The Hamilcast: A Hamilton Podcast

The final installment of #LasVegust with Hamilton's Philip Company! Here's the second half of my hang with cast members Nik Walker, Kyle Scatliffe, Shoba Narayan, Ta'Rea Campbell, Elijah Malcomb, Tyler McKenzie, Conroe Brooks, and Abby Jaros, as well as musicians Austin Burket, Buffi Jacobs, and Lily Ling. I miss Vegas already! Massive thank you to the Neiman Marcus Cafe on Las Vegas Blvd!

#LasVegust continues with Hamilton's Philip Company! This week is the first part of my hang with cast members Nik Walker, Kyle Scatliffe, Shoba Narayan, Ta'Rea Campbell, Elijah Malcomb, Tyler McKenzie, Conroe Brooks, and Abby Jaros, as well as musicians Austin Burket, Buffi Jacobs, and Lily Ling. This was so fun! Massive thank you to the Neiman Marcus Cafe on Las Vegas Blvd!

Welcome to three weeks of Hamilton's Philip Company! I took Mike, my Right Hand Man, to Las Vegas and we had the best time. We saw Hamilton, talked to the cast and musicians, and I have three weeks of recordings for you!  First up, Fergie Philippe (Mulligan/Madison) comes back to The Hamilcast for a solo recording. Fergie is the one of the main reasons I went to Vegas (Tyler McKenzie and Julian Ramos helped), and he unfortunately couldn't make the big recording with members of the Philip Company. Since Fergie is the nicest, he asked if he could still be part of #LasVegust (Get it? Because the Las Vegas episodes are airing in August?) and offered to come to hang in our hotel room and chat about Hamilton and tour life.  Check out Fergie's first appearance on The Hamilcast (with Julian Ramos) in these episodes:  https://www.thehamilcast.com/episode-107-we-tell-your-story/ https://www.thehamilcast.com/episode-108-we-tell-your-story-part-two/ Stay tuned next week for the first half of my chat with Nik Walker, Kyl

In Alex Lacamoire's third episode Alex talks about how electronic sounds are used in Hamilton, why the orchestrations of It's Quiet Uptown destroy us every single time we listen to it, more musical themes, and finally... we do Barbershop Beastie Boys. Alex, please come back! (It's Quiet Uptown is discussed and played from 12:00-14:45 and again from 16:30-21:05) Will Wells:  http://willwellsmusic.com Aesop Rock - 1,000 O'Clock:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-qrvz_tA_k The Beatles - Fixing a Hole: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPBd8eHQqIw

Alex Lacamoire is back to blow our minds once again which is crazy because I'm still not over last week's episode. This week we dive into Lin-Manuel Miranda's favorite arrangements and how Alex came to make them: Yorktown (YAASSSS!!!), Wait For It (SRSLY YOU'RE NOT READY), One Last Time ("f@%k you strings!"), and That Would Be Enough (Alex brought something that even Lin hasn't heard yet - yes, there were tears). Oh! AND! Alex plays an exclusive track you can't hear anywhere else called "Hamilton Finale Idea" and while neither Alex, LMM, nor Thomas Kail remember exactly what it was for I can promise you that your world will never be the same.  Andrés Forero Episodes:  Episode #118: When you knock me down I get the fuck back up again // Part One Episode #119: When you knock me down I get the fuck back up again // Part Two That Would Be Enough musicians (Hamilton quartet from The Philip Tour - @hamiltourquartet) Concertmaster/Violin I: Austin Burket Violin 2: Hayden Oliver Viola: Sarah Haines Cello: Buffi Jaco

