Hamilton, the Musical

Not having seen "Hamilton,"  I am completely neutral about the musical and an impartial judge. I did see "Oklahoma!" last summer, a version in which all the cowboys in Oklahoma were gay, so I am not put off by the idea of a musical in which George Washington is black.

I don't suppose Washington was actually very black, maybe just a little. Historians generally agree that the musical gets all the facts wrong, but in a musical, a work of fiction, that doesn't matter (see "Oklahoma!") Think of the play as science fiction about a parallel universe. Enjoy. That's what I do. 

I know little about Hamilton other than that he owned slaves in New York City, not uncommon, and hoped to use military force to keep the dumb guys in their place, which was on small farms.  I know more about Jefferson, the most intellectually sophisticated President in our nation's history. I assume he's in the musical, too, probably the hero.

I've heard only one song from "Hamilton," and it was charming. I understand little about music, but I did watch a group of black athletes, including LeBron James, discussing the rap in "Hamilton." They thought it sucked, but can I trust LeBron James on this kind of music?

My conclusion in this report is that "Hamilton" will make a good movie if they cast Joy Reid or Idris Elba as our first President. I assume Elba can do an American accent.