Mike and I saw Hamilton a few years ago, pre-pandemic. We liked it a lot. Did it blow us away? Sure. That’s what I told people. But the truth is, we sat pretty far back and I didn’t prep by listening to the music first like everyone said. I had this idea that I wanted to see it fresh. As a result, I spent most of the time with my brain in overdrive trying to digest all the words coming at me at 100 miles an hour (without being able to see any faces clearly) and process them into some kind of coherent story. I was about 60% successful. Mike was was probably more like 25%. Truth be told, the man fell asleep. In our liberal, cultural, diverse NYC community, YOU DO NOT ADMIT THIS TO ANYONE, but I’m telling you guys anyway. THE SHAME.
I am so jaded and never comment on things these days, but this made me tear up as I vicariously experienced Harlow's (and Harriet's) joy. What a wonderful story.
I'm a HUGE broadway lover. I grew up in Rockland County, only about 45 min from Manhattan, and growing up we periodically went to shows as a family. My first show was ALSO Cats, when I was 10, for my sister's sweet 16 birthday. Ironically enough, I fell asleep and woke up and they were on a pirate's ship and I was VERY confused. But we also saw other shows like Les Miz, Miss Saigon, Carousel (one of Audra McDonald's first Tony-winning performances), THe Lion King with most of the OG cast, etc... When I was in college I dragged my future husband to shows. He doesn't love shows the way I do, but he still enjoys them quite a bit!
Once R was turning 5, we realized that with her birthday falling so close to Hannukah (she was born on LITERALLY THE FIRST NIGHT OF HANNUKAH in 2009), we thought instead of presents for both events, we'd start seeing shows together. Birthday/Hannukah combo deal. We started with Aladdin in January of 2015. The next year my husband took her to Blue Man Group. The next year we did Cats. Then the following year L was old enough to see shows and even though her birthday is in June, we decided we would do one show/event per year, both kids, for birthday/hannukah/all-the-gifts. 2018 Was Frozen on Broadway. Then Aladdin again. Then Lion King just weeks before Covid (I wish I could have photographed their faces when the elephants went down the aisles). 2021 didn't happen for obvious reasons, but just this January we returned to theater with SIX and I can't tell you how energized and excited they were.
In terms of Hamilton -- my kids were both enamored by the music long before we saw the show. At the time, R was playing piano and one of her friends had gifted her a Hamilton Easy Piano book and she managed to learn part of "Dear Theodosia" for her piano recital that year. I posted a photo to Twitter and Hamilton even made her "Hamil-Kid of the week" on their app! She was in heaven...
I also saw it with my husband and my sister/BIL the fall of 2018 from the rear mezz, but I did know the show backwards and forwards and I remember the actor who played Hamilton at the time (Michael Luwoye) was so amazing and he completely broke me for "It's Quiet Uptown" from the back of the theater. We LOVE to stage-door and I remember telling him after the show about my daughter and he even recorded a short video for the Hamil-kid of the week from the "Hamilton-of-the...year?" It was unbelievable.
Fast-forward to December of 2021 and my sister won the Hamilton ticket lottery ON R's BIRTHDAY. So my kid got to see Hamilton, on Broadway, from front-row-dead-center on her friggin' 12th birthday. What could be more amazing than that? It was so special.
P.S. This is an amazing time to enter broadway ticket lotteries! If you have the ability to go with only 1 day's notice, the odds are really a lot higher than usual due to Covid restrictions and people just not traveling as much, I'm guessing. Since December I've won lotteries to see Phantom, Aladdin', Come from Away, and Book of Mormon. Didn't pay more than $50 a ticket for each of those. Some seats were better than others (Phantom was front row, but all the way on the side so it was partially obstructed, Aladdin was in the Balcony so we had a good but far view, and Book of Mormon was 2nd row DEAD CENTER) but as a theater lover, it's amazing if you can make it work! I've had to take a break from entering because a) Even cheap tickets add up, and b) my schedule has gotten insane, but maybe in a few months... Live theater makes my soul happy!
P.P.S My daughters are both completely broadway-obsessed and do theater now as one of their main activities! They are both in productions of "Into the Woods Jr" this Spring. R is playing the Witch (e.g. Bernadette Peters) in the Intermediate age group, and L is playing Jack in the Junior age group. They love theater, theater culture, and being around theater kids!
Harlow And Harriet's adventures needs to be it's own Disney show! Loved Hamilton when I saw it pre pandemic and my appreciation for it definitely grew when I watched it on Disney and was able to fully hear and see the performances. What an amazing memory you created for Harlow!
