Lin-Manuel Miranda first performed a song from Hamilton, titled “Alexander Hamilton,” at The White House on 12 May 2009, during a poetry event in front of then-President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. 

He told the previous POTUS and FLOTUS that he wanted to create a musical about someone who embodies hip hop, America’s first Treasury Secretary. People laughed. 

Lin wrote the music, lyrics and book for Hamilton: An American Musical, a rap-and-sung biographical musical based on the life of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, his involvement in the American Revolution, and the political history of the early United States. 

Now, the musical, is celebrating its 10th anniversary on Broadway.

“It was not something I thought about when I began writing the first song back in 2008. I just knew that Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton’s life was gripping and made for a great musical. I hoped I could do it justice. It took me just shy of seven years to finish it, and here we are 10 years later,” Lin said in an essay he wrote for Playbill. 

The music, composed between 2008 and 2015, is significantly influenced by hip hop, as well as R&B, pop, soul, and traditional-style show tunes. It depicts non-white actors as the Founding Fathers of the United States and other historical figures.

Hamilton’s success spurred interest in other historical musicals, such as SIX and Treason, demonstrating that history-based productions could be both critically acclaimed and commercially successful. 

“In our show, Hamilton describes legacy as ‘planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.’ But 10 years out, we have gotten a chance to see how Hamilton’s artistic garden is growing. Hamilton has now traveled across the globe. Each new cast has brought something vital and unique to the work,” Lin said. 

Since its premiere in 2015, Hamilton has received an array of accolades, including seven Olivier Awards, the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

In 2016, Hamilton won 11 Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Original Score, Best Direction of a Musical, Best Choreography, Best Leading Actor in a Musical (Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr), Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Renée Elise Goldsberry as Angelica Schuyler), Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Daveed Diggs as Marquis de Lafayette), Best Costume Design of a Musical, Best Lighting Design, Best Choreography and Best Orchestrations. 

The award-winning musical went on its first-ever international tour in 2023, premiering in Manila at The Theatre at Solaire on 17 September. It also held stops at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi in January 2024 and Sydney in March 2021 before touring Melbourne and Brisbane.

“I believe one of the reasons Hamilton continues to connect with audiences is that it evokes something deeper than a historical era up on that stage. In getting to know Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr and Eliza, we experience contrasting visions of how we are meant to spend this one precious life: Do we chase every opportunity, make the most of every minute, shoot our shot? Or are we cautious, willing to wait for the right opportunity, inimitable, original? And finally, there is Eliza with her incredible tenacity and strength in the face of unimaginable loss, her love conquering time itself,” Lin added.

Hamilton died the youngest of the Founding Fathers. He passed as a result of the infamous duel with Vice President Aaron Burr. 

Yet, Hamilton’s story lived on, thanks to the work of his wife, Eliza Schuyler Hamilton. 

The filmed version of the original Broadway production of Hamilton is currently showing in select Philippine cinemas for one week only, starting 1 October. 

The theatrical release of Hamilton expands upon the version available on Disney+ with the inclusion of “Reuniting the Revolution,” an exclusive special prologue to the film featuring all-new interviews with the original cast and creators as they reflect on the impact the show has had on their lives.

The movie version was filmed at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway in June of 2016.