Sir Alex Lacamoire is here! For THREE EPISODES! Get ready, you guys, your minds are about to be blown. Mike joins me for #JuLac and Alex was kind enough to bring an electric piano and play us ALL THE THINGS. In this first episode, Alex tells us all about The Schuyler Sisters, the song that went through the most changes. But he doesn't just tell us... he brought all the demos so we get to HEAR the evolution of the song. We also play a little game I like to call "In the style of..." and Alex plays his favorite Hamilton song in the style of Billy Joel, Rush, Fiona Apple, and Tori Amos. This episode is packed. We had the most fun ever and I hope you love it.    How a Miami musician overcame hearing loss to help create the music to ‘Hamilton’: https://www.miamiherald.com/entertainment/article107866077.html First Burn #Hamildrop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2ys-AimNbE Alex Lacamoire on Shockwave’s Shock and Awesome Podcast: https://headgum.com/shock-and-awesome/lacamoire-the-room-where-it-happens Mike Elizondo

Hamilton director Tommy Kail is back again this week and I am reminded, by Tommy, that no one thinks I'm laid back. In this episode Tommy talks about the casting process including how Hamilton has the feeling of a family reunion, and he gives his opinion on what happens in the very last moment of the show. In non-Hamilton related topics, Tommy tells the story of how he and Lin-Manuel Miranda ended up in the Sex and the City movie, his experience directing Grease LIVE!, and why "Mona Lisa" by Slick Rick is a defining song for him.  The West Wing Weekly: Hamilton Special (with Lin-Manuel Miranda and Thomas Kail) Grease: Live Is The Word Grease LIVE! Freddy My Love Slick Rick - "Mona Lisa"

That's Thomas as in KAIL. YES! TOMMY. KAIL. CAME. OVER. It was super fun and we are naturally at 1.5x speed. Tommy tells me all about the upcoming Hamilton exhibition in Chicago, opening this November, and how the job of a director changes (or doesn't) as a production evolves. We bond over It's a Wonderful Life, Tommy reminds cast members who are alums of The Hamilcast that he *does* hear the stories they tell, I teach him the correct names of Hamilton songs, and Tommy confirms that he is not in fact Alex Lacamoire. OR IS HE??? He's not, you guys, they just both have really fantastic hair.  Have I mentioned that Hamilton and In The Heights director and all around excellent human Thomas Kail hung out with me for a few hours? Because it still feels ridiculous.  Freestyle Love Supreme at Joe's Pub: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_MLXaP2q1M Choreographing 'Hamilton': The Meaning Behind the Moves: https://youtu.be/VmYTsOrnWP0  

Hamilton dresser Chris Leary is back to tell us all about why we should all go to Puerto Rico on our next vacation (or help any way we can), how the energy at Hamilton is always changing, and that one time the turntable broke during My Shot and wasn't fixed until after You'll Be Back, and about a million other things. Hooray! http://hispanicfederation.org/donate/

Chris Leary, dresser at Hamilton on Broadway, and I laugh our way through ALL THE THINGS. Chris gives backstage details from a dresser's perspective, explains how he almost didn't go to the opening night of Hamilton, and proudly declares himself a Tonya Harding truther. We also discuss how excellent he is at Halloween, why I'm #TeamJoanna Jones when it comes to pranks, and we get on the phone with the one and only Lexi Lawson. 

Hamilton Broadway swing Robert Walters is back this week! Robert talks what it's like to be an Australian in a show that has reinvigorated such an interest in American History, he tells us what he yells during The Room Where it Happens, sends love to Karen Olivo and Miguel Cervantes, and!! He does impressions of fellow cast members James Monroe Iglehart, Jevon McFerrin, and Eddy Lee. We had the best time! Enjoy! Miguel Cervantes - 'Til The Calm Comes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqESJUipg98 Original song performed by Miguel Cervantes and some of the cast of Hamilton Chicago. Download the song on iTunes or Google Play. All proceeds go to CURE, Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy. https://www.cureepilepsy.org/news/miguel-cervantes-debuts-new

Robert Walters, a swing in Hamilton on Broadway, is here to drink Robitos (aka mojitos) and tell me about how a boy from Oz made it to Broadway! We talk his Australian roots, work visa woes, his crazy Hamilton audition story, his origins with Hamilton in Chicago, how in love he is with his wife Jen (it's adorable, you guys), and that time he told Alex Lacamoire to piss off. SPOILER: it all ends well, fam! And over the course of his two episodes, Rob and I decide that we were most likely separated at birth.    Trailer for Bootmen:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u33VTEapd04