So amazing! I took my kids to Hamilton separately when it came out here in Chicago. My daughter was sort of like "Meh" but she has my husband's dislike of musical theater (I don't really understand the 2 of them in that way) but my son LOVED LOVED LOVED it and was obsessed, similarly to Harlow. I think he was probably around 9 when he saw it and loved it so much. I'm so glad that this was her shining light of positivity in an otherwise long pandemic!
I just finished a Arts based master's degree and decided Broadway Hamilton tix with my kids (and husband) was exactly the graduation gift I deserved (splurged for the good seats). I have not been this excited about something in so long. My kids are like Harlow in that they know all the words and the anticipation of seeing their reactions has me feeling like a kid again! I know I will cry. I spent my NYC suburban youth obsessing over Les Mis, Miss Saigon and Rent (the cheap seats at the TIX TIX booth). Tapping back into my Broadway mania is exactly the thrill we all need after the awful experience of the pandemic. Cannot wait!!!!
I am so glad other people mentioned tearing up, because I did too! Pure joy! I was so lucky to have a mom who worked at different theaters in Vegas growing up and got to see so many shows! I LOVED Starlight Express and got to see it at least a dozen times, so it was also nice to see it mentioned. I won free tickets to Hamilton after I bought tickets and agree it was much better the second time when it all could be digested better!
Love love love this! I also fell in love with Broadway shows as a child, waiting each season to see what the traveling Broadway companies were bringing to us in Nebraska. Cats was my first love too! And I have also started taking my kids (10 and 7) to shows and cannot even describe the bursts of joy in my heart to discover that they love it too! I love that Harlow is so enthralled - good job, Mama! Got me all up in my feels with this one!
Just love this! I introduced my grandsons with the long trip to northern vermont from Nj. No tablets allowed! So many questions that turned into an obsession! Hamilton for Halloween, hoodies and t shirts, books and history lessons and like Harlow, “Alexa, play the Hamilton Soundtrack” all the time! And I WON THE HAMILTON TICKET LOTTERY and brought him to see it yesterday!! I have been entering that lottery for years! Granted, we were pretty high up but he loved it!! What a memory for both of us!
I saw this in your stories, I read the post on Instagram, and I almost didn't read this article because I thought I'd seen this content already. OMG I teared up reading this. There is really something about longer prose that is so undervalued in social media- it didn't hit like this in stories or post. I love this newsletter/blog! What a core memory for Harlow. Thank you for sharing!
Sharing the theatre with your children is a magical experience! My mother did a fantastic job of introducing me to musical theatre through the Rogers and Hammerstein movies. Once I had children I was able to take them to see national touring companies at the Orpheum in Memphis, TN. They now share an equal love of musical theatre and with children of their own are eagerly anticipating introducing them to musical theatre. There is nothing like it in my opinion!
My husband and I have religiously watched CBS Sunday Morning for years. We caught their segment in March 2015 on Hamilton and Lin Manual Miranda right after it's off-Broadway opening. I immediately added it to my list of shows to see. My daughters became obsessed with Hamilton after several numbers were featured on the Tony Awards in 2016. Finally in the summer of 2019, we saw it on a trip to Chicago. It was everything we had built it up to be!
If you haven't seen PBS Great Performances "Hamilton's America" it's definitely worth a watch. Lin Miranda had the foresight to document the creation of Hamilton through video. It's fascinating and gives you a glimpse into Miranda's genius.
Our family had a similar experience with Wicked. Same saw it from the cheap seats, then a couple years later had a young daughter obsessed with the soundtrack, and finally took her and a friend to see it from great seats. She adored it and I was so blown away at the difference between the two experiences.
YES!! I am so glad you had such a good time. I love Hamilton so much. If you haven't already, check out The Hamilcast podcast by Gillian Pensavalle. She does such a great job interviewing cast and crew from the Broadway company and the tours.
I'm sitting in my office with tears streaming down my face! many of my memories coming to NY in the summer with my mother and sister to visit the family included Broadway Shows, and I loved every single one, even the ones that weren't in my top three were worth the experience!!
The first proper musical I took my girls to was Matilda the Musical. I knew my then 7 year old would sit through it and enjoy it because she loved the book and the film but I wasn't sure my 4 year old would make it through the whole thing. She loved it! She watched the whole thing and what surprises me the most is that, three years later, she remembers things that are very specific to the staging, the set etc despite only seeing it once. We had a whole summer of the Matilda soundtrack after that too 😄
Alright alright I might have to give Hamilton another go. I love musical theater and I love history so you'd think I would get it... but alas not so much. But your post and Harlow's enthusiasm are inspiring. It reminds me of being that age and being obsessed with Le Mis, my bestie and I got to go see it! Although I have only been to 1actual Broadway show in NYC, Mama Mia I have really enjoyed the traveling shows, Le Mis, Phantom of the Opera, Newsies. Excited to see your Broadway adventures to come!!
