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Williamsburg High School for Architecture and Design

Redefining Career & Technical Education in New York City Since 2009

You are here: Home / The Column / WHSAD Students Attend Hamilton Performance

WHSAD Students Attend Hamilton Performance

February 13, 2023 By Sheena Luke

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On February 1st, US History students attended Hamilton, a Broadway performance, and were able to experience the lights, songs, and immersive theatrics of it all. Hamilton, a musical following the life of founding father, Alexander Hamilton, focuses mostly on the time period surrounding the American Revolution. Despite the questionable historical accuracy, the show cites several historical documents, many written by or contributed to by Hamilton himself. Some of these documents were made familiar to students in US history, building context and a connection between learning and the arts. 

Some students who attended the event share their experience below:

Alexander Diaz

As a part of the Gilder Lehrman Foundation, WHSAD Juniors were able to experience the Broadway musical of “Hamilton”. The musical is about Alexander Hamilton, from his immigrant origins to Washington’s 2nd hand man. It’s a historic coming of age story with many historical references to its time period, such as the “French Revolution” and “Washington’s Farewell Speech.”

My favorite part of the musical is when the lighting would change whenever a certain feeling or event was portrayed. When Hamilton sings about his hometown and parents being taken away by a hurricane, the light turns blue and gives the illusion that the stage is being flooded. A lot of music genres are fused into the play, and the songs were composed with such love and care.

The last scene where Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton duel is very elaborate, a fist is used to symbolize an oncoming bullet. The bullet seemingly stops and Hamilton reflects on his life/his loved ones/ and his regrets. 

It’s quite an experience that needs to be seen in person, and I’d definitely recommend it if you have the time and interest in plays!

Some cast members sharing their thoughts about the production

Abraham Galindo 

As a part of the Gilder Lehrman Foundation, WHSAD Juniors were able to experience the Broadway Musical of “Hamilton”. The musical is about Alexander Hamilton from his immigrant origins to Washington’s 2nd hand man. It’s a historic story during the founding era of the United States of America. 

My favorite part of the show were dual moments. The moments building up like the music playing and the choreography. The more funny part was the fact that Buddy Angel was referencing how the family is 1-2 in duals. My second favorite moment of the musical however was the little scenes where the king of Great Britain was talking. Those scenes were great fillers and let the audience know the challenges Alexander Hamilton faced. 

The last scene was so heartfelt and so emotional that tears started coming out from the audience. That last scene made you feel you were a part of the moment when Alexander died. That moment right there was why I enjoyed the show . 

I recommend anyone else that knows or knows the story about Alexander to watch the play in person . I hope your experience is great as it was for me. I enjoyed it to the fullest and would be happy to watch the shows again and again.

Before the trip, students attending were required to submit a creative piece relating to the time period of Hamilton. Examples of what these pieces could be are poems, skits or drawings. 

Below are some of these student pieces:

Eliza written by Britney Carryl

By Randi Godley

Second daughter of a wealthy man

She married someone

She could stand

Hamilton, Hamilton

Was her love

For he wrote to her

Though he was unworthy of

After a couple months

Of talking

Back to back

They got married to each other

No turning back

Was his love for her

Entirely true

Or was it influenced by money too?

Marrying a Schuyler

Would give him status

Something he needed

So desperately

He figured it out so,

quickly

When he had wronged her

By sleeping with another

Elizabeth couldn’t find a way

to turn and walk away

She stayed beside him

Loved him so

No matter what he did

She and him were one

Losing a child

And losing a lover

One of the hardest things

A person can face

Both her losses were the same

As they both died from

Having no shame

Though they suffered a lot together

Elizebeth saved his name

Without her, would anyone even care?

Being a widow

She lived for some time

Where she wanted to make impacts

With using funds

Formed the first private establishment for orphans

She did this to honor her husband

Today we regard him as a well known figure

And as the man who didn’t pull the trigger

(Forefront left to right: Jared, Alexander, Abraham) Students found ways to occupy themselves while waiting in line.

Harbor Depths written by Alexander Diaz, Angel Diaz, Jared Birks

As the day melted, tea had been splashing threw the Boston Harbor

One by one, they had been soaking in water and slowly

but surely they would soon drown.

Along with the British sorrows, as just like tea, their economy would have sank.

Although chaos had been spread amongst those participating in the protest,

There was a noticeable amount of respect and pride passing around

One by one, they had loaded onto the boat

Dressed as the locals that has settled here before us

One by one they grabbed boxes and had thrown them onto the harbor

Making splashes, in almost holy and glorifying way

Quite a tragedy it was

Seeing necessities like these brought a solemn tear to my eye

But it had to happen

Tea was simply to needed to be taxed

I collected myself

Tears ran one by one as I exited my domicile into the chaos that was settled

The night sky had settled

But my fellow colonists had continued to discard the tea

Each one of them were dedicated to the matter

Artist Statement: 

My group’s vision from the original outline was to describe the story as if a colonist had been witnessing it first hand. The poem now, to me, visualizes certain aspects of the documents we used. A little bit of everything was used, thanks to the organizer that we were able to come up with. The original title was going to be “Poetic Justice”, but after writing the actual poem, the name simply didn’t match.

Filed Under: The Column

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About Sheena Luke

Hello, my name is Sheena Luke. I am currently a 9th grader attending Williamsburg Highschool for Architecture and Design. Presently, my goals include, primarily focusing on academics and getting situated in some extracurricular studies which may be useful in the future. The hobbies of which I partake in during my free time, consist of drawing, editing, and writing. There isn’t necessarily much to me, however, I do strive in attempting to create a better future for myself.

Click here to read more articles written by Sheena Luke.

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