Monday, November 21, 2016
Hedy Weiss: 'Hamilton' might have moved Pence more sans lecture
Chicago Sun-Times: By now the news has spread far and wide about how both the Broadway and Chicago productions of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Hamilton” became the site of “protests” from both sides of the political spectrum in recent days, with the audience, as well as the actors (in New York), tinkering with “the fourth wall.” So here are a few of my thoughts about the whole thing. They are bound to irritate some and, I hope, make others think about the best way to move forward — not only to curtail “copycat” incidents in the theater, but also to affect developments far beyond the theater in the coming months.
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Does "We will not be silent" mean nothing to you, Hedy Weiss?
Objectively, I understand the logic. I really do. But that logic hinges on century's old standards and ideals of what theatre should be. Hamilton of all musicals has shown us that the only way to honor those who were once innovators is to continue to innovate beyond what they made the expectation. To have turned away from curtain call and ignored Mike Pence would have been as painful to a stage full of diverse artists as waving a white flag and handing over their rights on a silver platter. Lack of acknowledgement would have been an admittance of defeat; instead, Hamilton's cast took the difficult situation as an opportunity to educate someone whose leadership they cannot avoid. It would be nice to do the show as usual and move on with the hope some lasting effect remains, but when the stakes rise so must the performer. Therefore the cast could not afford to run the risk that their show's message may not make it through Mike Pence's thick skull on its own: they had to act. By doing so, rather than desperately holding out hope, they created it.
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