I am so jaded and never comment on things these days, but this made me tear up as I vicariously experienced Harlow's (and Harriet's) joy. What a wonderful story.
I have to reply to this one.
I'm a HUGE broadway lover. I grew up in Rockland County, only about 45 min from Manhattan, and growing up we periodically went to shows as a family. My first show was ALSO Cats, when I was 10, for my sister's sweet 16 birthday. Ironically enough, I fell asleep and woke up and they were on a pirate's ship and I was VERY confused. But we also saw other shows like Les Miz, Miss Saigon, Carousel (one of Audra McDonald's first Tony-winning performances), THe Lion King with most of the OG cast, etc... When I was in college I dragged my future husband to shows. He doesn't love shows the way I do, but he still enjoys them quite a bit!
Once R was turning 5, we realized that with her birthday falling so close to Hannukah (she was born on LITERALLY THE FIRST NIGHT OF HANNUKAH in 2009), we thought instead of presents for both events, we'd start seeing shows together. Birthday/Hannukah combo deal. We started with Aladdin in January of 2015. The next year my husband took her to Blue Man Group. The next year we did Cats. Then the following year L was old enough to see shows and even though her birthday is in June, we decided we would do one show/event per year, both kids, for birthday/hannukah/all-the-gifts. 2018 Was Frozen on Broadway. Then Aladdin again. Then Lion King just weeks before Covid (I wish I could have photographed their faces when the elephants went down the aisles). 2021 didn't happen for obvious reasons, but just this January we returned to theater with SIX and I can't tell you how energized and excited they were.
In terms of Hamilton -- my kids were both enamored by the music long before we saw the show. At the time, R was playing piano and one of her friends had gifted her a Hamilton Easy Piano book and she managed to learn part of "Dear Theodosia" for her piano recital that year. I posted a photo to Twitter and Hamilton even made her "Hamil-Kid of the week" on their app! She was in heaven...
I also saw it with my husband and my sister/BIL the fall of 2018 from the rear mezz, but I did know the show backwards and forwards and I remember the actor who played Hamilton at the time (Michael Luwoye) was so amazing and he completely broke me for "It's Quiet Uptown" from the back of the theater. We LOVE to stage-door and I remember telling him after the show about my daughter and he even recorded a short video for the Hamil-kid of the week from the "Hamilton-of-the...year?" It was unbelievable.
Fast-forward to December of 2021 and my sister won the Hamilton ticket lottery ON R's BIRTHDAY. So my kid got to see Hamilton, on Broadway, from front-row-dead-center on her friggin' 12th birthday. What could be more amazing than that? It was so special.
P.S. This is an amazing time to enter broadway ticket lotteries! If you have the ability to go with only 1 day's notice, the odds are really a lot higher than usual due to Covid restrictions and people just not traveling as much, I'm guessing. Since December I've won lotteries to see Phantom, Aladdin', Come from Away, and Book of Mormon. Didn't pay more than $50 a ticket for each of those. Some seats were better than others (Phantom was front row, but all the way on the side so it was partially obstructed, Aladdin was in the Balcony so we had a good but far view, and Book of Mormon was 2nd row DEAD CENTER) but as a theater lover, it's amazing if you can make it work! I've had to take a break from entering because a) Even cheap tickets add up, and b) my schedule has gotten insane, but maybe in a few months... Live theater makes my soul happy!
P.P.S My daughters are both completely broadway-obsessed and do theater now as one of their main activities! They are both in productions of "Into the Woods Jr" this Spring. R is playing the Witch (e.g. Bernadette Peters) in the Intermediate age group, and L is playing Jack in the Junior age group. They love theater, theater culture, and being around theater kids!
Harlow And Harriet's adventures needs to be it's own Disney show! Loved Hamilton when I saw it pre pandemic and my appreciation for it definitely grew when I watched it on Disney and was able to fully hear and see the performances. What an amazing memory you created for Harlow!
This post makes me so happy!! And the stories/feed post when you posted it! omg. I tear up every time. <3
So amazing! I took my kids to Hamilton separately when it came out here in Chicago. My daughter was sort of like "Meh" but she has my husband's dislike of musical theater (I don't really understand the 2 of them in that way) but my son LOVED LOVED LOVED it and was obsessed, similarly to Harlow. I think he was probably around 9 when he saw it and loved it so much. I'm so glad that this was her shining light of positivity in an otherwise long pandemic!
