Maybe it's because I'm an older Black fan of Hamilton, but I do find some of the criticism it receives in certain progressive spaces to be frustrating because it can feel less like genuine engagement with the work and more like a performance of being on the correct side of a conversation.
What stands out to me is that when Hamilton first debuted, many of the same people now criticizing it were celebrating the original Broadway cast. They treated the production, the performers, and the diversity of the show as symbols of cultural progress. But once the conversation around the musical became more complicated, some of those same people seemed willing to dismiss the very artists they had previously elevated.
And I think that misses a fundamental part of what Hamilton was trying to explore. The musical is not simply about famous historical figures. It is about marginalized ambition existing within systems that were never designed to include everyone. The casting is not just a visual change. It is part of the show's central idea: who gets to tell the story of America, who gets to be remembered, and who gets to claim a place within history.
That is why some of these critiques are concerning to me. It can sometimes feel like marginalized people are celebrated when they serve as symbols of progress, but then discarded when engaging with their work becomes inconvenient or politically complicated. The artist becomes less of a person and more of a cultural object that people use to demonstrate their own values.
As someone who wants to create art, that is honestly one of the things I find most troubling. There is a danger in treating marginalized creators as representatives of an idea rather than as artists with their own voices, intentions, and flaws. People should absolutely be able to critique Lin-Manuel Miranda or Hamilton. No artist should be beyond criticism. But there is a difference between thoughtful criticism and simply distancing yourself from something because your social circle has decided it is no longer acceptable to enjoy.
At the end of the day, I think that kind of reaction does more harm than good. The goal should not be proving how morally pure you are compared to everyone else. The goal should be engaging with art honestly, understanding its context, and allowing marginalized creators to be treated as complete human beings rather than as symbols that can be embraced or discarded depending on the cultural moment.
This is some excellent analysis & very well put, thank you!! 👏👏👏