Andrés Forero is back and we kick off Part Two with questions from Sir Alex Lacamoire himself! We talk a LOT about Yorktown (and Rage Against the Machine, believe it or not), and many of the other tracks on which Andrés made his mark or how Andrés' puts it: “it’s a tiny fingerprint on a little tiny piece of a masterpiece.” And for the first time in the history of The Hamilcast... there are outtakes!    Rage Against The Machine - Guerrilla Radio https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0kJLW2EwMg   Clifford Brown & Max Roach - Delilah https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nt_fmhtePoc    

Andrés Forero is the drummer for Hamilton on Broadway and has known the Hamilton Cabinet since In the Heights. We had so much fun and get ready to feel both super calm and very empowered. In this episode Andrés talks how the band Rush sparked his music career, what it's like being the Jazz Ambassador to the UN, and his journey to Hamilton. We also touch on why neither a life changing car accident nor losing hearing in his left ear don't define the incomparable Andrés Forero.  

Holli Campbell is back and this #FeministHero is once again here to remind us that "there’s a place in the theatre for all of us; if you love it, pursue it.” Holli goes in on how she ended up at Hamilton's opening night (before she even worked there!), the beauty of EduHam, and the importance of following your gut. 

In an entirely unprecedented move, I had to record an Emergency Podcast System to put at the top of an already completed episode! Join me and my husband Mike as we play and discuss not only April's #Hamildrop, #FirstBurn, but Lin-Manuel Miranda's very first draft of Burn! We talked about the draft during #Lintoberfest and thanks to LMM's endless generosity and awesomeness, The Hamilcast is the only place you can hear this unreleased draft. Needless to say, we lost our minds and you will too. Enjoy! Download and stream "First Burn" on your favorite music platform and head over to www.hamildrops.com for all things Hamildrops. /// Hamilton Broadway's Associate Company Manager Holli Campbell stopped by to drop alllllll the knowledge about how Hamilton runs smoothly, from Broadway to the growing number of companies. From what a company manager does to breaking down all the types of tickets and how to get them (yes!), Holli proves that you don't have to be on stage to be heavily involved in theatre.  HAMILTON Ham4H

Donald Webber, Jr. is back and things get insane, man! Donald walks us through the crazy schedule for ensembles, swings, and understudies. He also gives an in-depth analysis of the relationship between Hamilton and Angelica (in Hamilton the musical), and we rap the "Guns and Ships" and "Washington On Your Side" raps. 

The inimitable Donald Webber, Jr of Hamilton Broadway is on the podcast for two suuuuper fun episodes. In Part One, we discuss Clousé Michael Jeeves (the finest tablecloth puller in all of America), Hamilton vs. Jefferson, his friendship with Leslie Odom, Jr, and treating the Cabinet Battles like a wrestling match. AND! Donald makes a very big announcement... but don't - ahem - wait for it! Listen to the episode to find out what it is.    Sherie René Scott in "Coming Out of Their Shells"   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu-uNKZYmhI   Whorl Inside a Loop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I66bXaPUyPc

Joanne Freeman's rainy Friday night hang continues for a second episode and I am here for every history spoiler, detail, and piece of insight she has to offer: from Alexander Hamilton's actual birthday, to Lin-Manuel Miranda's artistic freedoms, and who actually put a comma after dearest. Plus! Joanne explains what it was like to see Hamilton for the first time and slowly realize that Ten Duel Commandments was based on findings from her book Affairs of Honor. 

Dr. Joanne Freeman is the leading expert on Alexander Hamilton, a professor at Yale University, and the best person to hang with on a rainy Friday night. You probably know her at the badass historian from PBS' Hamilton's America in which she called Hammy "an arrogant, irritating asshole." In Part One Joanne talks about living in a post Hamilton world when Hamilton himself has been in her world since she was 14 years old, how a dueling gun actually goes CLICK-BOOM, and what it was like when Lin-Manuel Miranda stopping by her birthday party to pick up one of her books for research.  Hamilton's America on PBS:  http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/hamiltonfullfilm/5801/