2004 biography alexander hamilton by ron chernow

The book tells a story about a man whose life was as unlikely as the musical that bears his name. He also visited numerous libraries to study Hamilton manuscripts at Yale University he even convinced an editor to scan a collection of Franklin’s unpublished papers in search of any reference to Hamilton.Ĭhernow’s book, titled simply Alexander Hamilton, is an extraordinary work, written in clear English according to the precepts of Strunk and White, rich in detail but without scholarly jargon or pretentious gobbledygook. His research took him to the West Indies, where Hamilton grew up, and to Scotland, the ancestral home of the Hamilton family. Obviously, Chernow did not write this book with an eye to success on Broadway. Chernow’s biography of Hamilton is a formidable work-731 pages of small print, followed by 85 pages of acknowledgements, a bibliography, notes, and an index. But we can at least read the book that inspired the show. But most of us will be unable to see the Chicago production, unfortunately, because tickets are about as scarce as unicorn milk. (Miranda has recently retired from the role of Hamilton.)ĭoor County’s Northern Sky Theater has obtained a pair of tickets to the Chicago production of Hamilton and will raffle them off to a lucky winner. At first Miranda and McCarter planned to record an album that would be titled The Hamilton Mixtape, but the project eventually evolved into the full-scale stage musical of which Miranda himself became the composer, lyricist and star. McCarter believed that hip-hop music could revitalize the theater, and Miranda told McCarter about his interest in Hamilton. Then Miranda met Jeremy McCarter, who became his friend and colleague. Oddly, Miranda became convinced that Hamilton, who lived a difficult and frenzied life, was the embodiment of hip-hop music.

He got caught up in Ron Chernow’s biography (2004) of Alexander Hamilton, the treasury secretary of George Washington’s cabinet and co-author, with James Madison, of The Federalist Papers. Miranda also has an interest in American history.

The guiding genius of this project is Lin-Manuel Miranda, an actor, composer, writer, and hip-hop musician (an impressive, if unusual list of accomplishments). 27, Midwestern audiences will be able to experience one of the most unlikely projects in the history of musical theater. When the musical Hamilton opens in Chicago on Sept.

2004 biography alexander hamilton by ron chernow