Hamilton criticism: Leslie Odom Jr defends Lin-Manuel Miranda's hit broadway musical
Musical was placed under the spotlight after its addition to Disney+
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Hamilton star Leslie Odom Jr has responded to criticism of the hit musical.
The Broadway show tells the story of Alexander Hamilton, a key figure during Revolutionary times who masterminded the US banking system.
Fusing pop music with hip-hop, the show proved a huge hit with audiences when it debuted in 2015, and transferred to London’s West End in 2017.
Since the show arrived on Disney+, though, there have been some criticisms levelled against its historical accuracy.
Some have also questioned the liberties taken by writer and lead star Lin-Manuel Miranda, arguing that the show brushes over the subject of Hamilton’s dealings with slavery.
While Miranda himself called the criticism “valid”, he reminded people that he “did [his] best” to “fit as much as [he] could in a 2.5 hour musical”.
Now, speaking on documentary Hamilton: History Has Its Eye On You, Odom Jr jumped to Miranda’s defence.
“Here’s what I know,” he said. ”Lin wrote the story that was on his heart to write. I signed on to be a part of the show that I believed in. That was our leg of the race. Now it’s your turn.”
He added that he believes somebody will be inspired by Hamilton to “write the show that makes what we did look quaint”.
Odom Jr continued: “That might be happening at this very moment. A show’s going to come along that makes this look cute at some point.”
The film was shot over three days at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York on 26, 27 and 28 June 2016, shortly before Miranda stepped down from the lead role.
Read our verdict on the new film here.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments