to this moment as a point of historical change in musical theatre performance.
The Disney platform makes it even easier to garner a large audience for the Hamilton pre-recorded broadcast due to its affordability and ease of access. Hamilton’s premiere on Disney does not qualify as a movie, nor does it qualify to be a television show; the running of the show and the breaks make Hamilton seem like a two-episode mini-series. Even though it was produced for Disney+, it still maintains its essence of being a theatre product. The show can be enjoyed from the comfort of a living room on an LCD or LED screen, but it gives the viewer the feeling of being in the front row seats of the Richard Rodgers Theatre—where it was recorded in June 2016. The show allows for a new intrigue in theatre performance despite living in an era of easily accessible movie platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.
The coronavirus pandemic has changed everything especially Broadway. Social distancing and stay-at-home measures have been implemented, forcing producers to innovate and develop new ideas. Disney+ has struck the nerve on this one by offering its subscribers a chance to watch theatre performances from the comfort of their couches. The feeling of being in a theatre with a multitude of strangers all enjoying the same show can never be replaced, but it is a new beginning for Broadway by broadcasting through a Disney+ subscription. Change is inevitable and this is just about the change that theatre needed to develop a brighter future, at least until theatres open once more—as they are scheduled to in 2021.
TMT Staff