I just finished a Arts based master's degree and decided Broadway Hamilton tix with my kids (and husband) was exactly the graduation gift I deserved (splurged for the good seats). I have not been this excited about something in so long. My kids are like Harlow in that they know all the words and the anticipation of seeing their reactions has me feeling like a kid again! I know I will cry. I spent my NYC suburban youth obsessing over Les Mis, Miss Saigon and Rent (the cheap seats at the TIX TIX booth). Tapping back into my Broadway mania is exactly the thrill we all need after the awful experience of the pandemic. Cannot wait!!!!
I am so glad other people mentioned tearing up, because I did too! Pure joy! I was so lucky to have a mom who worked at different theaters in Vegas growing up and got to see so many shows! I LOVED Starlight Express and got to see it at least a dozen times, so it was also nice to see it mentioned. I won free tickets to Hamilton after I bought tickets and agree it was much better the second time when it all could be digested better!
Love love love this! I also fell in love with Broadway shows as a child, waiting each season to see what the traveling Broadway companies were bringing to us in Nebraska. Cats was my first love too! And I have also started taking my kids (10 and 7) to shows and cannot even describe the bursts of joy in my heart to discover that they love it too! I love that Harlow is so enthralled - good job, Mama! Got me all up in my feels with this one!
Just love this! I introduced my grandsons with the long trip to northern vermont from Nj. No tablets allowed! So many questions that turned into an obsession! Hamilton for Halloween, hoodies and t shirts, books and history lessons and like Harlow, “Alexa, play the Hamilton Soundtrack” all the time! And I WON THE HAMILTON TICKET LOTTERY and brought him to see it yesterday!! I have been entering that lottery for years! Granted, we were pretty high up but he loved it!! What a memory for both of us!
I saw this in your stories, I read the post on Instagram, and I almost didn't read this article because I thought I'd seen this content already. OMG I teared up reading this. There is really something about longer prose that is so undervalued in social media- it didn't hit like this in stories or post. I love this newsletter/blog! What a core memory for Harlow. Thank you for sharing!
Sharing the theatre with your children is a magical experience! My mother did a fantastic job of introducing me to musical theatre through the Rogers and Hammerstein movies. Once I had children I was able to take them to see national touring companies at the Orpheum in Memphis, TN. They now share an equal love of musical theatre and with children of their own are eagerly anticipating introducing them to musical theatre. There is nothing like it in my opinion!
My husband and I have religiously watched CBS Sunday Morning for years. We caught their segment in March 2015 on Hamilton and Lin Manual Miranda right after it's off-Broadway opening. I immediately added it to my list of shows to see. My daughters became obsessed with Hamilton after several numbers were featured on the Tony Awards in 2016. Finally in the summer of 2019, we saw it on a trip to Chicago. It was everything we had built it up to be!
If you haven't seen PBS Great Performances "Hamilton's America" it's definitely worth a watch. Lin Miranda had the foresight to document the creation of Hamilton through video. It's fascinating and gives you a glimpse into Miranda's genius.
Our family had a similar experience with Wicked. Same saw it from the cheap seats, then a couple years later had a young daughter obsessed with the soundtrack, and finally took her and a friend to see it from great seats. She adored it and I was so blown away at the difference between the two experiences.
YES!! I am so glad you had such a good time. I love Hamilton so much. If you haven't already, check out The Hamilcast podcast by Gillian Pensavalle. She does such a great job interviewing cast and crew from the Broadway company and the tours.
I'm sitting in my office with tears streaming down my face! many of my memories coming to NY in the summer with my mother and sister to visit the family included Broadway Shows, and I loved every single one, even the ones that weren't in my top three were worth the experience!!
The first proper musical I took my girls to was Matilda the Musical. I knew my then 7 year old would sit through it and enjoy it because she loved the book and the film but I wasn't sure my 4 year old would make it through the whole thing. She loved it! She watched the whole thing and what surprises me the most is that, three years later, she remembers things that are very specific to the staging, the set etc despite only seeing it once. We had a whole summer of the Matilda soundtrack after that too 😄
Alright alright I might have to give Hamilton another go. I love musical theater and I love history so you'd think I would get it... but alas not so much. But your post and Harlow's enthusiasm are inspiring. It reminds me of being that age and being obsessed with Le Mis, my bestie and I got to go see it! Although I have only been to 1actual Broadway show in NYC, Mama Mia I have really enjoyed the traveling shows, Le Mis, Phantom of the Opera, Newsies. Excited to see your Broadway adventures to come!!