Broadway in Birmingham’s ‘Hamilton’ Still Shines Like a Beacon of Hope, Even in 2026

By Javacia Harris Bowser | The Birmingham Times

I first saw “Hamilton” live in Birmingham in 2023 — three years after watching the Broadway production on Disney+ during the pandemic when we all had to spend the Fourth of July at home. I was utterly captivated each time. But as I prepared to see the hit musical in Birmingham again this week at the BJCC as part of this season’s Broadway in Birmingham series, I wondered if Hamilton would lack the luster that once made it shine.

I also wondered if — considering the division in our country and the threats to democracy we’re facing from our own government — the show’s depiction of our founding fathers as “young, scrappy and hungry” and devoted to liberty would hold up.

As lovers of musical theater know, “Hamilton” is the musical biography of Revolutionary War hero and statesman Alexander Hamilton, created by Lin-Manuel Miranda and based on the Ron Chernow biography. First-time attendees who only know Hamilton as the guy on the $10 bill are in for a history lesson unlike anything they could ever get in a classroom or even from a well-done documentary.

Hamilton uses hip hop, R&B, soul, pop and Broadway show tunes to tell a story of our country’s revolutionary heroes that’s inspiring and fresh, yet still honest about how flawed our country’s forefathers were. We see Hamilton and his contemporaries not as symbols frozen in history but as young and audacious, and sometimes reckless and manipulative, too.

Hamilton, which premiered in 2015, is one of the most successful hits in Broadway history. The musical has won eleven Tony Awards, Grammy and Oliver Awards, and the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

The show’s multicultural cast has always made my heart sing. To me, it’s a visual declaration that people of color belong here. That this is our country no matter what. But I wondered if such notions would feel naive in 2026.

Back in Birmingham

Hamilton returned to Birmingham on September 22 and will be showing at the BJCC through September 27.

Tyler Fauntleroy commands the stage as Hamilton. His voice soars and his energy is infectious. He has all the swagger one needs to pull off the role. His onstage banter with Deon’te Goodman’s Aaron Burr was perfect. Fauntleroy’s repeated “Burr, sir,” delivered with increasing disgust, drew laughs from the crowd every time.

And Goodman’s depiction of Burr was spot on. His cautious and reserved character is the perfect foil for Hamilton. But he proves to be a man with many layers as he reveals he’s desperate to play a bigger role in the building of our young nation. The slow build to the electrifying crescendo of the song “Wait For It” mirrors his character arc, showing he’s eager to one day be in “the room where it happens.”

Auston Henderson is a force as George Washington. Christian Magby is magnetic as both Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson, stealing the show whenever he’s on stage.

Lily Soto brings an emotional depth to Eliza Hamilton’s character that leaves you thinking of her long after the curtain closes. Marja Harmon, as Eliza’s sister, Angelica Schuyler, delivered her rapid-fire lyrics with a precision that would make a rap icon proud.

King George III is always a crowd favorite, and some audience members in Birmingham even came dressed as him. Matt Bittner rose to the occasion — hitting every note, movement and facial expression with perfect comedic timing.

Once again, Hamilton left me mesmerized. Perhaps it’s the writer in me who loves the fact that the whole production — from the lyrics to the music to the movements of the dancers — feels like poetry. And with top-tier performers, it’s hard not to leave impressed.

But, surprisingly, I also left feeling a bit of hope.

Perhaps Hamilton will never lose its luster because it’s not just about Revolutionary War heroes or what it takes to build a nation. It’s about what it takes to build a life. The musical grapples with themes of love and friendship, the cost of ambition, the joy and pain of parenthood, and much more. The show asks what you will do when you know “history has its eyes on you,” and who will tell your story when you’re gone.

Just as Hamilton learns that revolution is easier than governing, we are also reminded that living is harder than dying.

So what will we do with this life and how will we use it to make our country better – even in the darkest times?

If an “immigrant, orphan, son of a whore” could use his words to help shape our nation and become a man we’re singing and dancing about centuries later, perhaps anything is possible. And I don’t know about you, but “I am not throwing away my shot.”

Hamilton presented by Broadway in Birmingham is showing at the BJCC Concert Hall through Sunday, September 27. For tickets and more information, visit bjcc.org.