The critically acclaimed Broadway hip-hop musical "Hamilton", that has won over 16 Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, is coming over from the other side of the Atlantic. The hit show is eagerly awaited by musical fans and those who have heard its soundtrack outside of the "land of the free."
"Hamilton", ever since its initial opening in New York of last year, took the musical microcosm by storm and has taken its place as one of the most successful Broadway musicals of all time. Tickets have been flying off the box office, selling out every night in its showings.
The musical has even garnered high-profile fans such as Barack Obama, Beyoncé, and Emily Blunt.
Ben Brantley, a writer of The New York Times, has stated that "I am loath to tell people to mortgage their houses and lease their children to acquire tickets to a hit Broadway show. But Hamilton, directed by Thomas Kail and starring Mr. Miranda, might just about be worth it."
If the hyperbole in that statement doesn't hit the nail in the coffin to the hype surrounding the musical, I don't know what will.
A little summary
"Hamilton" is a hip-hop musical based on one of the American founding fathers: Alexander Hamilton. Created by Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also happened to star in the original show, the musical was also composed by the likes of Stephen Sondheim and Gilbert as well as Sullivan.
The story follows his struggles during the American Revolutionary War and his journey as an immigrant from the West Indies to working for George Washington as his right-hand-man.
Cameron Mackintosh is the theatre producer who will be responsible for the West End performance, it has been reported that Miranda will appear in the performance as a presumed cameo.
Where will the performance take place?
The performance will take place, of course, in the West End. Where Billy Elliot once took its place for public showings, the Victoria Palace theatre, will now be converted for a performance of Hamilton.
The conversion is said to be extensive, a multi-million pound refurbishment.
The date of the performance
Hamilton will begin preview commencing October 2017, eventually opening to the public commencing November 2017 - although there has been no official specific date yet.
Cast
Miranda will, fortunately, be reprising his role as the title character Hamilton for a few of the British performances.
The full cast is yet to be confirmed as the producers are currently selecting actors through auditions. Cameron Mackintosh (the co-producer for the performance) has gone to say that "We have already started the casting process and are very excited by the tremendous diverse talents that we are already seeing for the production..."
The assumption is that the West End cast will be garnering British Asian, black and middle-eastern performers.
Where to get the tickets
There was a possibility to register for priority - unfortunately, that was before the 31st of October. The tickets officially go on sale on 16th of January 2017, for those who have priority, those who haven't registered will be forced to wait until the 30th of that month.
