![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I had registered to be informed when the second release of tickets for Hamilton was announced. I wasn't desperate to see it, but with the amount of interest surrounding the production it seemed at least interesting. So when booking opened I thought I'd see if I could get a ticket at a price I was prepared to pay for when I was in London. Single tickets are sometimes easier to find and I was lucky and found a seat in the back row of the Gallery. So Hamilton was added to my list of activities for my London break.
Hamilton is staged in the newly revamped Victoria Palace Theatre. Cameron Mackintosh has done a really good job with the theatre. Even from right at the back I could see and hear perfectly. There are plenty of toilets (yes, them again - but if you've queued for ages for one in the old style theatres you'll understand) and the bar area was comfortable. One of Mackintosh's stated objectives was to make theatre going enjoyable for everyone, and not just those in the posh seats.
Much has been made of the security regarding Hamilton tickets: the need to produce the booking email plus the card used for booking which will be scanned before a seat ticket is issued, etc. The system worked very well, appealling greatly to my competency needs. And proved what can be done if you make the consumer most important (and which some other organisations could benefit from learning).
Of course, given all the hype there was always the fear I wouldn't enjoy it. But I did. I'm a fan of old fashioned musicals, and although this is in no way the same there are certain principles which are carried over. It was fun, it was enjoyable, it told a story. Normally I will go into a production 'cold' with no idea what will happen, but this time I read the programme while waiting for it to start which was helpful, since it provided the background to some of the events which made things easier to follow. I also had a sense that it wasn't told as a revelatory story, but as one where the events were already known.
Whilst the actor playing Hamilton didn't particularly grab me, I thought Giles Terera as Aaron Burr was brilliant. And amongst the rest of the excellent cast I particularly enjoyed Michael Jibson as King George and Obioma Ugoala as George Washington.
I'd definitely recommend seeing the production - it's a really good evening out.
Hamilton is staged in the newly revamped Victoria Palace Theatre. Cameron Mackintosh has done a really good job with the theatre. Even from right at the back I could see and hear perfectly. There are plenty of toilets (yes, them again - but if you've queued for ages for one in the old style theatres you'll understand) and the bar area was comfortable. One of Mackintosh's stated objectives was to make theatre going enjoyable for everyone, and not just those in the posh seats.
Much has been made of the security regarding Hamilton tickets: the need to produce the booking email plus the card used for booking which will be scanned before a seat ticket is issued, etc. The system worked very well, appealling greatly to my competency needs. And proved what can be done if you make the consumer most important (and which some other organisations could benefit from learning).
Of course, given all the hype there was always the fear I wouldn't enjoy it. But I did. I'm a fan of old fashioned musicals, and although this is in no way the same there are certain principles which are carried over. It was fun, it was enjoyable, it told a story. Normally I will go into a production 'cold' with no idea what will happen, but this time I read the programme while waiting for it to start which was helpful, since it provided the background to some of the events which made things easier to follow. I also had a sense that it wasn't told as a revelatory story, but as one where the events were already known.
Whilst the actor playing Hamilton didn't particularly grab me, I thought Giles Terera as Aaron Burr was brilliant. And amongst the rest of the excellent cast I particularly enjoyed Michael Jibson as King George and Obioma Ugoala as George Washington.
I'd definitely recommend seeing the production - it's a really good evening out.
