'Hamilton' effect: Do musicals matter again?
Every few years, a musical comes along that delights critics and sells out for months on end. In 2010 it was 鈥淭he Book of Mormon; before that it was 鈥淭he Producers,鈥� and 鈥淩ent鈥� before that.聽
The phenomenon of 鈥淗amilton,鈥� the hip-hop musical about the life of America鈥檚 first Treasury secretary, goes well beyond its endless string of sold-out shows, however. The long list of luminaries who have flocked to see the production ranges from the president (twice) to Eminem and Beyonc茅. The original cast recording topped Billboard鈥檚 rap chart.聽
Even so, that outsize success comes as the Broadway musical, which registers on the cultural radar as little more than a Disney-subsidized distraction for New York tourists in its more fallow periods, is enjoying one of its most creative periods in decades. It鈥檚 catching up with the rest of pop culture in terms of both content and form.聽
Last year鈥檚 hit 鈥淔un Home,鈥� for example, was the first Broadway show to mine a graphic novel (Alison Bechdel鈥檚 autobiographical comic of the same name) as its source material. A wide array of popular artists, from Sting to U2 and Regina Spektor, have tried their hand at the genre in recent years, and shows like 鈥淥nce鈥� in 2011 contain songs fit for a radio playlist.聽
Broadway is adapting to modern music consumption habits as well. Ahead of the Broadway debut of her musical 鈥淲aitress鈥� next month, composer and pop artist Sara Bareilles recorded and released most of the show鈥檚 songs as singles, and then as a full studio album in November. It鈥檚 a throwback, of sorts, to when songs from 鈥淕odspell鈥� and 鈥淗air鈥� were Top 40 hits.聽
鈥淗amilton鈥� is a big part of that. It isn鈥檛 regarded as just a good rap musical; it鈥檚 regarded as good rap. Cast members even performed in a BET Cypher last fall, an honor typically reserved for hip hop鈥檚 buzziest up-and-coming artists. That, more than anything, is the hope this new slate of musicals offers for the future of the art form: that the best will be celebrated not just as great musicals, but as great music.
