1776 depicts Massachusetts congressman John Adams (William Daniels) spearheading the effort to declare the United States' independence of Great Britain. In Adams' corner is Benjamin Franklin (Howard Da Silva), Richard Henry Lee (Ron Holgate), and Caesar Rodney (William Hansen). Leading the opposition is John Dickinson (Donald Madden) along with Edward Rutledge (John Cullum).
I've seen a production of 1776 live years ago, but am mostly familiar with the film. I initially watched it on VHS, but it eventually made its way to DVD and Blu-Ray. However, the version I knew on VHS is essentially no more on the later formats: the theatrical version of the film had been edited down to about two hours and twenty minutes. When it was released to DVD, it arrived in a director's cut a full twenty seven minutes longer. The Blu-Ray even added an extended version that added in further deleted scenes for an additional two minutes. The additions make it nearly a complete translation of the musical to a film version, using a full set and costumes versus the limitations of what can be done onstage. A large number of the original Broadway cast members reprise their roles in the film.
The musical and film serve as a reminder that no progress that the United States has ever made has come without debate and hard work and compromise.
While dropping an abbreviated version of a period of American history, Hamilton is ultimately about the power of words, how they affect other people and how our legacies are ultimately broken down into words and the stories told about us.
Hamilton was filmed in 2016 with the original cast, and these sessions were edited into a complete presentation of the show (minus a couple "f-bombs" muted) which was planned for theatrical release next year, but is now available to stream on Disney+.
While the two musicals feature the American Revolution, they're quite different. 1776 takes a more traditional route to being a musical, basically being a drama with some moments punctuated by songs. Some are fun, such as the opening "Sit Down, John," "Piddle, Twiddle, and Resolve," "The Lees of Old Virginia," "But, Mr. Adams," and "The Egg." Then there's the show stoppers: "Momma, Look Sharp," "Molasses to Rum" and "Is Anybody There?" Unlike many musicals, there is no finale number.
Hamilton takes a nearly operatic approach of having nearly every moment sung by the cast (one somber moment near the end of Act I is dialogue only and is not represented on the cast album). While there are slower songs that lend themselves to the traditional musical format, many of them are rapid paced numbers for people capable of singing hip hop. Writer Lin Manuel Miranda (who also originated the role of Hamilton) noted Hamilton's writing and compared him to rap artists and this led to the unusual style for telling the story. This is why much of the cast are people of color who have learned and performed this style throughout their lives. The operatic style makes it harder to point out standout songs as they all go from one to another without a break. Many songs in Act I set up themes that get reprised when story points come back up.
While history mainly notes the men who played out the stories, these musicals try to bring up the women our protagonists knew. A recurring point in 1776 is John Adams' correspondence with his wife Abigail (Virginia Vestoff), which is depicted by the two singing to each other. In the first song "Till Then," John mentions he's asked Abigail to get women to help make saltpeter for the armed forces to use for gunpowder. In "Yours, Yours, Yours," Abigail reminds John of some of the things he's said about her. Finally, in "Compliments," John reminds Abigail of some of the things she's said about him. The song ends with John discovering a shipment of saltpeter that has just been delivered.
In addition, while Thomas Jefferson (Ken Howard) is writing the first draft of the Declaration of Independence, Adams sends for his wife Martha (Blythe Danner), who explains about her husband's wooing of her in "He Plays The Violin." (In actuality, this moment was wholly invented for the play as the very ill Martha had just suffered a miscarriage and would die in a couple years. Coincidentally, Blythe Danner was actually pregnant during filming with a baby that would become Gwenyth Paltrow.)
In Hamilton, there are three principal female performers (there are many dancers and chorus members who are female as well) who play four roles: Elizabeth "Eliza" Schuyler (originated by Philippa Soo), Angelica Schuyler (originated by Renee Elise Goldsberry), and the dual roles of Peggy Schuyler and Maria Reynolds (originated by Jasmine Cephas Jones). The three play sisters in the high energy "The Schuyler Sisters," which introduces them. In "Hopeless," Eliza sings about meeting Hamilton at a party and how they courted and eventually married. This is followed up with "Satisfied," sung by Angelica where she reveals her own feelings for Hamilton and how she denied herself becoming his wife out of love for her sister. (In reality, she was already married.) It is in Act II that we meet Maria Reynolds, who seduces Hamilton into an affair, which her husband uses to blackmail him, forcing him to pay.
Dual roles are used in Hamilton to some great effect. In the original cast, actors Daveed Diggs, Anthony Ramos and Okieriete Onaodowan in Act I play Marquis de Lafayette, John Laurens and Hercules Mulligan, respectively. These men befriend Hamilton early in Act I and also join the army in the effort to defeat Great Britain. In Act II, the three play Thomas Jefferson, Hamilton's son Philip and James Madison. (In the opening number, Diggs and Onaodowan sing "We fought with him," which can be interpreted in different ways for their different characters. Ramos sings "I died for him," which also fits both of his characters.)
The fight of the armed forces is referred to often in 1776 with some of the congressmen taking a trip to see them in action. More regular is dispatches from George Washington detailing what's going on with the forces. A nameless courier delivers them and in a moving song "Momma, Look Sharp" sings about his friends dying in battle. However, the fight is entirely offscreen.
