Hamilton Was So Radical That Leslie Odom Jr. Signed Up On The Spot

Hamilton was so radical that Leslie Odom Jr. signed up on the spot. Back in 2015, Odom Jr. originated the role of Aaron Burr in the award-winning hit musical, written by Lin Manuel Miranda. Odom Jr. also portrayed Burr in the Disney Plus film adaptation that premiered earlier this year.

What truly makes Hamilton so revolutionary is the fact that the musical tells the story of America through a cast comprised of POC actors and actresses, with Odom Jr. among them. History has already been written by the very moment Hamilton begins. Burr narrates the show and admits in the opening number that he was the man who shot and killed Alexander Hamilton in a tragic duel. Odom Jr. also said he believed Burr narrates Hamilton because he’s in purgatory and was trying to retell the story to learn from his mistakes and move on. Thanks to Odom Jr.’s masterful performance, Burr’s story is just as compelling as Hamilton’s and definitely just as tragic.

Odom Jr. told an audience at the UB’s 34th Annual Distinguished Speaker Series (via Cinemablend) that he was a fan of Hamilton before he was cast. He initially saw the musical when it was still being workshopped as The Hamilton Mixtape. Read below about the moment Odom Jr. realized he was witnessing something extraordinary.

“I have never in my life seen four men of color on a stage singing about friendship and brotherhood. I thought that was radical. I thought it was important and I signed up right then and there to be the very first Hamilton fan.”

The moment Odom Jr. is referring to is the song, “The Story of Tonight,” where Hamilton, the Marquis de Lafayette, Hercules Mulligan, and John Laurens reaffirm their friendship and declare, “Tomorrow there’ll be more of us!” It’s a simple yet beautiful moment in the musical. Like Odom Jr. says, the song is so special because it involves four men of color singing about brotherhood and friendship, all while portraying key figures crucial to America’s founding.

Odom Jr. was so moved by such a rare moment of diversity in theater that he coined it “radical.” Still, it’s also incredibly crucial that Hamilton committed to that “radical” route and cast people of color for all of the show’s leading roles. Diversity is something that all forms of media should strive to achieve. Hamilton pulled it off with aplomb, in such a way that should inspire musicals, movies, and television shows from this point forward to step away from whitewashing and embrace inclusivity. Historically Aaron Burr was quite the scumbag, but Leslie Odom Jr.’s incredible portrayal easily made any audience member feel sorry for Burr’s circumstances, even after the terrible duel with Hamilton.

There is no doubt that Leslie Odom Jr. earned his Tony Award for best actor for his incredible portrayal of Aaron Burr in Hamilton. Audience members would never have been able to see Odom Jr.’s tour-de-force performance without Hamilton’s commitment to diverse casting. There will never be another show quite as radical as Hamilton, mainly in part due to Odom Jr.’s take on a man who just wanted to be in the room where it happened.

Source: Cinemablend