We finally watched Hamilton the past two nights. I have no especially novel insights: it's that good. It's highly historically literate, despite a few dramatic liberties. The score is musically varied, by no means all rap, & highly witty. Gets at the human dynamics.

I was only really irked by casting a big, burly guy as James Madison. Washington was appropriately commanding. Election of 1800 glosses the procedural fights in favor of the human elements. I was surprised it played down how Hamilton's troops at Yorktown were black.

The funniest scene-stealing, scenery-chewing lines all go to George III and Lafayette/Jefferson. The Lee/Laurens duel was an especially strong foreshadowing choice involving 2 prominent men now little-remembered. Making the assumption of state debts a winning musical number: A+

The dual-casting of multiple roles seems odd until you remember that this was by no means expected to be a commercially successful show when it was first put together.

If you have family members who have issues with rap: my 84 yo mother in law enjoyed it. Granted, she'd read Chernow's book, so she was able to follow the story even when she could not follow the singers.

Aaron Burr, Charles Lee, John Laurens, and Hercules Mulligan get exactly the commemoration in the show that they deserve.

Washington is always the most important casting decision in any dramatization of the American Founding. A talented performer can bring Adams, Jefferson, Franklin, Hamilton, etc. to life. But GW had a *presence* you can't fake.

And I definitely nerded out watching the scene detailing who wrote how many Federalist Papers.