In Hamilton, the fight against Great Britain makes up most the action of the latter half of Act I. In the original cast Christopher Jackson played George Washington, who makes Hamilton his aide-de-camp. Posing as opposition to Washington is King George III (originated by Jonathan Groff) of Great Britain who sings a song that is reprised with lyrical changes twice during the show. While King George is initially the big antagonist of Act I, after his defeat, he also becomes a symbol of England's relationship with the United States.
There are multiple antagonists throughout the show. Aaron Burr (originated by Leslie Odom Jr.) is actually the first voice heard in the show, being depicted as someone Hamilton knew throughout his life. (This is played up a bit for dramatic effect.) In Act II, Thomas Jefferson is introduced as an antagonist to Hamilton who opposes his financial plan, creating the conflict for the opening of Act II. Later, Jefferson becomes an antagonist to Burr himself when they run for president in "The Election of 1800." And of course, Burr turns against Hamilton after he endorses Jefferson, costing Burr the election.
In 1776, the antagonist comes from the conservative members of Congress, chiefly represented by Dickinson and Rutledge. The opposition is largely played up and made more extreme. The vote for Independence is almost rendered dead in the water in the musical when all of the southern delegates walk out in defiance of a clause that would end slavery. In reality, most of the delegates supported removing it. But the debate sets up one of the musical's most chilling songs: "Molasses to Rum," where Rutledge points out that the northern states should not have a clean conscience as they also benefit from the slave trade. In the movie, most of the chamber goes dark, spotlighting Rutledge as he sings of men kidnapping Africans, taking them to the United States and auctioning them off. It's a disturbing song for good reason.
There is also a controversial song that was dropped from the movie version's initial cut but restored for the DVD and Blu-Ray versions: "Cool, Cool, Considerate Men." This song takes place while Adams is away from Congress and Dickinson's opposition party celebrates. The controversy is that they call themselves "conservative," and sing "to the right, ever to the right, never to the left, forever to the right." Richard Nixon believed it reflected poorly on the conservatives at the time and asked producer Jack L. Warner to remove it from the film. Warner actually asked for the negative to be destroyed, but luckily it was saved and is now available in the film's widely available cuts.
Hamilton has also had brushes with presidents. When the show was just an idea for a concept album, Miranda first sang the opening song at the White House Evening of Poetry, Music and the Spoken Word in 2009. Later, president Barack Obama and his wife Michelle would record a video introduction for a performance of a number from the musical for the 2016 Tony Awards. However, later in 2016, vice president elect Mike Pence went to see the musical and after the show, the cast read a respectful address to him, expressing concern that "diverse America" had for the incoming administration of Donald Trump. While Pence said he was not offended, Trump raged against the show on Twitter.
I find it interesting how the two musicals depict some of the same characters. Washington is offscreen in 1776, but John Adams and Benjamin Franklin are only referred to in passing in Hamilton. However, Thomas Jefferson is featured in both shows. In 1776, Jefferson is a quiet member of Congress who longs to return to his wife, initially refusing to write the Declaration on those grounds. In Hamilton, Jefferson is the first person good enough with words to stand up to Hamilton and is very cocky. In 1776, Jefferson claims he's resolved to free his slaves, but this is wholly inaccurate. In Hamilton, Hamilton calls out Jefferson owning slaves and a lyric has him addressing Sally Hemings, a slave that DNA evidence reveals he likely fathered children with.
I've already talked about how slavery played an increased role in the story of 1776. As it's received increased and continued scrutiny, Hamilton has drawn more criticism about how it deals with slavery. Hamilton's friend John Laurens is very much an abolitionist, and Hamilton is depicted as sharing his views in one moment when he sings along with him "We'll never be free until we end slavery." However, historians have pointed out that while it's not known if Hamilton actually owned slaves himself, he certainly worked in the slave trade and helped buy slaves for his friends and family, particularly his father in law Philip Schuyler. His payments to continue his affair with Maria Reynolds has been viewed as treating her as a slave.
So both musicals are guilty of showing some of our founding fathers to be more progressive on slavery than they actually were. While Adams did abhor slavery, he found abolishing it too divisive to present as boldly as he is depicted doing in 1776. Likely in both cases, the writers found this an item to help make audiences support our heroes on, when the reality is different. Unfortunately, this colors audiences' views of history as too progressive when it is important to understand how pervasive this issue was in American history, and the after effects of slavery and the notions that permitted it are still felt in America to this day.
Yet it is difficult to totally condemn either work for these failings. While it is tempting to enjoy a nice musical instead of reading up on history for yourself, these musicals should be seen as gateways to looking into history rather than stopping there.
1776 does have a major criticism in how long it is. The director's cut runs for nearly three hours and really does feel it, even if you do enjoy the musical. It even holds a record for how long it goes without a song as there are several character introductions and a depiction of a day of Congress debates between "The Lees of Old Virginia" and "But, Mr. Adams." Hamilton's filmed production runs six minutes shorter than 1776, but thanks to the pacing and format, it's better at making audiences enjoy the time.
With that said, I enjoy both musicals. I enjoy revisiting 1776 with the more I learn and now I try to listen closely to the dialogue. Hamilton is a brilliant piece of storytelling with great music. Perhaps in looking at our Founding Fathers, we need to remember that while we can learn from them, there is much we have learned since. As 1776's incarnation of Ben Franklin says:
...what would posterity think we were? Demi-gods? We're men, no more no less, trying to get a nation started against greater odds than a more generous God would have allowed.
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